2001 S40,auto w/ 140k on it..

My s40 takes 2 tries to start up when it's cold outside. It cranks strong(starter and battery replaced already),but it take dies as soon as it starts on the first crank,all is fine on the 2nd crank.

No CEL.

Any takers? Shop already had the car,they said it started up fine for them for 3 days,go figure the shop opens at 10am and it's warmer by then already.

 

I have the same problem, it's progressed to always being bad on start ups.

how many miles does the car have?

 

140k...

I have a fuel pressure regulator brand new in the garage...tempted to put it on see if it fixes it.

How long did it take for it to get worse? Did you take it to a shop for diagnosis?

 

Try to open the throttle a bit while starting.If the FPR is good then your injectors are leaking trough.If your car starts up with the throttle open thats a sign of fuel overflow.Now if the car doesnt start still at the first try then you can prime the fuel pump a couple of time before ingnition.This way you build the fuel pressure up in the rail so if the engine starts now then you can be sure its the FPR.

 

How does one prime the fuel pump? Turn the key to the 2 position before starting? Should I do that a couple of times or just once and leave it for a few seconds before trying to start the car?

 

Yes priming is when you turn the key to 2nd position.You see
all the light on the dashboard but not crancking.When you do
this you should hear the fuelpump working for about 5sec.When it stops you turn the keyback to pos 1 then back to 2nd again.In my experience full pressure is achieved after the 2nd time.Keep in mind that by doing this you only filling up the fuel rail will not help to find the end where the pressure leaks away.By using the first method I mentioned in my earlier post you can see if the pressure were leaking trough the injectors.

 

I swapped the Fuel Pressure Regulator. Car seems to start better in general. Tomorrow morning will be the real test when it's 35 out...when it seemed to stall first try 100% of the time.

Also I did 'prime' the fuel pump before swapping the FSR, I noticed where the car would have typically stalled at start up,it didn't,but still had a little hickup.

 

The classic bad FPR is extended cranking time before starting. Others have had to replace the IAC but yours seems to idle well after the 2nd start?

 

Yep,idle well after 2nd start.

It was 35 out this morning. The car started on first crank. It wasn't perfect like a warm summer day,but better then yesterday and didn't die. So I think the FSR swap helped.

Will keep everyone posted.

 

Well...the problem isn't fully solved, I feel it's still slow to catch after I crank,and it's not like the cranking of the alternator,it's like a slight pause between the starter cranking and engine firing up...the car does start though first try. Maybe I'm just expecting the car to start like it's new...but it's 11 years old and has 140k on it...It does feel like it has a little more pep in it's step as I'm driving as well.

 

Like I said there is two way the pressure can escape from the rail.By replacing the FPR you did cover one end now you should look at the injectors.Pull the injectors with the rail and feed attached and prime the system.Check for fuel leakage over time.In my case it only took 5 min to see that two of my 6 months old RC leaks trough causing the symptoms you are having.Put a sheet of papertowel under the injectors.Whatever you do under no circumtances try to start the engine only prime it.

 

Are there steps or directions on how to remove the fuel injectors? I don't feel comfortable doing it without directions.

 

I wouldn't attempt it if you don't have new injector seals, good chance they can tear on removal.

Is it a turbo car? My turbo 850 has always taken a second to start (regardless of air/coolant temp) while my NA starts immediately. It even says in the manual that the Turbo can require a longer cranking time, as I recall it's something like 5 for NA and 10 for Turbo.

Maybe the ECU delays spark to avoid running lean on startup?

 

 

Then you have no other option but to see a mechanic.If you are not mechanically inclined this is how far you can get on your own.Sorry.