majcric

Turning into a giant mess is what scares me. But how to do you avoid this? From my experience some of the smaller problems are sometimes one of the biggest headaches to fix.

PNYXPRESS

Lets start at the beginning. There are only a few parts needed to start the engine
1. Good battery
2. Good starter
3. good coil pack
4. Good spark plugs
5. Good power supply going to each
6. Good fuel injectors
7. Good fuel supply
8. Good air supply.

A. Does the engine turn over strong? If not, check wiring going to starter.
B. Are the plugs firing? If not, check plug wires for fraying or arcing. Also check power going to coil.
C. Does it start easier with the throttle pushed wide open? Check you throttle body and IAC valve for blockage and clean them as well as your filter and MAF
D. How do you know its flooding? Can you smell a heavy fuel smell? Make sure you truly are getting fuel.

Chromeshadow

+1

Btw, when you start it, do you usually hit the gas? These should start without touching anything except the key. Have you checked the air filter?

majcric

I feel pretty comfortable ruling out 1 and 2. The rest of the checklist I'll definitely need to look into. I want to say the plugs are firing since the engine runs great once it is started. They might not be firing quite right though. Will also look into the coil

Once the car throws a fit in the extreme cold the throttle must be pushed to floor with lots of continuous cranking otherwise it will not start. This is the only reason I even touch the gas. Under normal circumstances or warm weather I never touch the gas pedal.

I should have never assumed it was flooding. This I do not know with certainy

majcric

I usually never do. This is only done as a last result meaning you either hold the pedal to the floor or you can forget the car starting at all.