Does anyones elses car spend along time to Cranking?

[igotyofire]

Every now and then my car will take forever to start seems, not like a really long time. Just longer then normal like 5-7 secs of just cranking. The last time it happend as soon as i stepped out of the car i smelt a really strong fuel smell. Car has about 103,000 miles on it. with no major work on it to my knowledge other then clutch and a balancer,timming belt, which are obviously not related,heh

 

[HISSIN50]

If this gets to be more of an issue, I would see what happens if you cycle the key a couple times before trying to crank it over.

The pumps get weak as they get older and can need more than one priming to get up to spec.

Good luck.

 

[95BlackTan50]

I had a similar situation a couple of years ago. If I had a full gas tank it would take a short time to start but as the fuel level went down, it would take longer to start. There's a check valve in the fuel pump that is supposed to hold pressure in the fuel lines. Mine was shot so I replaced the fuel pump and the problem went away. If you put a fuel pressure gauge on the fuel lines, the system should hold pressure for a little while after you turn the engine off. If the pressure goes to zero immediately you could have a bad check valve.

You could have a fuel leak or a bad fuel pressure regulator though. That might explain why you could smell fuel.

 

[igotyofire]

the valve itself somthing easy to check? i think if i had a fuel leak i may find it on the ground

 

[Swarzkopf]

I had a similar situation a couple of years ago. If I had a full gas tank it would take a short time to start but as the fuel level went down, it would take longer to start. There's a check valve in the fuel pump that is supposed to hold pressure in the fuel lines. Mine was shot so I replaced the fuel pump and the problem went away. If you put a fuel pressure gauge on the fuel lines, the system should hold pressure for a little while after you turn the engine off. If the pressure goes to zero immediately you could have a bad check valve.

You could have a fuel leak or a bad fuel pressure regulator though. That might explain why you could smell fuel.

This is good advice in general, but there is one exception: Some aftermarket fuel pressure regulators bleed pressure as soon as the car shuts off (as soon as there is no vacuum). My Aeromotive regulator is like this.

 

[nmcgrawj]

Something else i noticed on my girlfriends sunfire. Her car was taking a long time to start. When i put on new spark plugs and wires, it got MUCH better. Not sure when the last time u did a tune up but its something to check out.

Good luck

 

[S/CBlack95GT]

This is a common problem on some stangs. Mine did it all the time until I started to modify it. It was bone stock and then I added headers, TB, and the intake. After that it has never done it again. I still don't know what caused it.

 

[95BlackTan50]

the valve itself somthing easy to check?

The valve is an integral part of the fuel pump which is buried in the fuel tank. The pressure holding check will tell you that something is making the system lose pressure. The check valve is one possibility. I don't know if there is a good test to isolate the check valve. Swapping the regulator with a known good one would tell you if the regulator was the cause. The regulator is easier to replace than the fuel pump, but the fuel pump isn't that bad either.

 

[TheDamned]

yup mine was doing that but changed the fuel pump and it works normal now

 

[Zero Signal]

Yeah you can isolate the pump and the FPR when testing them. You may not want to do it my way but it works.

- Get the car running and the fuel pressure up

- Pinch off the return line and turn off the gas immediately (helps to have someone to turn the car off). I use vise grips to pinch it and towel doubled up around the hose to protect it. It can potentially kill your fuel line but I haven't had a problem yet.

The other problem is that it could still potentially leak through a bad injector.

 

[HISSIN50]

They make fuel line crimping tools - they are cheap John.

That is how I would test the check valve too. The gas can go back to the tank via the FPR (which is crimped now) or through the check valve (going backwards).

:OT: John, where is the link to your website? I wanted to look and see if you had stereo component and mounting pictures on it, but dont see a link anymore.

 

[Zero Signal]

Where do you get that tool?

As for the site . . . I had to dump it. I was messing with the .PHP code and screwed it all up, lol. I'll be redo'ing it soon. But I do have a site for just image hosting if you want, I can post some of the audio stuff up and PM you.

 

[GRGT1994]

If he's smelling fuel after a hard start, I would think there is a spark issue (tune up/coil) rather than a fuel pump/pressure issue. Wouldn't that make sense? If the cause of the hard start was loss in fuel pressure while sitting, why would he smell fuel after cranking it? Ahhh what the hell do I know.

But really, my first thought would be to do a tune up and check the timing. Then run some fuel injector cleaner.

 

[HISSIN50]

Where do you get that tool?

As for the site . . . I had to dump it. I was messing with the .PHP code and screwed it all up, lol. I'll be redo'ing it soon. But I do have a site for just image hosting if you want, I can post some of the audio stuff up and PM you.

Seems to me I have seen the tool at your favorite store - Autozone. It is in the tool aisle. It is just a plastic pair of pliers with crescent shaped jaws (to accomodate different line O.D.'s). Online places should have better quality stuff. Your method probably works just as well. Others might not realize how careful they need to be (that was the only reason I posted that there were dedicated crimping tools out there).

Thank you for offering but no biggie on going to the trouble of hosting the pics - I thought you might have some posted up already and I was simply too inept to find them.

I have been playing with ideas of what I can do, and you and I seem to think alike (I saw some glimpses of what you had done on a recent Talk thread). I ride the short bus to audiophile-school so I look to those who are really into that stuff for ideas.

 

[HISSIN50]

Greg, I think like you do too. But I have been fooled (it is counterintuitive) before. In my experience, simply the fact that it does not start can allow a gas smell.

What do I know?