Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting Car wont start

It's done this once before, and it started up after a few minutes and was warmer outside:

Starts up for 1 second, sputters and dies. It cranks over just fine when I turn the key, but it doesn't "catch." It kinda sputters when it's cranking over, too. I'll try starting it again once it gets warm. It was really cold last night when I tried to get her going. Also, the car hasn't been driven for a few days. Any help/ideas would be appreciated.

I'm not a pro at this, but my parent's 3 of my parent's F-150s did this a time or two after not being driven. The dealership said that there could be condensation in the fuel lines. After letting it sit for awhile it was fine. This sometimes happened when the temps were below 20 degrees, which isn't that cold.

Try it again later, if it doesn't start by turning the key; try to pop-start it. Put the key in the "run" position, try to get it rolling forward, put it into first, with the clutch depressed, pop it out all the way. If the car starts push the clutch back in to keep it running.

Water or condensation could freeze thus blocking the gas flow. Once you get the car started, add some dry gas or antifreeze for gas to your gas tank. Another possible is the fuel filter may need to be replaced.

yeah, i'm thinking "heat" is an order. Fuel filter...not a bad idea, too. THX.

The exact same thing has happened to me twice. The first time it had a full gas tank and was in a heated garage. Second time it was outside in the cold. I don't think it is the filter because I only have 17K miles on it. The only way I could get it started was hold the accelerator to the floor while cranking it. Once started it ran fine.

A sticking IAC (idle air control) can cause this as well. There seems to be a lot of IAC failures during cold weather. Try cleaning your throttle body and the IAC.

Fuel Filter should be changed at least every 20,000 miles.