Weird

Hello,
I have a 98 Taurus 178000 kms.
Recently I went out and strted it to let it warm up (Cold up here). It ran for about ten minutes. When I put it in drive it stalled and would not start. About an hour later I tried it again it started and drove just fine. To make a long story short I came to realize that if I drove the car cold it would run no problem. If I let it warm up it would stall and not start for an hour or so.

A mechanic said it waas a dirty throttle body and idel. He cleaned it and took my money, but the problem persists.
I recently discovered that when it stalls if I step on the gas it will start. (not sure if it was just that one time or not.)

Any ideas?

When's the last time the car had a tune-up? If you've never had one performed on the car or don't know, you may want to consider that, be sure the tune up includes a new fuel filter.

Also, you should consider checking the fuel pressure at the fuel rail. Take readings both when you have the problem and when it starts and runs fine in gear.

If the fuel pressure is fine, inspect all vacuum lines and the EGR system. You should also stop by a local auto parts store that reads OBD-II codes at no charge and have them check for pending codes. If it has some, get the code number and post them back here.

An Idle Air Control sounds suspicious here, but I'd expect the symptoms to be opposite (starts and works fine when warm, difficult to start without throttle when cold).

-Rod

I had a tune up about six months ago. But it has gotten even more weird. I noticed that my coolant level was pretty low so I toped it and the oil up and now everything is fine. Would low coolant cause this?

If you hadn't mentioned that you found it would start if you stepped on the throttle, I'd say it's possible. You didn't mention what it does when it won't start (ie: crank, no crank, just a click, etc.). Still would have seemed unlikely to me.

If the coolant temperature sensor is in an air pocket due to the low coolant, the sensor would still be at the same temp (or very close to it) as the coolant after sitting overnight. I'm just not thinking of anything that would cause the car to stall and not restart when warmed up related to coolant level. My brain is a bit fried today though....

-Rod

When it won't start it cranks but won't start until the engin cools down???? Check engin light has never come on.
For what ever reason the problem seems to have gone away.
I am a little nervous as I am afraid that it might come back on a really cold day when I really need the car.
Not sure what to do

Thanks any way
Rod

Some of the information at this thread seems similar to what you are experiencing.

-Rod

Thanks,
Lots of info,
I will keep watching it and try and figure it out next time it happens. It's been almost a week now since the last time. I will see what happens when the temp drops again.

Thanks again