Ethanol Problems

[Doubleclutch]

Hi all.

I just had a major tune by a well respected old M/B shop. The car before the tune had hot start problems--it would start loaded up (too rich).  Now after a complete ignition redo and new injectors it runs just great excepting hot start after a situp of around 2 hours. The pump was overhauled about 10k miles ago. The hot start problem is clearly a fuel problem as a 45min situp gives a slightly uneven start and the 2 hour situp is extended cranking, perhaps 10 sec with a very uneven start.

The technician says the cause is that injection pipes are absorbing heat and the ethanol vaporizes at a lower temperature than gas. This causes a leak down in the system which must be replentished. Has anyone else run into this?

We intend to live with this but it is annoying to hot start in a car show or club gathering.

Possible solutions:

High torque starter
heat shield for the injector lines
fuel additives? (any suggestions)
Hot wire the cold start valve to a dash push button to charge the air intake evan with the temp above the normal cold start operation.

It no one else is running into this thats running ethanol it could be the Fl blend of ethanol is different than the blend for colder climates or even a problem with the recent injector rebuild.

Comments welcome.
 

[glenn]

Try a little/little more 'Quick start' in the intake manifold(after the butterfly).  If it starts better, you know it's too lean and a CSV s/w will help.  If the quick start doesn't help, it's too rich.

[Benz Dr.]

I would advise against quick start - most people don't know how to use it properly and it's a bit over kill. Maybe even just '' kill '' as in, what you can do to your engine.

  Is the solenoid on the IP is working? Once I fixed that on my own car it starts much better now. I doubt that ethanol plays little, if any part in this problem. After your engine hot soaks for two hours, starting problems should be minimal. I would look at partly blocked return lines as a likely problem.
Are you sure you have a working CSV? Just because there's power going to it and it clicks, doesn't mean anything is coming out of the diffusers. They're often plugged.

 

[Raymond]

The Technician has been sucked in by one of the many myths that people come up with when they don't know what the answer is.  If ethanol was vaporizing in the fuel lines, then all of us would be having the same problem.  Clearly, most of us don't.  I dislike ethanol for reasons that aren't myths, but your hot start problem isn't the fault of the corn squeezin's.  There are many posts on this site regarding hot starts and it often turns out to be mixture.  It's tricky getting the right balance between cold, middle, and hot mixture and offsetting one can affect the other. 

Start with the easy ones Dan has recommended.  About 3 years ago, I had my car "vapor lock" while climbing a small hill on a very hot summer day.  I blew out the return line with compressed air and the problem hasn't returned. 

[ja17]

I concur with Dan, checking the engine starting aids would be my next check.