SLOW cranking when engine warmed up

I was having trouble with the generator starting and the lift gate moving. Also a ground problem in several places. I did the same and ground off the rust and polished all the wire ends on a wire wheel and no problems since.

Rust and corrosion are the gremlins of vehicle electrical systems. That is why I suggested tracing all the wires and checking all the connections.


We really do enjoy our camping but sometimes that is not conducive to rust prevention. The rig is out in the elements and if you happen to camp on or near the beach, live in a coastal area or live where road salt is used then you will have rust problems.

This causes electrical problems as well as others such as the other thread here where the brake line ruptured on a Toyota Pickup. Probably rust. Truck lives where the roads are salted.

Checking all the connections is the least expensive step as this can be done by the owner. It just takes time and determination. Hopefully the OP will report back here with the results of the investigation.

I had a 1994 Coronado By Fleetwood 454 engine. It would do the exact same think, got stranded on the road, service center put on a new starter did not help, when I got home went to a local auto electrical shop it took them all day but they found the ground cable to the chassis was rusted, used a grinder on the chassis hooked back up no more trouble and I had a new starter that I didn't need.

Roy

Next time it does this try your boost switch and see if the engine starter cranks faster with the extra batteries in the circuit.
I know that GM engines had a problem with various exhaust components being close to the starter and over time that heat tends to affect the starter operation. I don't know if Ford has this same problem but if all of your batteries doesn't help the starter you may want to check to see if it is getting hot from your exhaust system routing.

K Charles wrote:
You say new batterIES on the generator, how many batteries does the generator need? Did you put in a new battery for the chassis?

He said the generator fires right up.. The generator is often connected to the house batteries and usually there are, depending on your point of view Two Six Volt GC-2 or one BIG 12 volt consisting of two Six Volt GC-2 in series (That is how you should think of them by the way... As one BIG 12 volt Answers a lot of questions if you do that)

Now to the starting problem (Which is the main engine)

Might be any of the following. but first a question:
When you let it sit and cool off, does it then re-start WITHOUT any special charging of the battery?

IF SO, you have a bad starter most likely.

Other suspects: Bad connections, alternator and battery.
Connections first (Clean the terminals, check and re-tighten grounds)

Then Battery (Cause it's easier to pull it and take it in for testing)

When you say battery is dead after a few minutes of running are you referring to the engine battery?

If so then you should check all the wiring from the battery all the way back to the starter motor. You should also check the connections at the alternator and from there back to the battery.

If all of that is good then you need to check the amperage/voltage exiting the alternator.

There could be a number of reasons for this. It could be that the connections somewhere are broken or corroded. It could be the alternator has failed. It could be a bad fuse somewhere.

Back in the old days, before computers we used to start the engine and remove the cable from the battery. If the engine died then we knew the alternator was bad. Not sure if that is a good idea with all the computer controlled components on modern vehicles.

If it were mine a gentle tug on the connections would be the start. Then I would remove all the connections from the alternator to the battery and clean and dielectric grease them. I would also clean and grease all the connections to the starter motor.

If that did not solve the problem I would have (or would do myself) the alternator tested.

Check all terminals including the battery boost switch solenoid if equipped that takes energy from your house batteries to start the motor.
If the boost switch is working then the house batteries should make the engine crank very well.

You say new batterIES on the generator, how many batteries does the generator need? Did you put in a new battery for the chassis?