Lately, sometimes it starts right up, but about half the time I find myself giving the gas pedal a couple pumps to make the engine turn over. those times, even though i haven't done anything different, the engine won't start unless i feed it some additional gas by pumping the gas pedal about twice.
it's odd to me in that rather than starting becoming hard all the time or just impossible, it's unpredictable.
does it sound like starter problem? something else? thks in advance
This makes no sense. Pumping the accelerator with the engine not running does absolutely nothing. Back in the days of carburators, this actuated the accelerator pump circuit in the carb, literally giving it a coupe shots of gas. The fuel injection computer will simply ignore you. If you are talking about pumping the pedal while cranking the engine in order to get it to start, that's another story. If you have enough time to pump the gas pedal while cranking the engine, something is wrong.
In either case you can rule out the starter motor. I am going to guess that you have a faulty fuel pressure regulator. When they fail the fuel lines do not hold a residual pressure and this leads to long cranking times while the fuel pump pressurizes the system. You could confirm this with a fuel pressure gauge. Alternatively, if your Hyundai is like the GM cars I am used to, the fuel pump will run for a second or two when you first turn on the key. Try this: before starting the car, turn it on, wait a few seconds, turn it off then back on, wait a few seconds, and repeat this perhaps four cycles before finally attempting to start the engine. If doing this makes it start right up every time, you have proven my theory.
But like I said, that's just a random guess formed by attempting to read between the lines.
Peace, Harry
Oops, I called your Datsun a Hyundai.
Harry
the fuel pressure is bleeding down after the car sits for a while.
Nissan has a TSB for this problem.
None wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@z9g2000vbm.googlegroups.com:
How many miles on it, and have you ever changed the fuel filter and or spark plugs?
thanks for the many tips. the car is at nearly 60K; no, i have not yet changed the f-filter or s-plugs.
per an earlier posting here, i indeed meant i have found myself periodically tapping the gas pedal while the engine cranks.
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