I had a Valet 551R Remote Start installed in my 1987 Ford Thunderbird last year in late 2002. It works OK in warm weather but does not crank the engine enough in cold temps to start the engine. It only cranks for a fraction of a second and does not start the car. Multiple attempts sometimes gets it to start.
I took the car to the shop last year and they said they adjusted the unit to crank for the longest period of time it could (it was installed using the tach wire) and if I continued to have the problem, they said it was probably because of a "tired" 15+ year old starter and to replace the starter if it got worse.
I just had the starter and external solenoid replaced and that did not cure the problem. (Grrr... $200 for nothing!) It only cranks for a fraction of a second and then stops in cold weather. (For me to get it to work, I need to go inside the car and start it with the key, then press the buttons to activate the valet feature and then I can remove the key to allow it to warm up)
When it's warmed up or if it's above 40 degrees, it works fine.
According to the installation manual, there are ways to adjust the duration of the cranking, but that may depend on the method of monitoring the engine for "start" - by "tach wire" or by "voltage monitoring". From what I read, the crank duration can only be adjusted if the 551R is using voltage monitoring as it's method to see if the car starts. Is this true?
The manual is a little confusing as to how to change the programing to get the engine to crank longer. The programming button is used in conjunction with the remote unit, I guess, but the directions are a bit vague on the procedure how to change the cranking duration.
Can anyone offer some advice?
Worse case scenario I can take it back to the Parkway Stereo in Hicksville NY where it was installed, but I'd like to do it myself if possible.