Hard start - long, with detailed symptoms
07-02-2003, 08:07 AM
#1
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Join Date: May 2001
Posts: 1,024
Hard start - long, with detailed symptoms
Since doing the tranny rebuild my engine has been hard to start. It's always the same pattern;
This happens about half the time - the rest of the time the engine starts normally.
- Cranks normally, but will crank for 2-3 seconds (used to start in under 1 second)
- Then the engine will sound like it fires just on one cylinder, and it will then stop cranking for a split second and then start cranking again.
- When it stops cranking it's not an electrical thing - it's almost like it fires that one cylinder too early and that stalls the crank, which then turns aging because the starter is engaged. Kinda like if your timing is a couple teeth off.
- It spits a bunch of white smoke out as it 'fires'
- It then develops this cycle of "crank/1cyl fire/stall crank/continue crank" for as long as I hold the key down, or until it starts. Cycle time is about 2 seconds. Can take anywhere from 1 to 10 cycles to actually start.
- Once the engine starts, it runs *absolutely perfectly*, and has gobs of power and no unusual noises. Runs smoothly up to redline.
- My OBD-II scanner reports no error codes or pending codes.
- The work I did on the car consisted of removing the tranny for the rebuild , and also dropping the oil pan to replace the rear main seal.
- The only engine sensors I disconnected were the rear CPS for the tranny drop, front CPS for the oilpan drop, and the front/rear O2 fro removing the Ypipe. I won't rule out the possibilty that I damaged some wiring somewhere!
The only sensors that I know would affect the car's ability to start would be the open-loop sensors like Front/rear CPS, TPS, poss idle air bypass/valve. The rest of the sensors are all closed-loop (only used when the car is warmed up) like the O2s, IAT, coolant temp, etc.
But not of these are failed to a point where the computer has set a code, so I'll have to test them all manually.
Anyone else seen this behaviour pattern?
(I'm gonna see if I can get a short video of the behaviour, but it'll have to wait until the tranny is back on again)
This happens about half the time - the rest of the time the engine starts normally.
- Cranks normally, but will crank for 2-3 seconds (used to start in under 1 second)
- Then the engine will sound like it fires just on one cylinder, and it will then stop cranking for a split second and then start cranking again.
- When it stops cranking it's not an electrical thing - it's almost like it fires that one cylinder too early and that stalls the crank, which then turns aging because the starter is engaged. Kinda like if your timing is a couple teeth off.
- It spits a bunch of white smoke out as it 'fires'
- It then develops this cycle of "crank/1cyl fire/stall crank/continue crank" for as long as I hold the key down, or until it starts. Cycle time is about 2 seconds. Can take anywhere from 1 to 10 cycles to actually start.
- Once the engine starts, it runs *absolutely perfectly*, and has gobs of power and no unusual noises. Runs smoothly up to redline.
- My OBD-II scanner reports no error codes or pending codes.
- The work I did on the car consisted of removing the tranny for the rebuild , and also dropping the oil pan to replace the rear main seal.
- The only engine sensors I disconnected were the rear CPS for the tranny drop, front CPS for the oilpan drop, and the front/rear O2 fro removing the Ypipe. I won't rule out the possibilty that I damaged some wiring somewhere!
The only sensors that I know would affect the car's ability to start would be the open-loop sensors like Front/rear CPS, TPS, poss idle air bypass/valve. The rest of the sensors are all closed-loop (only used when the car is warmed up) like the O2s, IAT, coolant temp, etc.
But not of these are failed to a point where the computer has set a code, so I'll have to test them all manually.
Anyone else seen this behaviour pattern?
(I'm gonna see if I can get a short video of the behaviour, but it'll have to wait until the tranny is back on again)
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