after twice sitting for a week, my car tries to start, but seems like it is out of gas. after constant cranking, with my foot to the floor, it eventually starts, spewing a bit of light colored smoke.
it runs fine after that, and then continues to start with no problem.

it has been raining here lots and i just had the head gasket replaced.
no overheating or any other problems.

any ideas?

 

after using the search tool, i am diagnosing a main relay problem due to heat.
this would explain no problems starting after i am driving around with the windows rolled down.

does this sound about right?

 

i think it might be the fact that car sits for so long ,,,,,,,,,,,,if car does not sit for a week do you have any issues starting it daily??? typically a bad main relay ,car can be sitting for a short while ( 1 hr, or even less ) when it is hot and not restart ,,,

 

Since it eventually starts (with difficulty) I didn't think of the main relay.

A bad main relay will not switch on the fuel pump. Therefore it will not start AT ALL since it gets no gas at all.

 

never had starting problems, except after its been sitting for a week.
it has been very hot here...internal temp of cabin gets HOT!
would anything else explain smooth running and starting once i get it going?
i would certainly like to avoid the main relay fix.
one of the posts said something about the soldering expanding when hot and fouling the connection. once cooler the solder shrinks back?

 

Get in the habit of listening for the fuel pump.

When you first turn the key to the II position, you hear several clicks from behind the dash. In the middle of the clicks the fuel pump will turn on to pressurize the system for about 2 seconds. It is a faint buzzing/whirling sound that comes from the back seat, so turn off the fans, radio, etc.., so you can hear it.

If you don't hear that sound when the car doesn't start, then either the MFR or the fuel pump is the culprit.

Repairing the solder of the MFR is not too bad if you know how to solder.

 

A leaking injector would fit your symptoms also as you would have one flooded cylinder and low fuel pressure which would take awhile to build fuel pressure and then start with smoke from the flooded cylinder.

 

would a leaking injector effect subsequent starts as well or just the first start?

if it would effect only the first start, how would i check to see which injector was leaking?

 

A leaky injector will not cause a no start at all ,, it would affect a misfire on that particular cylinder