as the title says "clutching at straws " here with my starting problem but,

 

if any of the belts were slipping on start up could this cause problems when trying to start her up ?

 

Maz

Maz, check all the fuel lines are not leaking and all the coilpacks are working.

Also check the ecu connection is not too loose and not too tight.

 

But i still think its the engine temp sensor.

Pete

 

you are refering to the temp sensor that leads to the ECU right, the one with the two conections and not the one that leads to the temp sensor ..reason I ask is the temp sensor that feeds the temp gauge is knackered , but surely that wouldn´t effect starting starting.

The reason i say it is that when they become faulty they do the exact problem yours seems to be suffering from.

could the ECU temp sensor be faulty but not kick the auxillary fan in then ?

not normally no but anythings possible.

 

However i do recommend checking the ecu plug as i have seen all sorts of crazy things happen because of that bugger.

pete

 

I´ll give the whole car a good lookover at the weekend. recheck all the fuel lines, coil packs , change the spark plugs , clean the throttle bodies and also check the ECU plug as that is one thing I haven´t checked.

 

Thanks for the advice , really appreciate it

its a shame some of the regulars dont seem to be around as they could diagnose things like this in a second

if it carries on like it has been I´ll probably still have the problem when some of the regulars do show up ...but I can check her through and at least eliminate some of the possibilities ....it´s a shame too because ones she starts up she runs perfectly.

Well certainly after reading your other posts, it seems to be fuel related.

Your 100% sure you Aux fan is working correctly ? when ever you pull the plug it comes on ?

Belt wise as you mention above though, possibly only the Alt belt as this may not be not fully charging the battery, hence the lights on the dash staying on till the battery has gained a full charge and it only just had enough energy to simply fire it up.

I guess the only way to test this theory is either by swapping batteries, or 5 mins before you fire yours up, put a set of booster cables on from another car, leave them on for a few mins and fire yours up, any differences and you may have found your problem.

One last thought, what spark plugs are you running and how long since their last change ?

smithy

i remember when mine did this my alternater belt did squeel so i had it tightened and it still had trouble starting.

 

Still think its the engine temp plug :)

Smithy

 

It does sound fuel related , but the fuel pump primes when I turn the ignition on and when you pinch the fuel line behind the fuel filter you feel the fuel pressure build up.

 

The auxillary fan stay off until I pull the connecter to the temp sensor, then the auxilly fan comes on.

 

The battery is brand new, about 2 months old and volt and amp meter show it´s working perfectly. Alternator is also charging. I think the dash lighs stayed on as the idle was so low you could barely feel the engine tick over.

 

Spark plugs are NGK PFR6B-11C and have been in for about 50k (km) and was planning to change them soon as I have a new set sat here waiting.

 

Pete

 

as the auxillary fan only comes on when I pull the connector..is there any way of testing the sensor other than replacing it ?

If the sensor does not send the correct signal to the ECU either through faulty wiring or a faulty sensor, the dash lights come on and the AUX fan comes on because it thinks the car is overheating and excess fuel helps cool things down.

You could do an ECU diagnostics check, but bare in mind it will show that sensor as a fault cos you've been removing the connector, be interesting tosee what other codes you get.

Seeing as you have the plugs, i'd stick em in sooner rather than later, you never know :)

Will give it some more thoughts anyways.

smithy

I have a list of things to do to the car at the weekend , i´ll get the spark plugs changed and check the ECU. As the ECU will throw up a fault on the sensor as you say is there any other way of testing it ?

 

and many thanks for the advice, I really appreciate it.

yeah, leave the battery off tonight and it will remove the codes, then start it/drive it and if you get a code after then its a fresh one

of course...didn´t think of that , probably because it was too simple.

 

cheers Pete

 

:)

Ok

 

Checked and tightened all fuel lines, cleaned the throttle bodies , cleaned the air filter and MAF, checked both temp sensors - the one that leads to the temp gauge is defo knackered, checked the fuel pump (voltage etc) and did an oil change.

 

the problem seems to be a little better as she starts after some initial hesitation and only runs at low revs briefly then jumps to normal after about 10 secs.

 

 

two questions though:

 

1: Is it any use doing an ECU diagnostic when the battery has been removed for a few hours, or do I have to wait for it to "learn" everything again ?

 

 

2: I couldn´t get the connectors off the coil packs as the release mechanism thing just snapped off, as in a previous post; is there any way to get them off like that or do I need new coil pack connectors ?

 

Maz

Sorry can't help with connectors as i never fiddle with mine :)

But once battery has been removed and all codes cleared, each time the key is turned, it will automatically pick up any faults and record them.

So yep check yer codes.

smithy

cheers for that Smithy :) one down, one to go ...damn coil pack connectors, almost snapped on in half trying to remove it :(

word to the wise, always try and remove them by hand, never leaver them up as they become very very brittle

I couldnt find your origanal thread on what your starting problem is.

but heres my input.

If you have spark to all cylinders . fuel to all cylinders. and you have not changed your plugs in a very long time.

Then once again go back to basics. check and replace plugs if needed.

They can cause so many problems. so dont over look the obvious.

Just a quick not on the coolant temp sensor . If the ecu see's an open circuit for any reason on that sensor system, as this is the ecu's basic primary way to detect dtc's with this eary diagnostic logic.

The Ecu doesnt think its over heating it just detect's the fault codes it and then defaults to pre determind value held within the ecu. around 33 deg C the over a few mins the ecu increases the temp value a degree at a time up to around 70 deg or so.I cant remember the exact figure as its been a while since i was involved in training these.

Also the cooling fan is switched to "on state" as a fail safe as the ecu has know way of knowing the actual coolant value.

hope that helps

daz.

Pete

 

Very wise words indeed , in my defence though I did think the small screwdriver i inserted into the connector had released it :(

 

Daz

 

As soon as I figure out how to get the connectors off I´ll be changing the plugs.

 

As for the coolant temp sensor and the ECU etc....I would understand it if it was the ECU coolant temp sensor that was shot, but surely the one that leads to the temp gauge ( the one with the single connection ) wouldn´t cause starting probs if knackered.....or ??

 

P.S all advice and suggestions are greatly appreciated

 

Maz

As for the coolant temp sensor and the ECU etc....I would understand it if it was the ECU coolant temp sensor that was shot, but surely the one that leads to the temp gauge ( the one with the single connection ) wouldn´t cause starting probs if knackered.....or ??

Maz

Correct mate, that one plays no part in any ECU failsafe mode.

smithy

cheers Smithy ....for the ECU diagnostic advice too

 

:)