I have been reading through the archives of this board to try and get some ideas of what the problem I am having could be. While some of the symptoms are similar to some of the problems I am still unsure of what it is. So here goes: When I turn the key the car will either start right up with no sign of smoke, or it will crank away requiring me to give it some gas to start. On those times where I do have to gas it a puff of white smoke comes from the exhaust, and if I let the RPM's fall right after start-up it will die unless I give another slight tap of gas. Then everything is fine. It idles smooth, and runs strong. There seems to be no pattern to this at all. Sometimes it will happen when it's been sitting all night. Other times it will happen after an hour of driving. But it also will start right up sometimes regardless of whether it's cold or hot. There is an adjustable fuel pressure regulator on the car that reads 43-44 at idle. But when I turn the key to 'on' I hear the whine, but the gauge reads about 5 psi and then slowly drops. Is this normal? Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

 

Does your fuel pressure bleed off rather quickly after the car is shut off? How many miles are on the car/ fuel system? How is gas mileage?

 

i ithnk you need a new fuel pump or regulator. sometihng isn't allowing it to maintain preasure.

 

Ok here is a question that will show my lack of knowledge. I think the regulator might be leaking. There appears to be a little moisture/fuel around the base and if you get close enough you can smell it. Would this be enough to cause this problem. If so is there some kind of seal that could have broke or worn away? The car has 95,000 miles. I am not sure about the fuel system. I just got the car on Saturday so there is a lot I still don't know. Thank you for your help up to this point.