Hey Everyone,
I've owned a 1998 Pontiac Sunfire with the 2.2L for about three years now. It has had this problem ever since I bought it. It's never got worse and I've added 40,000 miles since purchase.
About 70% of the time when you go to start it. It will take about 7 seconds of cranking while it struggles to start. It will pop and fire on a cylinder or two but will take some time before it finally lights off. Once it starts it runs perfectly. It is not an issue with the starter or batttery. It cranks hard. It almost seems like it may be a fuel issue. I replaced the fuel filter once and this did not resolve it. If you stomp on the gas pedal while it's cranking it will usually start better.
Where would I start with this problem? Is this a common J-body problem? When this problem first started (about a week after I bought it) I assumed that the fuel pump was probably going bad and would fail eventually. Well 40,000 miles later it's doing exactly the same thing.
Any ideas? I appreciate the help.
You're not alone. My bud's '98 2.2 powered S-10 would crank long at times too. I doubt it's fuel pump related, as the
GM in-tank unit has a life expectancy of 120,000-140,000 miles. I do know that in '96 the crank trigger-wheel was from then on cast
to the crank with it's synch-notches advanced several degrees compared to previous years. That and with the introduction of the
OBD-II management system the 2.2L went from batch or group-firing with the MPFI to sequential, so maybe the start-up programing
isn't inacting the proper injector firing to allow quick start-up. Lord knows that because of this kind of problem with SFI back in the mid-
'80s on the Buick turbo-V6 GM employed a 7th injector that fired into the intake plenium for ease during cold start-up All I know is even on my '94 it seems to take unusually long to start-up compared to other engines I've drove with even just a carb. Although, have you checked the EGR and it's operation? That once made the same trouble on my dad's '89 TBI 5.7L van, and it took the same method
of pedal work to start-up.
Go beyond the "bolt-on".
at the risk of sounding dumb... have you checked your plugs and wires?
and i really dont want to sound like an idiot on this one, but the ignition module only controls spark up to 400 rpm. essentially, it only controls spark for starting, after the engine is running, the ecm takes over. just something else to look into.
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