Starter acts up in Wet Damp Weather - 2001 Ford Expedition

The damp weather is causing a high tension leak in the ignition system . Check or renew the plug cables , Check the cap for tracking and moisture.

sounds like its time for tune up wires and rotor cap and such..with age they break down and moisture is shorting some of this out..to test this using a spray bottle spray these wire down and listen for a snapping sound from the coil..this is proof of the water getting the old wiers wet..(condensate moisture)

check out starter wires may be corroded or losse

spray your distributor wires and cap with silicone spray. If this does not work you will have to replace distributor cap as it will have a hair line crack in it.

sounds like a short. i would check and see if there is any breaks in the defroster lines in the glass. maybe you have a bad connection

If it is happening more frequently in cold or damp weather it could be a spark issue. Wet or damp weather can effect spark plug wires if there is even minor damage to them (usually occurs durring rain). The other things that come to mind are the fuel pump and lastly the fuel line check ball that is in the fuel tank. If it is leaking then all the fuel in the line will drain back into the tank over night (pressure lost in the fuel line) and this will cause repeated, extended cranking when you first start the car in the morning or after the car has sat for several hours.

replace the plug wires.They are the old carbon type fitted, and are a common fault in the damp weather

I'd have a free scan at parts store for any trouble codes first , just in case, if no codes come up then I'd consider a new cap & wire set. One of , or the most common problem with hard start in wet/damp weather is plug wires & cap, especially if they haven't been changed that you know of since new.

It almost sounds to me like a timing issue. Did you get it timed properly after the distributer was installed? Another thing is the timing chain. Aim a timing light at the crank marks and see if they are staying in the same place, or jumping around. If they are jumping your timing chain may have jumped, or be badly worn, and will need to be replaced.

perhaps you need a new cap and roter a new spark plug wire set. they don;t like moisture. also check to see if you have any broken or leaking vacuum hoses. the worse case senerio would be that your head gasket is leaking--at cold temps a little antifreeze will enter until everything warms up and it seals shut due to metal expanding. but since you say it's cold weather only--this probably wou;dn't be the case. good luck.