First Start of the day takes forever

[nytescion]

Well basically it's hard to start the car on the first start of the day. From what I do know it's not Motor related. The previous owner had the same problem. Not Fuel pressure related either cause my fuel pump turns on as soon as the key is turned to the on position. All i did was buy the shell from him take my motor out of my 1gb and plopped it in shell. I read on here about the CTS being bad is there a way i can test to see? would jumping the two wires together to see if it starts be a good way to test it? Again it's only the first start of the day all the other are smooth sailing. Any other suggestions?

 

[half-cocked]

Look in the factory service manual, I'm pretty sure there is a test for it. I would tell you it if I had mine handy but I don't right at this second. It has to do with putting the sensor in a certain temp pot of water and testing the ohms with a multimeter. If you're talking about jumping the connectors for the CTS I don't think that would work due to the ECU looking for a a certain value from the sensor. Just curious if you start it, warm it up and drive it and let it cool down for say 8 hours or so, does it have a hard start again?

 

[nytescion]

Um I dunno i don't store the car at my house. I'll try and see and post back.

 

[the_mork]

I thought 1gs didn't prime their pumps until they received signal from the CAS?


The most common reason for this problem that I have come across is a leaky fuel line, either leaking out of the line onto the ground or leaking back into the tank around the fuel pump connection.

It is very easy and common to roll or tear the o-ring that seals the fuel pump into the housing when replacing the fuel pump so this would be the first thing that I would check.

 

[nytescion]

It is very easy and common to roll or tear the o-ring that seals the fuel pump into the housing when replacing the fuel pump so this would be the first thing that I would check.

I guess that could be possible. That would be a problem that came with the car from the previous owner. I'll look into it.

Also 8 hours later the car starts right up. I think it's when the car is just completely cold (not being driven in a couple of days).

 

[the_mork]

Yup, sounds pretty symptomatic of the o-ring failure.

 

[nytescion]

so would i be able to use any o-ring as long as it's the same size? or should i order one from walbro or something?

 

[bslavsGSX]

As long as the O mring is the same you can use it. Try napa or sumething, if u want a fast fix.

 

[dsmfa9nutter]

Also 8 hours later the car starts right up. I think it's when the car is just completely cold (not being driven in a couple of days).

Taking forever to start when cold is the CTS. Replace it. It's $35 at autozone and can be replaced in 5 minutes.

 

[toofast82]

Taking forever to start when cold is the CTS. Replace it. It's $35 at autozone and can be replaced in 5 minutes.

It could just as easily be the oring for the fuel pump. The cts being bad could easily be verified with a logger. It could also be tested or bypassed to verify thats the issue

 

[misterskeetz]

I have the exact same issue. I thought it was the battery at first. Replaced it because mine is ancient and a shitty brand. Grabbed an optima yellow top and it still does it! So now I am thinking the starter or its solenoid. These other things are good to know though. Hopefully it isn't that expensive.

So over a night or two..I get back in to start my car and it cranks but it's slow and it never takes off. I gave it some throttle while cranking and no difference. Turned key back to off after about 6 seconds. Went to start it again and BAM! Instant ignition. Any other ideas for what this might be?

 

[dsmfa9nutter]

99% of the time, hard starts when cold/easy starts when hot are caused by the cts.

 

[nytescion]

well I have a logger what am I looking for on startup from the cts? like a reading from from the sensor that is outrageous or something? Also the O-ring for the pump is the 2g and 1g pumps the same? cause if so i can take the 2g pump i have (same size 255) and take the O-ring from that to as reference and go to the store and get a new one. That way i don't have to leave the car in the while it's apart and do everything at once. If you're not sure i can just do it the the more time consuming way.

 

[misterskeetz]

what is the CTS?

 

[nytescion]

what is the CTS?

Coolant Temp Sensor

 

[ben90tsi]

My 90 tsi awd had the same issue thought it was the cts but ended up being my ecu, leaky caps.

 

[nytescion]

I know it's not my ecu. There has been 3 ecu's in the car in the last 2 weeks...

 

[nyTalonTsi]

Well bringing this back from the dead.

My car has hard cold starts, even if ive had it off for 2-10 minutes at times it still struggles to start. Thought it was my cts. Its not that, it was giving correct coolant temp readings to the ecu.

I had the fuel pressure tested, this is where i think the problem lies. With the car running it holds decent pressure, once you turn the car off it will lose fuel pressure instantly. What would cause it to lose pressure like that??

The fuel pump o-ring? Or maybe a failing fuel pump?

 

[nytescion]

my manual said the the check valve in the fuel pump might be bad if this was happening. I took my fuel pump out to reveal a inproper fuel pump install. After fixing this my car maintains fuel pressure now when cutting the car off instead of completely dieing off. The car does start alot better and by the next day the gauge on the FPR reads 0 but the gauge on my fuel filter reads 28ish. I'm wondering if my regulator is not working right or maybe the gauge is trashed.

 

[the_mork]

Generally an issue with fuel pressure bleeding off on a modified car is a torn or rolled o-ring at the fuel pump, of course there could be a fuel leak somewhere or the pump could be bad but these are less common.

 

[nytescion]

Right I fixed my oring problem. Whats happening now is the gauge on my fpr reads 0 by the next morning while the gauge on the fuel filter reads 28. Does this mean my fpr is leaking? or maybe the gauge that's on fpr is bad.

 

[the_mork]

First thing I would do is swap your gauges from one position to the other and see what happens.

 

[420a_turbo]

Right I fixed my oring problem. Whats happening now is the gauge on my fpr reads 0 by the next morning while the gauge on the fuel filter reads 28. Does this mean my fpr is leaking? or maybe the gauge that's on fpr is bad.

When was the last time you changed the filter? I had a similar issue on my 420a, different car but changing the filter helped a ton. Maybe the fuel system needs the active pressure of the pump to maintain pressure past the filter because the filter is middle-aged.

 

[Colt4G63 also]

Well bringing this back from the dead.

My car has hard cold starts, even if ive had it off for 2-10 minutes at times it still struggles to start. Thought it was my cts. Its not that, it was giving correct coolant temp readings to the ecu.

I had the fuel pressure tested, this is where i think the problem lies. With the car running it holds decent pressure, once you turn the car off it will lose fuel pressure instantly. What would cause it to lose pressure like that??

The fuel pump o-ring? Or maybe a failing fuel pump?

It's either the check valve in the pump, or the O-ring, but it drops really fast so if it is the O-ring I would worry about adequate pressure under boost.

If it's leaking from the O-ring that quickly you might not be getting enough fuel to the engine.

 

[Colt4G63 also]

Right I fixed my oring problem. Whats happening now is the gauge on my fpr reads 0 by the next morning while the gauge on the fuel filter reads 28. Does this mean my fpr is leaking? or maybe the gauge that's on fpr is bad.

If those gauges are accurate, then your filter is plugged.