Hello everyone,

I know this has been touched on before, but I was hoping for some clarification. I have an '04 V6 Accord, with about 80,000 miles. Runs great, and we love the car.

However, lately the car frequently takes quite a long time to start once the starter begins turning. The Battery is strong, and the starter turns normally. My first thought was that the fuel pump was not priming the engine, but you can hear the fuel pump do its priming if you listen carefully from the back seat when the key is placed in the "ON" position, and the car runs great after it has started, so I do not think it is the fuel pump.

Some have mentioned a faulty fuel pressure regulator. The question I have is A) Is there a way to test the regulator, and B) if the fuel pressure regulator was bad, would this not cause the car to run either very rich or very lean once the car was running? We get normal gas milage out of the car, and it accelerates smoothly and strongly.

One story suggested leaky injector seals, but I can't imagine how that would cause this problem, so I'd prefer to start with a different idea.

...if there are any

 

The fuel pressure regulator was changed on my 03 V6 when it was still under warranty. The car would fail to start on the first try, but would run just fine after it was running. It is a very inexpensive part, and from the looks of it, it reduces the flow rate. I think the regulator reduced the flow enough to keep the fuel pump from priming the line quickly enough, but after the fuel filled the line, it had plenty enough pressure to run the engine. If you were to turn the key on, then off, then on again (priming twice), it should start right up.

 

From the way I understand it, the FPR works by restricting the fuel flow out of the fuel rail into the return line. The more it restricts the flow out of the rail, the higher the pressure at the rail and therefore more flow.

But, either way you are correct that it is an inexpensive part and it would be a good place to start.

 

The FPR is located in the fuel tank, not the fuel rail.

 

Thats good to know! Thanks. That also explains why I couldn't find it in the parts diagram.

The last FPR I replaced was on an H22, I guess a lot has changed since then.

 

Let us know if that fixes the problem! :D

 

I work at a Honda dealer. Extended crank time on a v6 honda has been a characteristic of the v6 motor since 98 when it was first redesigned. In your owners manual it talks about longer crank time when vehicle is cold (not necessarily weather related meaning engine is cold), and also about high altitude. Starting with in 5 seconds after crank after the car sat overnight or longer then an 8hr period i would not be concerned about. The v6 models tend to loose fuel pressure more so then the 4cyl after shutting vehicle off and letting them sit. Could also be fuel related as people have had issues with injectors after purchasing fuel from places like Costco or Sam's for long periods of time. Try changing to an actual fuel company station. ie Bp, Shell, Texaco, misc. less addatives makes makes for better fuel economy and fixes a lot of driveability problems.