Choke Concern

[Axlander9289]

My new carbed '89 Festiva intermittently has trouble starting. You have to crank it four or five times until it starts weakly, and then you have to rev for a few seconds to get it to stay running. After this, it idle's smoothly. I know my way around a car pretty well, but I don't know a lot about carburetters. My grandpa, who has been around since before fuel injection, thinks the choke is sticking, and the problem can be corrected by cleaning the linkage with some carb cleaner will correct the problem. Cleaning the carb is probably a good idea anyway, but will this be likely to correct the problem?

[25Horseplay]

That would be a good place to start. Make sure all the choke linkage is moving freely.

[FestYboy]

choke on the festies are electric, so check the wiring as well.

[WmWatt]

When I start my '89 cold after it's been sitting I have to pump the gas a few times.
The owner's manual says if it doesn't fire up right away pump the gas pedal three times and hold it half way to the floor while the starter is cranking the engine.
Pumping the pedal has got to be a habit and I do it when it's not needed making the engine roar to life.
The car is slow to start after it's sat for a few days.
My theory is fuel is evaporating out of the float bowl reservoir inside the
carburettor but I'm just guessing because plugging in the block heater makes the car start right up too. Maybe one day I should open the hood and look at the level in the little window on the side of the float bowl but it's just not enough of a problem.

[miami man]

my 78 chevy pickup acts the same way as wm watt and it is no big problem. im 47 and had alot of carbed cars before.

[Tom]

Your choke is not working or sticking. Take the breather cover off when it is cold and look at the shutter. It will be straight up and down, it's supposed too. Now go in and step on the gas peddle once. Don't do anything else. Now look at it. It should be closed because it's cold. That's what makes your car start. As saoon ast it starts and fires the shutter opens so it will stay running while it's cold, if it starts to die it will close more to keep it running. It also feathers as needed while it's warming up. This is your automatic choke. When it's all the way warm it stays open because it no longer need to choke to start and run. Plugging your car in warms it up so a lot of this is not needed and it automaticly does what it is supposed to do. Yours is sticking and not working properly. Sometimes the shutter needs lubed and sometimes the linkage needs lubed. Somtimes it's the Automatic choke needs resetting and sometimes it's bad or the electrical connection is bad. It wants to start and run but it can't, the choke is not working properly. We old timers know to give it a lot of gas peddle and then keep[ it running to get past this but that is hard on a cold engine.

[WmWatt]

Thanks. Tom. I took the air cleaner off last night and had a look, then sprayed with carb cleaner although everything was already clean. I have a spare carburettor off a wreck which I played with as well, much easier to see and try everything. The Haynes manual describes a couple of adjustments made by bending tangs but I don't know that would make a difference. Might try it some day. I assume the only effect of a suboptimal choke is a waste of some fuel when starting cold.