Engine will not start

[Ron Johnson]

I am located in a large unused parking lot in Willis Texas so we are safe. We arrived here. went away in the towed  for an hour came back to find the engine running. [Guess I had left it on]. I turned it off, hooked the car up and when I tried to start the engine it would not fire. The dashlights come on, the headlights are fine however the glowplug light does not come on in the dash and the engine will not fire. The Coachnet guy suggested I check all the fuses however unless there is a hidden fuse panel somewhere it seems to be all relays and I don't know how to tell if a relay has gone bad. I have looked under the dash, in the battery compartment and in the electrical compartment up front on the driver's side. I have called Coachnet back and waiting for their response.

The chassis batteries are charged, the gearshift is in neutral, I tried starting the Coach from the back position but no joy.

If Joel or someone else with the same Coach [2000 Patriot Thunder] can help with the fusebox location [if there is one] I'd sure appreciate it. Plus any other ideas would be most welcome. Thanks for any help  ... Ron

[Steve Huber Co-Admin]

Ron,
Does the engine turn over? If so, I would focus on a fuel problem. Do you have fuel in the tank? If so, you may want to check the fuel filters. You may also want to check to see if the serpentine belt is OK. I had a starting  problem on the Contessa caused by the A/C compressor pulley freezing up which caused enough drag on the belt to prevent the starter from turning the engine to a high enough RPM to start.
If it isn't turning over, could be a fuse. I think (not sure) that the fuse module is located in the battery compartment. Should have 3-5 fuses plus a relay
Steve

[Steve Huber Co-Admin]

Ron,
Regarding leaving the engine running; I have a very intermittent problem on my Marquis that I haven't been able to track down. I can turn the ignition switch off but the engine will continue to run until I turn off the dash AC. I know of one other coach that also does this.
Steve

[Dave Blystone]

when we went to the balloon festival our cat 330 wouldn't start.  we call a tow truck and when he came he said lets make the coach start.
the tow driver  crawled on top of the  motor  and reached down on  the passenger  side and wiggled the cpu  then he pushed it in and up.  after that he said start it up  I tried and it started
second time it woulnt start I was in fla  and I called a service man he found a corroded wire in one of the cannon plugs in the electoral bay  driver side  front   good luck
    dave and edie blystone
    2001 patriot
    330 cat.

[Keith Moffett]

Ron, to help we need info.  What happens when you turn the key?  Nothing at all?  Or the starter engages but barely turns the motor?  Motor turns over normaly but no ignition?
Meanwhile, a friend with a C9 had a similar problem.  The crankcase vent tube was too close to the starter and since they were running in one place the vent clogged the contacts on the starter.  A very dangerous fix is to turn the key and have someone turn the harmonic balance at the same time.  The tow truck driver nearly lost his fingers in the belt so be careful.
I am hoping Gerald or someone has better advice than mine.
An empty lot at night?  Might it be good to talk to the police and tell them you are broke down and ask them to drive by hourly?
Be safe, God bless

[Gerald Farris]

Ron,
Like several others here have said, we need more information to properly advise you on your problem. If you would like to discuss the problem instead of writing post back and forth, my phone # is 713-254-4156.

Gerald

[Mike Humble]

A few years back Mike Cleghorn had a similar problem and was able to start the engine from the rear start.  I don't remember what the problem was.
Mike

[Ron Johnson]

Thanks everyone for your help and suggestions. I got on the phone with Gerald yesterday and while I was lying underneath the rig testing the solenoid terminals while my wife was pressing the back start button .... the engine started scaring the crap out of both of us. Earlier I had tapped the starter and solenoid with a hammer and I think the 4th or 5th start attempt just worked. We proceeded on up the interstate for 5 hours and made our destination for the next week. I noticed when I turned the ignition switch on to lower the jacks that the 'glowplug' light is now coming on so assume the engine will start. I realize this intermittant problem could happen again but I am hoping it will be good for a few months 'til we get off the road for a while and I can take the starter and solenoid to an electrical shop for a rebuild.

Thanks to Gerald for having the patience to put up with my ignorance of things mechanical and electrical. I do OK but my background is not mechanical. Thanks to this Forum and Members for help and suggestions. I told a new Beaver owner the best thing he could do was to join this Forum and just proved it to myself again this weekend.

[Keith Moffett]

Glad to hear it Ron and way to go Gerald.....again!