difficulty starting when warm

[Jinster]

MY97, Tip.

No codes.

My car starts fine in the morning after overnight rest.

But when I try to start it during the day when the car is warm, it sometimes takes about 10 seconds of cranking to start it. During this time, it sounds as if the engine is trying to start but just can't build up enough rev consistently.

I can start it by either keeping cranking for like 10 seconds, or to just back off the key, and turn the key again within a few seconds, almost as if the first crank "primes" the car somehow.

On a few occasions, after warm starting, the idle would fluctuate up and down within a range of around 300 to 1000rpm. This was only evident at idle, but may have been happening at higher revs without me being aware of it.

What do you think is going on?

I am thinking: fuel filter? fuel pump? spark plugs? ICV? AOS? Which is more likely?

[Loren]

Has the throttle body been cleaned recently?

[Jinster]

Has the throttle body been cleaned recently?

Just did. As well as the IVC. Will see if this makes a difference. But there wasn't really much carbon build-up there. I'd be surprised if this cleaning does much.

But at least I saw no oil in the throttle body/intake, together with the lack of blue smoke on start up, fingers crossed the AOS is good.

What else could this be?

[harryrcb]

how about your fuel filter, how long since you changed that?

[Jinster]

how about your fuel filter, how long since you changed that?

Yeah, 6 years?? Hehehe...... I have the filter right here with me. Just need a spare afternoon to do it, along with spark plugs. I was thinking I didn't want to put in new spark plugs in case it was the AOS. And if I am not putting in spark plugs, I thought I will wait with the filter too coz it'd be easier in one go.

When I took out the TB and IVC, there wasn't much carbon build-up, which I sprayed out with degreaser. But I did notice a small crack in the IVC. Don't know how much this affected things. I tried to seal it with some super glue yesterday, don't know how good a job I did with it either because the crack was still visible after the glue sank in.

But today, two warm starts and the car has been fine. So maybe it was the TB or the IVC afterall. But I don't know if it was the cracked IVC that I might have managed to save with some super glue. Wouldn't that be a story if true? IVC costs like $200-300 to replace. Super glue = 40 cents. :)

Will stop talking now so as not to temp fate. Fingers crossed for tomorrow.