2003 Ford Taurus

Asked by NeedHelp2017 Jun 05, 2017 at 10:18 PM

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

Bought a 2003 Ford Taurus for my sons
16th birthday. The car ran and drove but
the alternator seemed to be failing so I had
someone replace it for me with a rebuilt
one before it went out on me. No other
starting issues at this time. Once they
replaced the alternator, the car would
crank but wouldn't start, then it stopped
cranking at all. So they said it could be the
crank sensor. So I paid them to replace
that. Still no crank, no start. I go down to
check on my car, my battery is missing
they have "no clue" where it went. Tried to
say I didn't have one when they pulled it in.
So at this point I pull my car out and say
they aren't messing with it anymore. So I
buy a new battery and when I pop my
hood to install the battery I notice the
cover to one of my relay switches is broke
off. I squeeze the sides and the car cranks,
but no start. I go into the car and try to
start with the key, no crank no start. I do
some research and see a lot of stuff
pointing to the electrical part of the ignition
switch. So I replace that myself. Put key in,
no crank no start. Go back under the hood
and start examining the fuse box some
more. When I pull the white relays out, I
notice under the fuel pump relay, and the
pcm power relay looks brown as if the relay
had burnt out. So I unplug all the white
relays, examine those to see if any look
"burnt" or discolored. Couldnt really tell so
I chose the best looking  two and plugged
them into those two slots and left all others
unplugged because the diagram showed
the other relays were running things like ac
and wipers. So I go inside the car put my
foot on the brake turn the key over and it
cranks from the key. Felt like it was going
to start but didn't.  I kept cranking and ran
my battery dead. So I gave up for the
night. I can't tell if the fuel pump is even
kicking on because of all the interior dings
when the key is turned over. I bought a
multimeter but I don't know how to use it
lol. Any help would be greatly appreciated!!

5 Answers

The seat belt dinger will be quiet if you close the door and latch the seat belt. Turn the key on but not to start and listen carefully for the fuel pump hum. Checking the fuel pressure is a good idea. You may need a new fuse box with all that damage.

Thank you for your response. Is it possible to install the alternator incorrectly? If so what damage could it cause? If I would have known they didn't know what they were doing I would have let someone else work on it.

You will need fuel pressure gauge which you can buy at your auto parts store. There is a fitting on the fuel injection rail where you can check the pressure. I do think you are way in over your head so you probably should have a pro look at it (you should have had a pro look at it before buying).

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