Long cranking time to start

[Mopewbie]

Hi all just to check options here, I have a 440 6 barrel and the first start of the day can be painful sometimes.
There's this ritual:
Crank for about 10 sec.
Press pedal to the floor (choke) and release
crank for another 10 seconds... and it starts!
....well... usually... sometimes it won't but question here is... shouldn't it start straight away instead of doing al this?
I believe it should be pedal to the floor, crank and start straight away?
Timing is ok, can't remember which spark plugs are in there at the moment. Weather is colder at the moment but makes no difference. Battery is new and charging fine. If I connect a battery starter it's the same thing, only cranking a bit faster.

Thank you.

 

[Kern Dog]

Not many carbureted cars seem to start immediately like a fuel injected one, at least that is my experience.
I wouldn't feel comfortable cranking 10-20 seconds every cold start though.
My red car usually fires up and will run within 5-8 seconds if I've driven it within a couple of weeks. After a month or so, it will need more pumps of the pedal.
Depending on the blend in your fuel, alcohol/ethanol will evaporate faster than 100% pure gasoline so the carburetor may be losing fuel to evaporation.

 

[turbine68rt]

I never use the starter without setting the choke and introducing raw fuel first. KD is right, the less cranking with a cold engine the better. Whether it sits for a day or a few weeks, mine starts within a few seconds. When you say "first start of the day", how long has it been sitting since running it last? Check the position of the choke plate when it's set and confirm you're getting a good stream of gas from the discharge nozzles.

 

[AR67GTX]

Carburetors have vented fuel bowls and today’s fuel compared to that of 1970 is highly volatile and evaporates quickly. That low volatility also promotes fuel percolation after a hot stop and heat soak so after driving your car a good portion of the fuel in the fuel bowl is gone within a half hour - but not enough to prevent a re-start. However more evaporates out each day until the level is so low that after awhile you have a nearly dry carb. People experience different severity of this issue due to some carb model differences, different fuel formulations around the country and times of the year, and some use racing fuel with a lower volatility. I usually prime my carbs using these if I haven’t driven them for a few days.

On Holleys and AFBs I fill the bowl directly through the bowl vent, primarily the bowl that feeds the accelerator pump. When I first see fuel dribbling out the venturis I know the bowls are full plus some. I get in the car, pump the accelerator 2-3 times, wait a few seconds and the car starts on the first revolution of the motor.

Spinning the starter without touching the pedal for 10 +/- seconds, pump the throttle 3 or 4 times, wait a few seconds for the fuel to vaporize a bit and then turn the key is an alternative. But one 10 second burst of spinning the starter seldom does it. You may have to spin it foe 10 seconds 2 or 3 times to get enough fuel up there. Just me but I don’t like to spin a cold engine that much and put that much work on the starter.

 

[Longknife]

There's this ritual:
Crank for about 10 sec.
Press pedal to the floor (choke) and release
crank for another 10 seconds... and it starts!

Eliminate first step......

 

[toolmanmike]

Set the choke before cranking the first time. If you're lucky, the fuel didn't evaporate out of the float bowls and you will get a accelerator pump shot. I just read @AR67GTX 's post #4. Spot on information. You can add gas through the bowl vents to help the cold starts if evaporation is an issue. Many add a small electric priming pump at the tank controlled by a momentary switch to fill the carb up.

 

[Mopewbie]

I never use the starter without setting the choke and introducing raw fuel first. KD is right, the less cranking with a cold engine the better. Whether it sits for a day or a few weeks, mine starts within a few seconds. When you say "first start of the day", how long has it been sitting since running it last? Check the position of the choke plate when it's set and confirm you're getting a good stream of gas from the discharge nozzles

Set the choke before cranking the first time. If you're lucky, the fuel didn't evaporate out of the float bowls and you will get a accelerator pump shot. I just read @AR67GTX 's post #4. Spot on information. You can add gas through the bowl vents to help the cold starts if evaporation is an issue. Many add a small electric priming pump at the tank controlled by a momentary switch to fill the carb up.

I try to drive the cars at least once a week, every 15 days tops. Choke plate seems ok.
Bowls are full and there's a good squirt coming every time. I checked many times before.

There's this ritual:
Crank for about 10 sec.
Press pedal to the floor (choke) and release
crank for another 10 seconds... and it starts!

Eliminate first step......

Can do but it will be the same... step one will turn into step 2...


With the 318 it's straight away! Pump twice, turn the key and in about 3 seconds the car is running (or at least attempted to start, which doesn't happen to the 440) doesn't matter the weather or for how long has been sitting.

Thanks for the replies so far.

 

[steve340]

If there is fuel in the float bowls no reason you could not pump two or three shots into the cold engine with the accelerator pump.

 

[Bird 426]

My small block Sixpack pretty much starts the same way, except if I fuel the center carb, it starts immediately. Fuel, spark and air. Oh, don't hold your peddle to the floor, doing that can partially open the choke and your just adding air to your fuel starved engine.

 

[dadsbee]

A 100 threads here on "starts". This is sitting for 4 months! Holley 750 DP on it. Electric choke

 

[dadsbee]

This is also 4 months... 440 with an Eddy on top.

 

[Geoff 2]

The only way to fix the problem permanently....is an elec fuel pump. Carter 4594 or 4600, depending on the engine's HP output.

The problem is worse with the 6 pack. The fuel evaporates out of 3 float bowls [ unlike one or two for a 4 bbl car ]. Same fuel pump though. The pump now has to fill 3 fuel bowls before the fuel level is high enough to provide a combustible mixture.

 

[dadsbee]

Seriously. The guy has to make two 10 second cranks to start his car and you think he needs a back up pump!

 

[Geoff 2]

No, not a back up pump. One that is separate. His engine will then start instantly, & not be cranking, cranking for 20 seconds, which is bad for any engine....

 

[dadsbee]

GTFO...

 

[WileERobby]

See posts #4 & #12. My 6-bbl car will start immediately... has an elec fuel pump. My Cordoba needs priming to start if it sits more than a few days. It's fairly commonplace with today's fuels... evaporation.

 

[dadsbee]

It's fairly commonplace with today's fuels... evaporation.

Not in one week!

 

[WileERobby]

Not in one week!

Oh, yes it is ! After a few days, my Doba will barely start. One week ? Not a chance. Prime it. I do it all the time, since I got the car a few years ago. If the Doba sits a day or two... BOOM ! starts in an instant. Runs and idles like a charm. ( I'm not going to sit there, cranking and cranking, burning up another starter ).

 

[dadsbee]

Something more wrong than fuel then... Note the two examples I showed previously, both 4 months sitting in storage and no priming. All 6 of mine start that way and my hemi dual quad doesn't even have a choke.

 

[WileERobby]

Something more wrong than fuel then... Note the two examples I showed previously, both 4 months sitting in storage and no priming. All 6 of mine start that way and my hemi dual quad doesn't even have a choke.

Nope. Nothing wrong. Don't matter if it's hot, warm, or cold out. I've been fixing these cars for 55 years. Todays fuels are not the same as they were when these cars were new. I hear the same story from many in my car community here. Cranking, cranking, cranking these cars to start when they've been sitting for a time.