1995 won't start??

Hi there I just got my 1995 ford escort running again, I just had to put a new clutch in and it was running fine, I put about 50 mi. at most on it and all was good. I just tried to teach my Brother in law how to drive a stick and of course he stalled it one time, no big deal i say just restart it, he turned the key and nothing happened, I tried to start it and same thing. we got it push started and drove about a mile to home I shut it off and tried to start it with the key and still nothing. any Ideas? I can hear the fuel pump start and i hear a faint noise like a solenoid or something. any help is GREATLY appericated. thank you


P.S. how do I releive the fuel pressure so I can change the fuel filter??? thnks again

First - If you don't have a Haynes repair manual, I recommend getting one. It should be less than $20 at your local parts store. It's got the procedure for relieving fuel pressure as well as troubleshooting the starter.


Second - starter not working.
Check the fuse for the starter.
Check the starter solenoid. Does it click when your turn the key to "start"?
Check the neutral safety switch (located on the clutch pedal.)
Do you have a floor mat that is preventing the clutch pedal from being fully depressed? That might have an impact on the safety switch.

Third - fuel line pressure.
As far as relieving the fuel line pressure, the Haynes manual says (I'm paraphrasing now) to start the engine, and while it is idling, pry the red button up on the fuel inertia switch with a screwdriver. (The inertia switch should be on the passenger side behind a trim panel in the trunk. There may be an access panel depending on your Escort model.) If there is no button, disconnect the wiring harness to the inertia switch. Once the engine stalls, crank it again for a few seconds to make sure there's no residual pressure. Note that there is still fuel in the lines, but no pressure.

Oh yeah, the manual recommends wearing safety glasses and having a class B fire extinguisher ready.

You will have gas dripping out the hoses and fuel filter when you disconnect the two, so be forewarned.

And when you're done, don't forget to press the red button back down to reset the inertia switch.

If you had to remove the starter for the clutch job then make sure the bolts are tight. That grounds the starter. Also make sure you reconnected the ground cable that goes to the transmission.

I think I should add that I am not the guy who put the clutch in, I am not a mechanic, I can handle basic stuff but the clutch was way beyond my ability. Is the starter something that is fairly easy to remove?

Go to www.autozone.com and look at the free repair guide for your car. Read the procedure for replacing the starter while looking at the starter and decide if the job is for you.

The starter is beneath the intake manifold where the engine and tranny meet...it is very easy to reach from underneath if you have the means of getting the car high enough to get under there, otherwise you may have to pull the battery and a couple other items to get to it from the driver side fender.

Personally, I am more suspect of your battery... if the car was taken aprt for any length of time your battery may have gone down the dumper. Have you tried using jumper cables? Before you get too far in to taking things apart try to give the car a boost and see what happens.

I tried jumping it but same problem. My wife told me that she also drove the car and stalled it too, she got it to start but only after she "waited a minute" Does that change anything?

Dirty battery connections or a bad ground.

Check the clutch interlock switch(neutral safety), as the previous poster said, first. You can bypass the the switch to test if that's the problem. this means connecting the two leads that run to the switch. Be Careful! If you eliminate the switch the car will start without having to push in the clutch. READ THAT AGAIN!!! THE CAR WILL START WITHOUT HAVING THE CLUTCH DEPRESSED! THAT MEANS IT WILL START IN GEAR! Make sure that you have the trans in neutral and the e-brake set. I don't mean to 'yell', but I don't want you driving over anything or anybody. If you do this and it still doesn't crank then you know something else is going on. Let us know what you find. MM