Start up issue(?) with 328 gts

I am a proud new owner of a 1988 328 GTS with ~28k miles on it and a newly rebuilt motor (performed at North Coast exotics by Earl Gibbs).
The car runs beautifully, but to start it I need to give it some gas as I am turning it over and it doesn't just fire up, it cranks a few times before starting. Pumping the gas peddle a few times prior to start up does not seem to help. Is this normal, or is it something I should investigate farther. And if its abnormal is there an easy thing I can try to fix it?
Thanks in advance for any and all advice. I look forward to being a part of the Ferrarichat community!
Jerry

 

You have a fuel injected car so I'm not sure what the point of pumping the gas pedal prior to start up would do...

Is it the same issue hot or cold?

Have you checked the throttle plate idle settings or the air valve setting on the CIS? If it truly "runs beautifully" other than at start up, I think that you can probably mess with those things first and see what happens.

 

You can pump the pedal all you want it will do nothing it is not a Carb car check the CIS or your loosing fuel pressure somewhere also cranking over a few times before start is normal

 

First off - Thanks for your help. I greatly appreciate it.

Yes it is the same hot or cold however the first morning I started it up (the day after it was delivered and I drove it around a fair bit) it fired right up.
I have not checked either. I will look into that next.

And again - thanks!!

 

Thank you sooo much for your help! I really appreciate it.

 

Let me ask you this: did you put new gas in it after that first drive? If so, did you put some extra high octane gas by chance?

 

I have not put gas in the car as of yet. I have a vintage motorcycle that I do not drive much so I use high octane gas in it. I was wondering if I should use high octane gas in the car? I will be driving it more than the bike.

 

High octane gas, like 100, will not be beneficial at all and in actually will not burn very well in the car. The rule of thumb is that you should I run as low an octane as possible without detonation in order to get the most complete combustion. I wouldn’t put higher than 91 if you have a stock motor (but ask your engine builder guy what he did to make sure it’s not higher compression or anything now ).

Maybe you should put some gas in and see what happens. Most cars are delivered with very little fuel in them so I’m surprised yours has that much gas.

 

Check the battery.
It might be something as simple as a few faulty cells and it not giving it enough charge to start first time and may need replacing.

 

Ok sounds good. I thought I had read something on here about not using high-octane. Will do on the gas and the all to North Coast

 

simple enough. Thanks! will do

 

Do you mean:

A. It starts on the first cranking attempt, but takes a few motor revolutions to start (i.e., a few seconds of starter motor cranking), or

B. It takes several cranking attempts each of a many seconds to start?

Unless you have the rather unusual 1988 CH version KE3-Jet 328, your 328 (and most of the F K-Jet models) have a configuration of two relays working together to run the fuel pump. One way to confirm/deny if something in this two relay system might be contributing to the problem is to remove the fuel pump relay and use a jumper wire to connect the female terminal 30 in the fuel pump relay socket to the female 87 terminal in the fuel pump relay socket:

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The fuel pump will start running (even with the key "off"), then try starting and see if it starts more easily.

PS Holding the throttle plate open some during starter motor cranking can sometimes aid starting, but, if it helps, it's just masking a problem that should be corrected.

 

Holding the throttle plate half way open when the Engine is hot helps a lot for a restart

 

Wow! This is great. Thank you. I will give this a try later this week
And option A better describes what's going on. I start turning it over and it doesn't start up so I depress the accelerator and it starts.

 

Depressing the acc. pedal during starter motor cranking = helps the engine draw in more air = deflects the airflow metering plate more = can open the safety switch in the airflow metering unit = puts the signal to turn "on" the fuel pump relay R thru a different path in the other relay (of the two relay system). For a test, you can also try a different ...101 relay (temporarily borrowed from some headlight function, for example) in the relay S position (bottom row, far left).

Relay S has a very strange name in the 328 OMs - "Fuel injection delivery pump starting-relay". It really should've been named something like "Relay controlling the fuel pump relay R".

 

This is very helpful and highlights how much I have to learn! Thanks yet again

 

My 19883.2 (albeit the rarer KE3 Bosch fuel injection for the Swiss market) calls for the following start procedure. When the car is off and cold, blip the throttle pedal. This helps ensure the throttle position sensor the black triangular thing on the throttle body has clicked into its resting start position. (This might need adjustment in your car - with the car off, move the throttle by hand, you should hear a slight click from the TPS just off the rest position, if you do not hear the click the TPS needs adjustment.). Then, when cold start the car with no throttle at all. It should start up instantly, the cold start fuel injector gives a nice squirt of fuel to get things started.

When hot, start the car with the throttle pressed about 1/4 way down, this bypasses the TPS sensor setting which at the throttle rest position provides a cold start enrichment signal.

Apologies if the US K jetronic does not have the throttle position sensor, I think it does. If so, the start up sequence would be similar.

Most of the time the Bosch systems run fine when the car is running and at higher rpm. The vast amount of its complexity relates to start up and idle to meet emisions levels. So your car can run fine most of the time, but not be completely dialed in for the low rpm and start up functions.

I would also just check some obvious things, like take out a spark plug and see if it is gapped correctly. It might also show if the car is running rich, which might affect the start up. Show us a picture of an easy to access plug, that might give some clues.

 

Good info but I assume that since the 328 US operator manual states that the cold and hot start procedure is the same - no pressing of the accelerator pedal, just turn the key to the start position - there must be some difference in the system between the US and the Swiss market version.

In addition, the manual specifically states, "Do not step on accelerator pedal until engine is running smoothly"

 

Same for hot start? I thought that for hot you had to press the pedal.

 

It's been a while since I owned a 328 but I could swear that the owners manual said press the pedal slightly on hot start.

 

The only places in the documentation that I can recall seeing mention of using the Acc. pedal at all during starting is in the euro 308i-2V OM (195/80), the euro 308QV OM (248/82), and the euro 328 OMs (376/86 and 513/88) -- but it is only for "very hot" restarting. The corresponding US OMs (186/80, 216/81, 260/83, 307/84, 396/85, and 535/88) do not have this stated.

Example from the euro 195/80 OM:
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If you have to diddle the acc. pedal during a cold start, or a warm restart, on any 308i-2V, 308QV, or 328 = something isn't right.