Warm Start

[Scott Sogge]

Hi All - I have a question on my newly aquired 60 sunroof coupe (Maestro re-build super 90, webers, 050 distributor). The car is a blast to drive and it runs great. It always starts on the 1st crank when cold, however after it warms up and i'm downtown with multiple onlookers, it takes 8++ cranks to start it. Any suggestions, or is this somewhat normal?

Scott Sogge
60 Sunroof Coupe 111785

[John Lewenauer]

Hi All - I have a question on my newly aquired 60 sunroof coupe (Maestro re-build super 90, webers, 050 distributor). The car is a blast to drive and it runs great. It always starts on the 1st crank when cold, however after it warms up and i'm downtown with multiple onlookers, it takes 8++ cranks to start it. Any suggestions, or is this somewhat normal?

Scott Sogge
60 Sunroof Coupe 111785

Miy 356 C Zenith starts immediately on first crank when cold also. When "hot" I push the gas pedal to the floor, open the butterflies and crank. Turns a bit longer to clear out the richness and then fires.

[Joost van der Velden]

Push the accelerator pedal to the floor and it should start right away.

[Ron LaDow]

Scott,

"newly aquired 60 sunroof coupe
(Maestro re-build super 90, webers, 050 distributor). The car is a
blast to drive and it runs great. It always starts on the 1st
crank when cold, however after it warms up and i'm downtown with
multiple onlookers, it takes 8++ cranks to start it. Any
suggestions, or is this somewhat normal?
Scott Sogge"

No, it isn't normal. Before you do anything drastic, do a thorough tune on the engine or get one done. It is *amazing* how 356s respond to a tune.
But also things have changed since Harry was sticking Webers and 050s on rebuilds. It's still not cheap, but you *can* get proper parts for those units, and get them reboped to nearly new. And the engine won't be so grumpy.
Thanks,
Ron LaDow

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[al kuresman]

Scott,

You will probably get a lot of replies on this. The general rule is that for a cold start you depress the throtle several times and then start it with yur foot off the gas. Give it gas when it catches. For a hot start start you press the throttle to the floor and turn the key. Be prepared to back off the gas when it starts.

this is covered very well in Schragers book Buying driving and enjoying the porsche 356.
al kuresman
60 cab

[William Knebel]

Scott,

Check your battery connections regularly. Even a slight amount of slack will cause a voltage drop and poor starting performance.

Bill Knebel
'65 356C coupe 222569 (6volt)

[Scott Sogge]

Thanks for all the responses. The engine is definately in tune - and the battery is almost new. I did find a gas leak tonight behind the left weber, in the rubber gas line. I replaced all the rubber gas lines in the car, now i can drive without getting getting high from the gas smell.

The car has only traveled aprrox 3-4k miles since Harry rebuilt the engine many years ago. I'll try the throttle to the floor tomorrow for the warm start and let everyone know the outcome.

Thanks again.

--Scott

[Cliff Murray]

Listen to Ron LaDow. When right, your car should start hot very quickly without wide open throttle. I would look at float levels first and possibly float valves.

[Gert Gehlhaar]

Another thing about hot and cold start is that every car is different and once you find a system for your car - use it. How do I know because of experience and number of cars and all the different types of carb and set ups. 1. 55 VW, 6v Judson Supercharged, single solex carb,manual fuel pump - cold, lots of pumping and starts, warm - needs half throttle and starts; 2. 61VW,12v, single solex carb, manual fuel pump - cold, one tap and starts immediately, warm - just starts with one little twist of key; 3. 64 Karmann Ghia Racer with dual Webbers, 12volt, manual fuel pump - cold starts almost immediately, warm - half throttle and starts; 4. 57 Porsche 356 Speedster,12v,dual Solex, electric pump, let pump fill carbs - cold starts immediately, warm - do not touch throttle and it just starts. 5. 67 Porsche 912, 12v, dual Solex, electric fuel pump - cold, let pump fill carbs, three pumps on the throttle and it starts, warm - pedal 3/4 down and it starts. 6. 71 VW Campmobile, dual 12 volt, manual fuel pump, dual Kadron carbs - cold takes about two pumps and it starts, warm - always starts immediately.
I would have to say that the best starting car for me is the 61 VW - always starts immediately by just one little twist of the key.
The worste is the Porsche 912 but once you know how it acts it starts fine.