I have a very low mileage (under 60,000) 1995 Ford Escort. Recently, I have noticed when the car has been sitting for a while (30 minutes or more), it takes a longer time, perhaps 3 seconds or more, to start. The car always started immediately before. Sometimes, it won't start on the first try, and then on the second try, it starts up immediately (always). Thereafter, if I turn it off and start again a few minutes later, it starts up fine until it's been sitting again for a while. I though perhaps the battery was old, and it was, so I changed it. No difference. I needed new spark plugs and wires, so I changed them... no difference. Then I stumbled onto something. If I leave the ignition switch in the "run or on" position for a second or two before starting, it always starts without delay! What else could this be? Could it be the Ignition coil pack that the spark wires connect into or something else? The tip off is if I leave the key in the on position, it seems to be charging something a while longer to allow for the correct power start. And.... after the start, it seems there is residual power left over to help start it over again during that 30 minute period. (I'm assuming the coils in the ignition pack stores some power between starts to do this). Any ideas? Thanks!
Jan 10, 2007 at 3:24 AM