Ok, did a quick search, but couldn't find any threads that match my problem.
Went to start my se the other morning and, it took a few more cranks than normal, but she started. Went in to grab my coffee, and when I returned, the add coolant light was on with the warning alarm sounding. I shut it down and checked the coolant. Level was fine...just flushed and filled it about 4 months ago. Tried to start it again and it just gave me a strange sound (like the begining of a crank but without the full rotation). Tried again with the same result. The battery is new/good charge. The fan spun...but no start? Was thinking about trying to push start it...??? I don't know, any advice would be much appreciated.

 

did you check the plugs and see if they were gas fouled?

 

Not yet, but will tomorrow. Actually the plugs have only been in for ~8mo's, but definitely worth the check. What do you think would have caused the "add coolant" warning?

 

If it wasn't fully warmed up, it likely is flooded. The SE is prone to flooding when started for just a short time, then shut off.
Coolant light could have been tripped by just a slightly low coolant level. Mine will sound off when less than 1 cup low. Gets real annoying at the autox.....

 

Thanks Rogue. I'll see what I can do tomorrow, and as always, be back with more questions.

 

Seconds to that,mine starts chiming even if it's only 8th of an inch below the filler neck,it's a right pain in the ***,although I probably wouldn't say that if I cooked my engine so I let it be!

 

On the coolant light issue. Make sure there is no corrosion on the connector to the sensor.

Also check the coolant reservoir bottle is full and the hose that goes to it is not pinched or has a hole in it.

As far as the starting problem, will give more info once we here back from you and you have checked the basics.

 

I do have a bit of corrosion on the sensor connector. Cleaned it up a bit, and it doesn't apear to be corroded through. Worth replacing it?? Also, the plugs look fine, but she still won't start. Same "half crank" sound and now my battery is getting low. I'll hook up the jumper cables up for the next attempt. If it's flooded, what should I do...keep on trying to turn it over? Could it be a starter issue? I'm at a loss. Any advice?

 

Don't worry about the sensor at this point.

Engine is not going to start if you don't have ample cranking speed. You need to recharge the battery and have it checked to verify there isn't a problem with it.

What color are the plugs?

If it is flooded then you need to de-flood it.
You need to cover the basics when it comes to diagnosing why any engine will not start.
Is there fire to both the leading and trailing plugs?
Is the fuel pump working?
Plugs can look fine but still be bad. If it has been awhile since you have replaced them, then now is a good time to do so.
Verify the above mentioned items before you attempt to restart.
The procedure for checking the fuel pump is in the FSM. I recommend you download a copy for reference. It can be accesed thru member trochoid profile. He has a link there.

 

Thanks Doc. I'll post the results of my check.

 

if it keeps flooding you may have it disconnect the fuel pump try to start car as soon as the engine starts to crank connect the pump this may take a few tries . the ecu may not be picking up the correct amount of fuel to the system . i know we had the same problem when we did the swap.

 

Finally got back to the 7. Checked the fuel pump and it's operating fine. Charged the battery, and attempted to start it with the same result as before. However, this time when I pulled the plugs, they were definitely fuel fouled. I checked the archive and found lots of postings for flooded engines...maybe too many. Taking them into account my plan is: disconnect the fuel pump. Turn it over with a jumper vehicle for 5-10 seconds. (found a thread that said to do this with the plugs out, is this right??) Then install new plugs, reconnect the fuel pump and try to start it again. If this fails (and the plugs are not fuel fouled) have my buddy tug me down the road in a push/pull start attempt. Anything I missed that might improve my chances? She flooded pretty bad. (thanks for the advice on cheking the pump Doc!)

 

I know this might sound crazy, but it could be that the positive battery cable is corroded....I know this cause its happened to me, i bought a new starter, new battery and still wouldn't crank, the wire however was.....well.....22 years old. New cable was like 10 bucks took minutes to install and since all the other stuff was brand new it started with no problems! I guess you could check for resistance between the terminals on the wire with a volt meter but a new cable is cheap enough and its one less thing to worry about down the road.

 

What I do is hold a piece of white paper up to the plug holes, when there is no more fuel hitting the paper then she is de-flooded.

Have you verified that the leading side is firing?
Also, Turn the key to the on position and listen for the fuel pump. If you can hear it then the AFM door is either stuck open or the AFM is bad.

 

[QUOTE=rx7doctor;7346522]What I do is hold a piece of white paper up to the plug holes, when there is no more fuel hitting the paper then she is de-flooded.

Have you verified that the leading side is firing?
Also, Turn the key to the on position and listen for the fuel pump. If you can hear it then the AFM door is either stuck open or the AFM is bad.[/QUOTE

I definetely have spark and I couldn't hear anything from the fuel pump with the key in the on position. However, I used the white paper technique (very cool by the way) and cleared the excess fuel while the pump was disconnected. I installed the new plugs, tried to fire it up...almost got it to turn over, then nothing. When I pulled the plugs, they were fuel fouled again?? Any ideas? Thanks.

 

Do the procedure again. This time have a jumper vehicle hooked up to your battery for extra cranking speed.

Make sure that the air intake hose that goes from the AFM to the T/body has not come loose anywhere especially where the 2 pieces connect.
.
Also verify that the Coolant temp sensor at the back of the water pump housing is still plugged in.

 

Victory!! I left the jumper vehicle on the battery for about 10 minutes before attempting to start. Also, I disconnected the battery for a while prior to this in hopes of resetting the computer. I don't know if this helped...but she started, and smoked like mad! Thanks for the help! By the way, the coolant light is off too?