my car (85 T/A 305 TPI) used to start up fine when cold, it would fire instantly. recently when starting cold in the morning (it's May so not that cold, maybe in the 50s F) it will just crank but not fire. But if I push the gas pedal to the floor (letting in a lot more air), it'll start up. Once it's warm I have no problem starting, and it runs great. So I'm hoping I can access the collective knowledge of this forum to help me figure this out. I won't list it all, but I have gone through the engine and most things are good and/or new... spark plugs, cap/rotor, sensors, etc. I'm thinking maybe something with the IAC, it's new but I have the old one, might try reinstalling the old one to see if it helps. The car runs good and pulls nice and hard up through the rpm so I'm pretty sure it's not an ignition timing issue, but I'll check the timing when I get a chance. Has anyone had this problem before?

 

Is fuel pressure dropping fast after prime when warm?
sounds like a leaking injector or csi.

 

idk.. good idea. I'll check the fuel pressure when I get a chance.

 

Good call on the cold start injector. It shouldn't even be active above 40°C, and should have a very short duration at 25°C. An easy thing might be to disconnect the CSI for testing. After a complete cool-down, it may take a little longer to crank to get fuel, but should eliminate the need to go WOT to get it to fire.

The standing fuel pressure reading after shut-down could also be revealing.

 

Haven't had a chance to check much but did find a spark plug boot not fully seated on spark plug. Pushed it fully onto plug and now starts much better.