note: this is a repost from the general engine forums, but since i couldnt get an answer in there, i figured id give it a shot in the MS3 section so it could be seen by some new faces.
ok heres the deal...
as of now i'm driving an MS3, but my old daily driver and current winter beater is a 94 celica. about 4 years ago, i had just rebuilt the motor in my celica when i hit a deer, set the airbags off, and totalled the car. with no insurance coverage on it, and since i had just dumped a good amount of work and money into the car, i started looking for another celica with a bad motor but straight body. 3 years ago, i found my donor car, and swapped my good motor into it. the car runs and drives fine now, just has minor inconveniences, but nothing with the drivetrain. when the motor was in the old car, i never once had a problem starting it. now, tho, it can sometimes take me upwards of 6 tries to get it started, especially when the motor is already warm. it kinda seems as if its not getting enough fuel to start, because i can usually get it to start by blipping the throttle a little bit once it starts to turn over.
its got me completely baffled, and it's been like this since i did the swap... hasnt gotten any better, hasnt gotten any worse. i tried injector cleaner, and that accomplished nothing. i thought maybe there was a vacuum hose that hadn't been attached in the right place, or hadn't been attached at all, but i dont see any that look out of place. also i would think the vacuum hose would cause the car to run a little rough, which it doesnt.
not a huge issue, as the car still gets me where i need it to, once it finally starts. i just figured i'd run it by you guys to see if anybody had any thoughts or ideas.
btw its the 7AFE motor, 1.8L
some additional information requested in the original post, may come in handy:
it never starts then stalls. once it revs for maybe a half second, its golden. if it wont start, it just cranks for a while and either doesnt turn over at all, or sounds like it starts to then dies when you release the key. the latter scenario is why i blip the throttle a little when it sounds like it wants to turn over... seems to need it, like the motor isnt dumping enough fuel for startup. the extra gas causes the engine to rev a little upon turning over, and once it does that, its fine. or maybe it somehow floods itself upon being turned off and that's why it needs the extra gas. lol does that even make sense? just chucking theories out there.
no check engine lights on, have not thrown a single code since the swap.
the harness is from the car that i got the body from. by using that one, i didnt need to cut any wires or anything, just used what was there.
no, no major changes at all during the swap. it was a 7AFE mated to a 5 speed being dumped into a car which i took a 7AFE mated to a 5 speed out of. the only difference at all between the 2 cars is that the newer one is a hatch, while the older one was a coupe. as far as i know, that has absolutely no bearing on anything going on in the engine bay.
ok heres the deal...
as of now i'm driving an MS3, but my old daily driver and current winter beater is a 94 celica. about 4 years ago, i had just rebuilt the motor in my celica when i hit a deer, set the airbags off, and totalled the car. with no insurance coverage on it, and since i had just dumped a good amount of work and money into the car, i started looking for another celica with a bad motor but straight body. 3 years ago, i found my donor car, and swapped my good motor into it. the car runs and drives fine now, just has minor inconveniences, but nothing with the drivetrain. when the motor was in the old car, i never once had a problem starting it. now, tho, it can sometimes take me upwards of 6 tries to get it started, especially when the motor is already warm. it kinda seems as if its not getting enough fuel to start, because i can usually get it to start by blipping the throttle a little bit once it starts to turn over.
its got me completely baffled, and it's been like this since i did the swap... hasnt gotten any better, hasnt gotten any worse. i tried injector cleaner, and that accomplished nothing. i thought maybe there was a vacuum hose that hadn't been attached in the right place, or hadn't been attached at all, but i dont see any that look out of place. also i would think the vacuum hose would cause the car to run a little rough, which it doesnt.
not a huge issue, as the car still gets me where i need it to, once it finally starts. i just figured i'd run it by you guys to see if anybody had any thoughts or ideas.
btw its the 7AFE motor, 1.8L
some additional information requested in the original post, may come in handy:
it never starts then stalls. once it revs for maybe a half second, its golden. if it wont start, it just cranks for a while and either doesnt turn over at all, or sounds like it starts to then dies when you release the key. the latter scenario is why i blip the throttle a little when it sounds like it wants to turn over... seems to need it, like the motor isnt dumping enough fuel for startup. the extra gas causes the engine to rev a little upon turning over, and once it does that, its fine. or maybe it somehow floods itself upon being turned off and that's why it needs the extra gas. lol does that even make sense? just chucking theories out there.
no check engine lights on, have not thrown a single code since the swap.
the harness is from the car that i got the body from. by using that one, i didnt need to cut any wires or anything, just used what was there.
no, no major changes at all during the swap. it was a 7AFE mated to a 5 speed being dumped into a car which i took a 7AFE mated to a 5 speed out of. the only difference at all between the 2 cars is that the newer one is a hatch, while the older one was a coupe. as far as i know, that has absolutely no bearing on anything going on in the engine bay.
