will my 308 start?..ya!...maybe not?

had 85'308qv for 12 years. when i stop for a starbucks, it feels to me like russian rullette,will it re- start nicely now...or do i have to wait a few seconds...or hope i wont flood it....or...lucked out...started right up!...any sure fire starting suggestions that always work? i also have a 90' testarossa, never had a praying moment on starting!...why is 308 sometimes a startup hassle?

 

Try replacing your fuel accumulator.

It is often the culprit of this very (in)action.

 

Allen,

Is this something new, or has this been a problem all along? One thing you should check are your ground connections, all throughout the car. Start with the battery terminal, cables, quick shut-off connector, chassis connection, etc. The quick disconnects are notorious for getting corroded and causing a drop in voltage, which can screw up the electronics. Also check the grounds to the Digiplex boxes. They are a weak link also. (Do a forum search on that, you'll find some instructions on where to look and what to do.) You might also want to check your battery and make sure it's holding a full charge at the proper voltage.

Otherwise, you might describe the symptoms a little better. Does the car turn over but not start? Is is just dead when you turn the key? Not turn over but hear a clicking sound? More information may help someone figure it out for you.

 

A TR is more reliable in this regard, because TWO things have to go wrong to prevent warm restarting (on at least one bank); whereas, ONE thing going wrong can cause warm restart trouble on a 308QV

(Assuming that your symptom is that the engine cranks over well, but doesn't fire up -- please restate if it's something else as Steve requested) Easiest first thing to try is just unplugging the cold start injector before a warm restart (in case something electrical is wrongly causing it to squirt during a warm restart). If that makes no improvement, you need to measure (or have measured) the resting fuel pressure after shutoff -- a bad accumulator (as Mark mentioned), a bad fuel pump check valve, or a bad seal in the pressure regulator of the FD can cause the fuel pressure to (wrongly) drop to zero after engine shutoff and make warm restarting difficcult.

 

the engine does crank well and eventually starts...but it takes sometimes 3 times, and sometimes it starts right up. it also seems in this cooler weather that it re- starts better than during the hot season. the first try in the garage is always fast and good. its kind of a weird thing depending on how i drive that day,etc.

 

This is a completely different condition (especially for the overall temperature of the fuel system).

 

I had this issue and it was the check valve off the fuel pump has failed. (or in my case was missing) It's a simple fix, if it is indeed whats wrong with your car.

 

When I bought my '85 QV (Australian), I read the manual; it says to apply part throttle when hot starting, which is what I do, and it works a charm

Patrick

 

Yes, that additional note is included in the euro 308QV OM (but it's not in the US 308QV OM probably for emission reasons), but it only applies to the limited situation of a "very hot engine" -- the primary instruction is to do the same actions as cold starting. If you need to do that action for every warm restart, it will get you going, but your system has a fault.