ford focus(2002) wagon cold weather starting problems

hey there guys n gals...not sure if im posting in the right spot or not but here goes...dad is having problems with his focus 2002 wagon seems in cold weather the damn thing just wont start ..and thats even when plugged in....has been serviced and they keep saying that there is nothing wrong with the car...anyone can help would be greatfull....trying to get this info from ford is like pulling teeth thanks in advance

  dadscar

What do you mean by doesn't start? Does it turn over? Details, details details :wink2:

  chris_knows

does absolutely nothin no turn ove no click car has to be towed then when warms up works finethey have plug in for those really cold nights but doesnt always work dealer says theres no problem with the car

  dadscar

I don't think the block heater would be the problem...my mom will only plug hers in every once in a while, but the point of it is to shorten the time the car needs to warm up on a cold morning.

I can't think of anything for what may be wrong with your car. Why not go to your mechanic, and check if the battery/alternator are working...

  chris_knows

What do you mean by ´plugged in´...a battery charger?.....is it only due to hard winters you do that....I´m assuming that´s what you mean lol. Oh, and do you have ignition lights when you turn the key?....so how does one warm a car up to start it....if it doesn´t start in the first place...?...I can only assume you mean when the weather warms up lol :thumbs:

I´ll move this btw :thumbs:

  Cliffy

He means a block heater...Pretty common in Canada...it keeps the engine warm overnight (or any period of time) while the car isn't running. This leads to the engine starting warmer in the morning, and you don't have to wait. Not sure how it exactly works (never really looked into it)...but that's the general idea behind one there :thumbs:

  chris_knows

thanks for the responses....tyeh the car is being plugged in at night due to sharp drops in night time temps (-28 for last couple nights days)....when key is turned absolutely nothing no lights, no power at all no go..... my step mom works for the car dealership where the vehicle was purchased... they have looked at it twice for this, and in fact have it right now, but they still saying nothing is wrong...lucily parents were at staff xmas party when car did it again.owner lent them his wifes car..thanks

  dadscar

Why not give her a push start?...If nothing works, it could be from where the key goes in...then again it could be a lot of things...

  chris_knows

ok...should have talked with dad before posting...step mom didnt mention....car initially starts runs for 2 min then dies and will not start...oh should also mention dad had been mechanic for last 4o odd years and it has him baffled dad well lets just say hes getting on and has the occasinal i cant remeber...and im not a driver so whats under the hood is a mystery to me...lol

  dadscar

any temps below zero i plug my car in, electricity for the night is cheap, having a frozen motor everytime you start usually leads to problems after a while, in the Yukon it was not uncommon to have a block heater(for chrisknows it's basically like the element on your stove and it's stuck into the block in a coolant passage to keep the coolant warm)a battery blanket and an oil pan heater so warm battery, warm oil, and warm coolant, at -40 it sure helps to get to work on time, as for the focus not starting, we need more info on the situation, fuel pump problems tend to show up more in extremes of heat or cold, but you have to check the basics and make sure you know what isnt working before you attempt to diagnose the problem, if it cranks and fires we can probably rrule out battery and starter, although a bad battery will cause many different problems on computer controlled vehicles. and then when it doesnt start you need to figure out a few things is it getting/making spark? is it getting fuel and at what pressure, then to the harder stuff and more expensive tools.

  BanffAutoSpa_ap

He says:


:wink2:

BTW Thanks for clearing up the block heater thing :thumbs:

  chris_knows

and then he says


"ok...should have talked with dad before posting...step mom didnt mention....car initially starts runs for 2 min then dies and will not start...oh should also mention dad had been mechanic for last 4o odd years and it has him baffled dad well lets just say hes getting on and has the occasinal i cant remeber...and im not a driver so whats under the hood is a mystery to me...lol"

and no i dont know how to quote. so ha

  BanffAutoSpa_ap

I see...I seem to have misread that :ohcrap:

But would it kill you to write in proper English, dadscar? :wink2:

  chris_knows