pistol

I got a '94 GS-R and recently the car has been having occasional problems starting. It is generally after it has sat for a day or two. The car will crank strongly, but the engine will not start. After cranking for 5-10 sec intervals over a few minutes it will eventually start. This has happened twice over the past couple weeks. The rest of the time the car will start with in a second or two of cranking, but it sounds labored. Does anyone know what might be causing this type of behavior?

Thanks

thaiphob

starter maybe?

pistol

Well I could be wrong, but I thought the starter controls cranking, and it seems to not have any trouble in that department.

revhappy420

check for fuel or spark. its either a clogged fuel filter, fuel pump, or ignition/distributor or check your spark plugs and spark plug wires.

wcsinx

An internal combustion engine needs 3 basic things to start, fuel, spark, and timing. It sounds like you might be losing 2 of 3. "Labored", slow, hard, etc. cranking can be a symptom of your timing being off. Excessive cranking (esp. after sitting) is usually a fuel delivery issue ... filter or pump most likely.

JimBlake

Maybe over a day or 2 your fuel pressure bleeds down (not unusual). Do you spin the key right over to 'start'? Try holding the key at 'on' for a second while the fuel pump runs.

obsidianG35

What are you staring at? If its someone's breasts then a slap or two will take care of ya..

wcsinx

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by JimBlake &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Maybe over a day or 2 your fuel pressure bleeds down (not unusual). Do you spin the key right over to 'start'? Try holding the key at 'on' for a second while the fuel pump runs.
</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yeah, that happens to me too, but he said it takes multiple cranking attempts of 5-10 seconds. I've never had the fuel pump need more than 3 or 4 seconds to bring the pressure up. He's got something more going on e.g. a backed up filter or pump/valve going south.

JimBlake

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by wcsinx &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">... I've never had the fuel pump need more than 3 or 4 seconds to bring the pressure up. He's got something more going on e.g. a backed up filter or pump/valve going south.</TD></TR></TABLE>Yeah, I think you're right.

Pistol: How old are your normal tune-up things? Plugs, wires, cap, rotor, ... Do you ever use fuel cleaner (Techron or whatever)?

Sounds like it runs OK once it starts, right?

pistol

Yea the car runs great once it starts. I have not changed my "normal tune-up things" in a while so my first thought was that it could be the spark plugs or wires. Can you guys recommend a fuel cleaner to try? I go to school in a small town with not many car shops and I would like to try everything not requiring a mechanic possible before I take the car to a shop. (Yea I know the spark plugs are easy to change, but I don't have the tools with me)

sugarloafpkwy

Normal tools to change spark plugs are about $5. (socket and extension, and feeler gauge). any hardware shop has 'em, and there's an advance auto parts everywhere, they stock NKG's.

But i don't think that's your problem. the problem happens when the car has been sitting for a day or so, bad ignition would cause problems all the time.

even though it sounds like it's cranking hard, don't rule out that there's not enough voltage in the battery to turn the motor fast enough to fire. A car with a short somewhere that sits for a day can drain enough voltage from the battery to keep it from starting easily.

Next time it's been sitting for a day or two, put some jumper cables on it and see if it doesn't start right up. if not, then it's probably a fuel problem. A bad accumulator could cause hard starting after the car sits and looses fuel pressure.

Other than that, I dunno! good luck and change those plugs dude!

wcsinx

If it runs and idles well once it's started, then your "tune up" items are probably ok. Start with the cheapest, easiest thing(s) first ... put in a new fuel filter just for peace of mind. If that doesn't fix it, then check your fuel pressure.

alfaaay

I kinda have the same thing going on, my car never doesn't start though. I posted something about this a ways back and someone recommended checking the battery connection. One thing you could check is to see if the connections are secure.

JimBlake

Chevron Techron concentrate is a favorite for dumping in your gas tank. I've been able to find it just about everywhere, places like WalMart.

When you're cranking, your battery voltage drops because of the big load of the starter. After sitting for a day or 2 there's more moinsture from dew or whatever. That's when any problems with plugs or wires will be most likely to show up. Loose or corroded battery cable connections (including the other end of the cable) make it worse, but the starter is usually the first thing to suffer from this.

Some day when the car can sit for a while & get good & cold, wait till after dark. Take off the cover plate for the plugs, turn off all the lights. Watch for arcing while someone starts it. It'll look like a dull blue glow. If you see it, then you need to replace plug wires, or distributor cap, or whatever is glowing.

I think fuel pressure problems would show up at high rpm & high load, when the engine needs LOTS of fuel. But turn off the stereo & fans, turn the ignition on, & listen to the fuel pump. It should run for about 2 seconds, then stop. It's not very loud, but it should sound smooth & constant. Not sputtering or varying. It's too late for you(!) but it would be nice if you had listened to it while the car was perfect. Then you'd know what it's supposed to sound like.

revhappy420

ya, seriously, tune up your car often, change spark plugs 15-20000 miles and the fuel filter should be changed every 60,000 miles. do those two even if they aren't the culprit. they're affordable and a major tune up item. like others said, check voltage of your battery or jump start it just for the hell of it to get those outta the way. check your spark plug wires as well, look for rips or anything outta the ordinary on them. do all that, since your car is sitting anyways, and maybe these affordable items could be the problem anyways