Sluggish

[1FASFKR]

My turn to draw upon the knowledge of our members. Used to be when fired up the car for the first time in the day it would pop right off. Now it kinda stutter starts. But when warmed up after driving to a location then shutting it off and restarting it does pop right off. For some reason cold engine starts don't.

Throttle is sluggish. Responsiveness is dull. Blipping the throttle on a down shift is considerably less responsive. There's a lot more pop and backfire between shifts up or down.

No cel and no DTC codes. Car still runs great. It's just a couple little things. Any input is appreciated.

 

[railroad]

I would change the fuel filter and hope it does the job. Next, I would have the battery load tested or check the voltage at shut down and before the next start up.

 

[paluka21]

What kind of air filter do you have? If it's an oiled filter make sure you're not getting oil on the MAF elements, which can be cleaned with a Q-tip and rubbing alcohol or electronic parts cleaner spray.
Pull some plugs to see how they look and if they're too black/sooty which could cause similar symptoms that you're describing.

 

[99SSls1]

Call your tuner.


Maybe it senses that 15' stingray and it's pissed off.

 

[1FASFKR]

The filter was the blue from Revan Racings 13-6 kit. Non oiled. First thing I did was clean the MAF with alcohol and a Q-tip. I'm going to clean the TB next. Is there a TB relearn or reset procedure?

 

[1FASFKR]

Call your tuner.


Maybe it senses that 15' stingray and it's pissed off.

Lol. Ruby has nothing to fear about the wifes Stingray. Ruby could be down 100hp and still walk that dog.

It's not the tune. Been running the same tune for over 8k.

 

[2011 gtcs]

Lol. Ruby has nothing to fear about the wifes Stingray. Ruby could be down 100hp and still walk that dog.

It's not the tune. Been running the same tune for over 8k.

Check your plugs, if your running TR6s they need to be changed every 3k

 

[1FASFKR]

New set in about 1k on them. Gapped .028. Spose I could check them.

 

[2011 gtcs]

New set in about 1k on them. Gapped .028. Spose I could check them.

Maybe you got a bad tank of gas, how long has this been going on

 

[railroad]

I am sure you know the throttle cannot be manually opened like the mechanical linkage ones, for cleaning. Just mentioning to save some grief, just in case.

 

[Bytor]

I've had a similar start up issue several months after installing the bolt ons where it sputters on cold start up for a few seconds but fine when its warm. There were no other issues. I never found the root cause but wondered if the fuel line was draining completely back into the tank and the initial primer that happens wasn't enough or the psi was just too low for the first few seconds. I found that turning the key on/off a few times to prime the system would reduce the sputtering significantly. Yesterday I started it cold without the extra priming and it started close to normal.

 

[1FASFKR]

I am sure you know the throttle cannot be manually opened like the mechanical linkage ones, for cleaning. Just mentioning to save some grief, just in case.

Ya. I was just meaning the blade and inside.

 

[biminiLX]

Did you make any changes? Maintenance? Engine cleaning before this started?
If not battery plugs and fuel filter are solid places to start, but after those are checked its time for some fresh quality gas, Torco optional, then hammer down.
Go 'blow some carbon out' and enjoy with a smile.
Good luck.
-J
:beer:

 

[1FASFKR]

I've had a similar start up issue several months after installing the bolt ons where it sputters on cold start up for a few seconds but fine when its warm. There were no other issues. I never found the root cause but wondered if the fuel line was draining completely back into the tank and the initial primer that happens wasn't enough or the psi was just too low for the first few seconds. I found that turning the key on/off a few times to prime the system would reduce the sputtering significantly. Yesterday I started it cold without the extra priming and it started close to normal.

Your experience closely resonates with mine. This morning I turned the key a few times priming before starting. And viola, she popped right off.

 

[Spudz]

I had a rough cold start issue after getting headers and such installed. Would die and had to restart. The solution that worked for me was to have the car relearn idle. Used my SCT to wipe the KAM and followed the instructions of Lund to let the car relearn. It worked like a charm.

Your issue doesn't seem to be quite the same, but it could be worth trying.

 

[carguy19]

I wondered if the fuel line was draining completely back into the tank and the initial primer that happens wasn't enough or the psi was just too low for the first few seconds. I found that turning the key on/off a few times to prime the system would reduce the sputtering significantly.

I actually do this most of the time on cold starts. My car tends to sit for long periods of time, so when I go to start it, I find that this makes the car firing up much easier.

"the car popped off" is an interesting choice of words to describe it starting.

 

[paluka21]

OP- did you have an opportunity to check the plugs yet?

 

[1FASFKR]

Gap checked and inspected. Here's #8.

Been thinking. Often my car sits for a week and sometimes longer. I think there's something to Bytor's comments about turning the key on a couple times before starting to prime the fuel line. Once I did that, the car fired right up. And the next day it fired right up with just turning the key once. As for the sluggish pedal feel...I think it could be the hot humid weather here in TX coupled with stop and go city traffic.

 

[RangerDLA]

Gap checked and inspected. Here's #8.

Been thinking. Often my car sits for a week and sometimes longer. I think there's something to Bytor's comments about turning the key on a couple times before starting to prime the fuel line. Once I did that, the car fired right up. And the next day it fired right up with just turning the key once. As for the sluggish pedal feel...I think it could be the hot humid weather here in TX coupled with stop and go city traffic.

I just cured that hot and humid weather issue with VMP's triple pass, dual fan heat exchanger and 170* thermostat. It really does the trick. Read the thread IAT2 temps. I wrote more on it in there.

 

[paluka21]

Gap checked and inspected. Here's #8.

Been thinking. Often my car sits for a week and sometimes longer. I think there's something to Bytor's comments about turning the key on a couple times before starting to prime the fuel line. Once I did that, the car fired right up. And the next day it fired right up with just turning the key once. As for the sluggish pedal feel...I think it could be the hot humid weather here in TX coupled with stop and go city traffic.

That plug looks good to me. Yes humidity really affects these cars and most other forced induction motors. My car is the same, that it feels sluggish and throttle response is no where near as good as during the spring/fall time.