My VX with V6 engine is hard to start on some mornings. It is like it is flooding or something. If I hold accelerator down it will turn over a few times and then start and blow a cloud of smoke out of exhaust. Car has only done 70,000 Km's. Any ideas on this?
Holding the accelerator down will only make it worse, thats a big no no with EFI cars. Is it just taking ages to crank over and then fire? I'd suspect a possible faulty fuel pump or fuel pressure level, and or faulty coolant temperature SENSOR, as that could be telling the ECU the incorrect information, hence making the fuel mix even richer than it needs to be.
A dodgy injector will drip fuel into the cylinder causing a flooding situation but it would need to be 2 or 3 cylinders to make it hard to start. Check the engine oil for the smell of fuel on the dipstick for a clue to that one.
id be leaning towards and injector aswell, if the injector is leaking and the cylinder(s) are flooded opening the throttle will allow the engine to suck more oxygen through allowing it to dry and ignite the fuel quicker, go for a fuel system clean first, - have the injectors ultrasonically cleaned (injector cleaner in a bottle wont do) - replaace the fuel filter (unless its been done recently) - check operation of the pressure regulator
It turns over a few times before it starts, but if I hold accelerator down it starts quicker. Only been doing it for a few weeks.
From what you have said, I suspect a leaking injector or a split diaphragm in the fuel pressure regulator.
Had the same problem a few years ago. I was told all of the above could be causing the symptoms. (plugs, fuel filter, leaky injectors I then found out that when cranking, particularly on a cold morning, the battery voltage was dropping down to low for the engine management computer to operate correctly where it 'thought' that the engine required more fuel than it actually did. This caused the cylinders to instantly flood, requiring the throttle to be opened to allow more air in to compensate. When started, it blew a good cloud of smokey fumes. I changed the battery and had no more problems, that was 4 years ago. I also discovered that the new battery the car yard had fitted when i purchased the vehicle was a 7 plater, bloody el-cheapo, with very little cranking power reserve, hence the voltage drop upon cold cranking, particularly when it got a bit older. Pablo
