hard starting 94 Legacy turbo

[AW10]

A mate in the US has a 94 Legacy single turbo estate that really doesn't want to start when it gets cold (-10 C and lower). It cranks over fine and is on the cusp of catching but just won't catch. Eventually it will start, run very poorly for a few minutes and then all of a sudden run as though nothing was ever wrong. Judging by the smell from the tail pipe it's getting fuel. Plugs have been replaced with no change. Old plugs looked fine. I've told him to check the spark quality by putting a loose plug on one of the wires and seeing if the spark is fat or weak.

Any known weak spots on these era cars? Any suggestions on what else to check? He really should buy something slightly newer but he's a bit tight.

[vxr2010]

Clean the maf sensor and do an Ecu reset , plus a code read , plus check fuel pressure , I had trouble starting did an Ecu reset on an 04 , battery earth off pump the brakes car starts fine now

[AW10]

Thanks for the quick reply. What's involved in a code read - standard OBD2?

[74merc]

I'm not familiar with that engine, but on the EZ30 I have, it is a sign that the valve clearances are too tight and need to be adjusted.

[vxr2010]

See if there is an obd port but looking at age it's unlikely , I take it it's showing no cels ? Could be 02 sensor when it's getting slightly warm it's working , I believe if you google it there are ways of reading codes some thing about joining a green and a black wire under the dash or is that just for resetting Ecu ?

[AW10]

vxr2010 said:

See if there is an obd port but looking at age it's unlikely , I take it it's showing no cels ? Could be 02 sensor when it's getting slightly warm it's working , I believe if you google it there are ways of reading codes some thing about joining a green and a black wire under the dash or is that just for resetting Ecu ?

Thanks - you've reminded me that OBD2 came into play about 96 so 94 is a bit early. I did some more digging and found http://codes.rennacs.com/Petrol-Engine/Japanese-Ko... - will run through that on the car next time I visit him.

As far as not showing a CEL? The CEL has been on for about 15 years! Always believed to be an O2 sensor issue but no idea who did the diagnosis and how. He's in a state where the CEL clearly isn't checked as part of the inspection and there are no emissions tests.