Slight Update on long cranking time....

Deep6

Registered User
A couple of weeks ago I posted a problem about my car having an unusually long cranking time sometimes. It literally takes about 3 whole seconds of cranking to get it started. I'm sure that by 1960's muscle car standards this was acceptable, but Since I'm used to the .5 second or less cranking of modern day cars with DIS and SEFI, I found this situation to be out of character.

BEFORE I disturbed the cam synchronizer a couple of months ago I never had any probs with long cranking time.

About 1 week after replacing the timing cover gasket and re-installing the cam shaft synchronizer I encountered this problem.

Now I made sure to reference mark everything on the cam synchronizer and after sitting for a few weeks started right up in .5 seconds like usual.

What I have discovered is that when I put the KOEO position, you hear the fuel pump prime the fuel system. I wait to hear the pump turn off and THEN start the car. Cranking time is reduced to almost what I am used to on the car. I few times I forgot to let the fuel pump prime and just cranked up and I got the long cranking again.

So, this leads me to beleive that there is some sort of fuel system woe with the car. Like I said, i never had this situation before.

Could my fuel pump be dying? Is there a problem with the pressure regulator? My system doesn't seem to be leaking fuel, or else I'd smell it. My economy seems the same. Fuel filter was replaced about 15,000 miles ago. So I don't suspect that.
 
Someone posted a while ago that our engines need a few cycles to crank up, it was natural?

Edit: Mine has always taken over a second of cranking to fire up.
 
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Wow dead thread.

I can't beleive that this dead thread got resurrected. More importantly no one ever commented on my issue.

Well 4 years later I can safely say that I still occasionally have this problem. But since i have not been using the car as a daily driver, I really haven't been bothered by it. About a year ago I noticed that my "new" fuel filter had rusted through and fuel was leaking from it. I replaced it and I didn't notice more cranking issues.

When I first got my T-bird it started right up each and every time. Roughly a 1/2 second crank of the ignition was enough to have the engine fire right up.

My Saturn is really quick to start. It feels like you just touch the key and the engine catches.

But anyway I'm having different problems with my battery not holding a charge (and this is the second battery in the car)...
 
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