[redjeepjk12]

i have a 95 jeep wrangler and everytime on a cold start the truck nevers starts up on first attempt, first attempt sounds like it wants to start but doesnt but everytime on second attempt it starts, i was thinking maybe a fuel filter??? but just wanna see if anyone ran into this problem also before i started throwing parts into it, any ideas??

[laybackman]

Originally Posted by redjeepjk12

i have a 95 jeep wrangler and everytime on a cold start the truck nevers starts up on first attempt, first attempt sounds like it wants to start but doesnt but everytime on second attempt it starts, i was thinking maybe a fuel filter??? but just wanna see if anyone ran into this problem also before i started throwing parts into it, any ideas??

I am not a big fan of throwing parts at a problem and hope to get lucky with getting rid of a problem. On the other hand I keep a record of everything I do to my vehicles.

If you do not know when the: air filter, spark plugs, or fuel filter were changed then they are overdue. I did not mention oil or oil filter since they are an essential maintenance issue IMHO.

If the items I mentioned are all OK and it fires on the second attempt and continues to run I would suspect that you have a fuel regulator issue which lets the fuel pressure bleed down.

Next cold start turn the ignition to ON and leave it there for about five seconds then attempt to fire it up. If it does fire up that may further indicate a fuel pressure regulator problem IF the fuel filter is good.

IF it runs fine after the initial start up issue I am guessing that the fuel pump is OK.

[Alfons]

I agree with laybackman's concept that you have a fuel pressure problem at startup, however, it's not just the regulator that can let the fuel pressure down. There's a check valve in the regulator & one in the pump. I would suggest that you need to borrow or buy a fuel pressure test gauge. There's a cap on the fuel rail that you remove and then screw the pressure gauge onto the fitting. Next, turn the key to ON (not start) and see what the pressure in the rail rises to and how it stays (the fuel pump stays on for a very short time in this state), then start the engine and see what the pressure is at idle - it should be 31 psi. Pull the vacuum hose off the regulator and see that the pressure rises by about 8 - 10 psi. Put the hose back on, and shut the engine off - watch the pressure drop, it shouldn't loose more than about 20 psi in a half hour. If it looses drops too quickly and/or the pressure doesn't get to the specified level, you have a regulator or pump problem. Post your results and if this is the case, there are some simple hose clamping procedures to determine whether you have a regulator or pump problem.

You can also determine whether the problem might be in the filter, but as laybackman has mentioned - if you don't know when it was changed, you might as well do this (it's part of a good maintenance cycle anyway) and see if your flow rate improves.