This has happened three times now and almost a fourth. The first time I was going 20 mph and it died. The gauge cluster and all other electrical systems stayed functional, the RPMs just dropped to 0 and I had no power. I pulled over, placed into park and it started right back up. About three weeks later (yesterday) I was getting onto the freeway and while accelerating on the on-ramp it died, same as before. Gauge cluster and other electrical worked, RPMs dropped to 0, no power. I pull over and put into park, only this time it doesn't crank right over. I wait a minute and then it starts no problem. I get at most 30 seconds down the road and it happens again. This time I was able to start it again immediately. I drive for 10 minutes to get home with no issues. Today when I was driving to auto parts store with OBD logging info the timing advance for #1 cylinder went from 7-40 range to negative 60 and RPMs dropped for a moment but didn't die. The log also shows the speed going from 0 mph to 140 mph when the incident occurred. No check engine light or codes any of the times it happened. There was no sputtering or choking, it just went from normal operating conditions to no power.
2000 XJ I6 with auto tranny (rebuilt 14 months ago) and 190k miles
Troubleshooting:
- Checked fuel pressure at the rail with a pressure test gauge. With key on and engine off pressure was ~46 psi. It might of gone up slightly when I turned engine on, but didn’t appear to. I turned engine off and pressure dropped to ~42 psi after 15 minutes.
- Checked cable for crankshaft position sensor, all clean and look good
- While idling I tapped the CPS with a hammer lightly and the Jeep didn't die
My main concern is this happening and me being in the middle of the freeway so I want to try to get ahead of this if at all possible. My suspicion is the CPS but I don’t know how to know that for sure. Is there any way to know if a CPS is going bad but isn't all the way dead yet? Are there any other possibilities than the CPS or fuel pump? Could it be the computer, and if so is there a way to test for that?
Any help is appreciated. Thank you.
2000 XJ I6 with auto tranny (rebuilt 14 months ago) and 190k miles
Troubleshooting:
- Checked fuel pressure at the rail with a pressure test gauge. With key on and engine off pressure was ~46 psi. It might of gone up slightly when I turned engine on, but didn’t appear to. I turned engine off and pressure dropped to ~42 psi after 15 minutes.
- Checked cable for crankshaft position sensor, all clean and look good
- While idling I tapped the CPS with a hammer lightly and the Jeep didn't die
My main concern is this happening and me being in the middle of the freeway so I want to try to get ahead of this if at all possible. My suspicion is the CPS but I don’t know how to know that for sure. Is there any way to know if a CPS is going bad but isn't all the way dead yet? Are there any other possibilities than the CPS or fuel pump? Could it be the computer, and if so is there a way to test for that?
Any help is appreciated. Thank you.