Doug McAllister/Under the Hood: Sluggish starts may be fuel related
Q. I own a 1997 Nissan 240SX SE. I’ve had it since 2000 when it had 30,000 miles. It now has 165,000. It gets regular maintenance and is well taken care of. If issues come up, they are fixed. It is probably one of the only stock 5-speed 240s that’s out there since everyone modifies theirs. It’s a fantastic car.
However, I have an issue whenever I start the vehicle in certain temperatures. Whenever I start the car below 60 degrees, it’s fine. It starts up and runs like it should. Whenever the temp is 60 or above, the car dies and I have to give it gas for maybe 10 seconds to keep it running. I’ve tried pumping the gas before starting it and that doesn’t work. The car runs just fine and mileage doesn’t change, it’s just that it doesn’t start well. Whenever I mention the issue at the dealership, it gets ignored.
A. Congratulations on clearing the 150,000-mile mark with your Nissan. Now you can set your sights 200,000.
With the weather starting to warm up, I’m guessing you want to get this figured out soon. You did not say how long this has been going on, but it seems from your question that you have been dealing with it for awhile.
There could be many different causes for this but from your description it seems it may be fuel related. Perhaps it’s a fuel pressure regulator or a temp sensor not reading quite right. We did not come up with any definitive hits on the technical website to which we belong.
With a bit of diagnostic work this problem can be tracked down and repaired. If the dealer doesn’t seem to want to deal with it, you might try a good independent repair shop.
Beware of gadgets
As fuel prices go up we’ll also see gas-savings gadgets, gizmos and additives being advertised. While there are many helpful things you can do to increase your fuel economy, many of which I wrote about a few weeks back, I have not seen an additive or an add-on gizmo that has backed up its claims.
Check out these websites for more information. Just type in gas-saving devices.
타 The Federal Trade Commissions website is www.ftc.gov.
타 Visit Consumer Reports website at www.consumerreports.org.
타 I found some good testing information on the Popular Mechanics site, www.popularmechanics.com.
Remember, if it sounds to good to be true it probably is. With the technology in today’s vehicles, these cars are squeezing every drop they can out of a gallon of gas. Keep your car well maintained, drive conservatively and don’t get sidetracked by the claims of the many devices that are out there.
타 Douglas Automotive is at 312 S. Hager Ave., Barrington, (847) 381-0454, and 7218B Virginia Road, Crystal Lake, (815) 356-0440. For information, visit douglasautomotive.com. Send questions to underthehood@dailyherald.com.