Q: My 96 Jeep Cherokee Classic does not start up when it has been sitting for hours or overnight

Hello.

The symptoms you describe can be caused by a wide variety of issues. Issues with the fuel and engine management systems can often produce these symptoms. A few things I would look at are the fuel pressure, fuel pump, temperature sensor, and idle air control valve.

I would start by testing the vehicle’s fuel pressure, to see if the fuel pump is providing enough fuel pressure and volume to meet the engine’s needs. Next I would look at the engine’s coolant temperature sensor, as this sensor will make changes to the computer’s tune for the engine, depending on temperature. If the issue appears to go away when the engine warms up, it may be related to the sensor.

I would also look at the vehicle’s idle air control valve as this is the component that is responsible for setting and maintaining the engine’s idle. If these all check out then I would suspect an issue elsewhere in the engine management system.

To avoid any unnecessary repairs, consider having one of our mobile technicians come to your home to perform a diagnostic of your car’s no start condition.