Harold57

This morning, I went to start up my car and I think that I released the key too soon. The car didn't start so I immediately turned it back to start it. Then it wouldn't start. I tried 2 or 3 times during which the last couple of times the starter didn't sound normal (but I don't know how to describe the abnormal sound). I finally got it to start but it sounded like it was missing, my wife said that it was blowing white smoke out the back and the engine was kind of knocking.

I'm suspecting that it was flooded, though I haven't had a car that flooded on me since the 70's or earlier. (The way it was knocking and missing, I was concerned that my timing belt had lost a tooth.) You could definitely tell that it was running too rich but that could be expected since I was trying to start it for so long. It would smell rich just because the fuel wasn't being spent.

So we went to church in the other car. This afternoon, I went to start it again just to check on it. It started closer to normal this time but had an odd smell (kind of like varnish). I didn't see any smoke by the time I got out of the car to check. But it was knocking a little bit. I let it idle for a little while and the knocking noise diminished. I lifted the hood to try to identify the knock but it had almost gone away and I could just barely make it out with the hood up. I raced the engine a couple of times and the knocking didn't get worse or louder. By the time I shut it down the knocking noise was just barely discernible. I checked the oil level and it was just fine and didn't look abnormal for oil whose time to be changed has come. It actually didn't look all that dirty for having 3k miles on it.

Any thoughts? Think that I just somehow flooded the engine?

Bgw70

Have you driven the car?

did you just fill it up?

GmanSC

When was the last tune up? Consider new plugs?

Coleroad

No cel? That's odd that it didn't give a Radom miss code. The first thing that comes to my mind, is a stuck open injector. I have had fuel injected cars flood before. Specifically when letting go of the way to quickly. The difference here is the problems are lasting more than a minute or two after you got it started. If an injector stuck open, you are going to need to change the oil too. I suspect the amount of liquid fuel in a cylinder caused the knocking. At the same time that raw fuel is washing off the cylinder and mixing with the oil. I don't remember how many miles you have on your sc. if you pull your plugs you would see which one is wet.

Harold57

I last drove it on Friday. It is about at 1/2 a tank, so it is not a fresh tank. Tune up has been a while and is due. Mileage-wise, it is due for new plugs but showing no signs of needing them. It has never knocked before and it has never had trouble starting before (other than when the battery was on the way out). About 120 k miles on the car.

I've been thinking that I ought to replace the PCV soon just out of preventative maintenance and that it is possible that it might be playing a small part here, but don't know.

VVTiBob

When was the throttle body and MAF sensor cleaned?

Harold57

I'm not sure about the TB but did the MAF a couple of years ago.

Harold57

Well, I started it the next day and it started like there had never been any problems. I've since had all the fluids & the PCV replaced and it continues to operate just fine.

Caflashbob

Harold57

No, I think that I just flooded the engine somehow. If it were bad gas or water in the gas, it wouldn't have started up afterward, the problem would still be there, unless a bubble of water just made it through the fuel filter and that was all of it. But I highly doubt it.

It is still running fine a week later and have run it every day this week.

Coleroad

Harold57

Interesting, I didn't know that about the winter blend.

Yes, I agree, I'm almost 100% positive that it was simply flooded as a result of user error.