hard starting

[oldfordisbetter85]

My 85 has electric choke carb.and all. Anyways when i go to start it, it just cranks and cranks and cranks. Then starts. When it warms up and i shut it off like at a store it dont take as long cranking but still not right away....i got the car a few years ago and it started doing it aboit a year n half ago... all ive done to it is oil changes tuneups and adjust timing... i know i need to replace my break booster because it hisses... could that be the culprit? What can i check out? Ive havnt really done more then oil changes tune ups change tires install car sterios....in my lifetime.

[Sinister]

when you say tune up, what have you done ?

have you check fuel pressure ?

have you change the fuel filter at the carb ?

your battery is in good condition ? have you get it test ?

you have to pump the gas at least 1 or twice before start the car early in morning.

[Mgino757]

Check your accelerator pump and everything related to make sure you're getting a good prime when cold starting. Make sure the choke mechanism is working properly too.

[oldfordisbetter85]

Tuneup i replaced wires and plugs, cap rotor,.fuel filters, air filter, has new blaster coil, stock duraspark box. Choke mech works. What should fuel pressure be?

[droopie85gt]

4.5 - 6 psi fuel pressure. Take the air cleaner off and open the throttle by hand and check to see you have a shot of fuel down the primaries. When it's cold, if you open the throttle and close it, the choke should close all the way. There should be power at the wire going to the electric choke. If it's a factory carb, I think that wire is only 6 or 9 volts, so if you have an aftermarket carb, you need to source 12v power. The choke linkage should adjustment screw to control the fast idle that's set when the choke is on.

Also, if you car is pretty much stock, there's a temperature controlled vacuum switch to give it full manifold vacuum at the advance on the dist for more advance when it's cold. It may not be working or be bypassed.

[JACook]

The factory choke wire will have a bit more than half the electrical system voltage, but only when
the engine is running and the alternator is charging.

[Matt J]

...and that choke heater opens the choke when the engine has been running for a while, which sounds like not the problem you're having in this case. It's only a guess, considering that I've never seen the car, but it sounds like it's not getting fuel when you first start it. Try the manual pulsing of the accelerator with the air cleaner off to see if any fuel squirts in. Try it when it's cold. If nothing happens, then get it started for a minute and try it again. If it works that time, then it sounds like you might have a problem with fuel somehow draining out of the carb, which really shouldn't happen. But there could be a few things that might make that happen, you could even have a problem with the fuel pump.

[Sinister]

Check the fuel filter at front of the carb, the fuel line that screw in the carb, use adjustable wrench and a 16mm wrench to get it loose. pay attention to the fuel filter when it come out, and make sure a spring in it come out also, the fuel filter look like this.

[JACook]

I agree, if this is a new symptom, and nothing has been messed with, the choke heater won't cause
the hard starting issue. But what often happens is when the choke heater has problems, the choke
gets "adjusted", and then it doesn't close enough to provide enough cold start enrichment.

I also have not seen any reply whether the choke snaps completely shut when the engine is cold, and
the throttle is opened. As soon as the engine starts, the choke unloader should pull the choke open
about 1/4", but it's important that the choke snaps closed quickly, and completely, before startup.

The normal cold startup procedure is to press the gas pedal completely to the floor, then take your
foot off the pedal, and crank. With a properly adjusted 4180C, that's all you should need to do. But
it definitely matters these days what fuel they're pumping where you live. My '85 hatch starts right
up on winter gas around here, but once they switch over to the summer stuff, I often have to crank
it for several seconds before it fires, especially if the car has been sitting for a few days.