Whats up TL enthusiasts, I have an 03 TL-S wit 112k, I recently did the water pump , timing belt , spark plugs , ignition coil packs. Basically a tune up. And at times when I crank the car it wont start so I replaced the main relay and it is still happening. I spoke to a couple of people that have my car and they told me it could possibly be the ignition wire harness or the crank shaft sensor !! Any input would be good help !!

 

what spark plugs did you install? ngk iridium or ngk platinum,,or some off brand 2 buck specials that need to come back out today!

a parts store can scan the car for any fault codes- those will usually generate a CEL-sort of warning light if TPS or electronic issue with your car

did you clean the IACV and TB, intake manifold egr port system, and engine valve adjust? thats all due

plugged egr passages can cause hard start, wrong plugs same thing

ever run cleaner thru the gas?

 

Can you determine if it's fuel or spark? Why did you replace the coils?

 

@01tl4tl , I put in NGK platinum plugs from the dealer, I cleaned the TB and the IACV about 5k miles ago (107,000k) , I haven't done the engine valve adjustment yet maybe that could be the problem but a bunch of people told me I don't need it.

@ TotaledTL I changed the coils because I wanted everything new with the spark plugs

 

So the car just cranks but wont physically start or sputter?

If thats the case have you noticed on the dash when that is happening if your GREEN immobilizer key symbol is lighting up solid or flashing?

 

@ fsttyms , I havent noticed that but I will , thanks for hat tip !! lets see what happens? And if the key symbol wont light up , what would that mean ?

 

I forget which way it goes but i think if its flashing its an immobilizer issue. Have you tried using a different key?

 

@ fsttyms1 , I've been using the same key since I bought the car and I have 2 keys btw

 

Did this start after you replace the timing belt? If so your timing maybe off. If you have the old coils put those back just to rule them out, also check the gap on the plugs they could be wrong. Do you have any lights lite up on your dash (check engine)?

 

rare is the ngk plug gapped wrong- as long as the cardboard protector is in place-
part of their spec is gap setting
BUT
its happened before that one or 2 were damaged,,
so I always look to see a flat ground wire on the plug,,anything else is damage
return to parts store for new

you can run an electrical meter test on the old coils to see if they were bad and compare to new coil numbers

what about ground wires?- those left loose or corroded are problematic--been a few examples on here recently..severe voltage drop between 2 points--bad ground