Thread: 1999 Discovery II V8 hard starting

Originally Posted by LRT

in the morning the V8 will not start until the fourth or fifth try. It then starts rough as though over choked, then clears quickly, and starts with out any further trouble throughout the day. The Discovery is not shedded at night, has done 205,000ks, and has a new MAF sensor and battery and starter motor in good condition. What is most likely wrong?

Probably the fuel pressure is not holding during the night. Try priming the system by turning the key to "on" 5 times for 3 seconds before starting. It may be your fuel pump needs replacing one day soon. The check valve that holds pressure in the pump may be leaking back into the tank.

Have you replaced spark plugs or HT leads recently?, they might be on the way out.
Cheers Matt

Many thanks for the starting tip, which I will try tomorrow morning. I will also order a new fuel pump. LRT

The plug leads do need replacing but I feel daunted about doing this as the workshop manual says to remove the inlet manifold. Can I change the leads without removing the manifold by using long nose pliers and a mirror? LRT

hmm,,
you can replace the leads if you have small hands

someone mentioned a trick just lately,,
was it dropping the engine?

Remove the mounts, just the rubbers.

I am keen to try Clubagreenie's method of changing the spark plug leads on a V8 by dropping the engine mounts (just the rubbers). Do I need to remove both front and back rubbers? Do I need to remove any pipes or hoses to do this? LRT

Just the engine rubbers, just be aware of the gear shift if manual, mine's auto so not sure but the hi/lo is on a cable so it's all good.