Hard to start in the Morning!!WHY??

[redandy3575]

This has happened gradually and is slowly getting worse to the point where it takes a couple of goes to get the Rangie going. I've suspected maybe a dirty or clogged MAF sensor which i ended up cleaning along with butterfly valve and removed a fair amount of carbon. That only made the running of the engine smoother, so a small win there. But in the morning when cranking the engine, it fires up on about 2 or 3 cylinders and then progressively on all 8. I don't know exactly what it is, but i'm about to replace the HT leads and spark plugs to see if that improves things. If not, then i suspect the fuel pump is shot & not delivering any fuel. I did notice on the AM band on the radio that there is like a tick, tick, tick interference coming from the ignition, so it could be one of the HT leads, i don't know.... Has anyone experienced similar probs? and if so, what was the remedy??? Thanks in advance...

[Junosi]

HT leads definitely right place to start I reckon and plugs. Worth replacing both anyways if they are old, they don't last forever. Get Magnecor leads if you can justify the little extra expense. Might also be the coil packs. What you're describing does sound like an ignition problem and would be my first place to look

[Scouse]

I could be the fuel pump dropping line pressure overnight.

Try switching on the ignition for a few secs, off then on again. Do this a couple more times & then try starting. This operates the pump so if it starts OK then it's losing pressure overnight.

[Hoges]

How long since you have had injectors cleaned? I agree with previous comments re. fuel pump, plugs and leads. BTW, are you losing any coolant fluid?:eek:

[redandy3575]

HT leads definitely right place to start I reckon and plugs. Worth replacing both anyways if they are old, they don't last forever. Get Magnecor leads if you can justify the little extra expense. Might also be the coil packs. What you're describing does sound like an ignition problem and would be my first place to look

Thanks for the tip Junosi. I went and purchased a new set of HT leads, i ended up getting the Top Gun Max 300 to which i was told is one of the best ( let's hope they're right!!). I had a set of NGK spark plugs in the glove box which i replaced the existing ones which were denso plugs (from the previous owner) and were also incorrectly gapped. The end result, a HUGE improvement as far as smooth engine running is concerned along with restored power and now starts instantly. However,........... the vehicle now pulsingly surges between 1000 to 2500rpm with revs going up and down.....WHAT THE HELL!!! I'm guessing now the Idle Air Control Valve might be gunked up with possible oil after cleaning the throttle body, but didn't pay particular attention to the Idle Air Control Valve. It's led from one thing to another.

Has anyone else had this???

[redandy3575]

How long since you have had injectors cleaned? I agree with previous comments re. fuel pump, plugs and leads. BTW, are you losing any coolant fluid?:eek:

RE: The Injectors, i usually add liquid Poly nearly every 5000kms.

No, thankfully not losing any coolant, none to what i've noticed anyway:)

[LOVEMYRANGIE]

Thanks for the tip Junosi. I went and purchased a new set of HT leads, i ended up getting the Top Gun Max 300 to which i was told is one of the best ( let's hope they're right!!). I had a set of NGK spark plugs in the glove box which i replaced the existing ones which were denso plugs (from the previous owner) and were also incorrectly gapped. The end result, a HUGE improvement as far as smooth engine running is concerned along with restored power and now starts instantly. However,........... the vehicle now pulsingly surges between 1000 to 2500rpm with revs going up and down.....WHAT THE HELL!!! I'm guessing now the Idle Air Control Valve might be gunked up with possible oil after cleaning the throttle body, but didn't pay particular attention to the Idle Air Control Valve. It's led from one thing to another.

Has anyone else had this???

Will be a mix of MAF
adjustment, air bypass and stepper motor.
Link to an adjustment thingy I did a while ago.

http://www.aulro.com/afvb/attachments/technical-chatter/19543d1255449381-would-you-say-maf-faulty-maf-tps.pdf

Regards

Andrew





Sent from my backyard TeePee using smoke signals.

[redandy3575]

Ok...an update on my situation.

I gave the MAF sensor another clean, i then removed the stepper motor and found that it had reasonable carbon & oil deposit baked onto it which i ended up cleaning off with some throttle body cleaner. I also cleaned the stepper motor housing to the point that it is as clean as a whistle. I removed the throttle body sensor and couldn't notice anything wrong with it, however i have ordered a new one from britcar and should be here Wednesday. I drove it late today and it seems to run a lot better but still stumbles slightly when suddenly accelerating. Will see if the new throttle sensor improves things.

[redandy3575]

New update:

After all this, it turned out that the fuel pump was faulty. A pressure test in the injector manifold indicated almost zero pressure. My mechanic rang around trying to find a new pump motor and found that you'd have to buy the whole kit including Gauge sensor for a wallet breaking $900.00 :eek:, which even he thought was just ridiculously excessive considering that you could purchase one from the UK for $150 including postage. The only trouble is, it takes 2 weeks to arrive, so we managed to find the pump motor only for around $250;) which is better than $900 for something that's worth $50. Goes to show that it pays to get onto websites like this one to research the prices a bit, otherwise you get ripped off!! Cause someone out there is making a lot of money from someone's uninformed misfortune:mad:.

[glenhendry]

Scouse was right again!

[redandy3575]

Scouse was right again!

Indeed he was:)

[Scouse]

Ha ha - I'm not just a pretty face you know :D.




:p:p:p

[redandy3575]

Ha ha - I'm not just a pretty face you know :D.




:p:p:p

You know what's funny about all this, is that i've cleaned everything within the throttle body along with the spark plugs and leads, so it's like driving a new car P38 again. The flat spot is also now gone with a nice even power band.