my car wont start and i usually have to keep my foot on the gas padel then when it warms up its fine?

Question

would your fuel pump work even when you have your foot on the gas pedal

its 2003 ford escape you fuel injections

Answer 1

It doesn't sound like a fuel pump problem. It's fuel mixture, mostly likely the choke.

It would help to know what year/make of car you have but anyway, here's the basics:

If you have to put your foot down to make it fire up, then keep gassing it until it warms up -- and then it's fine -- it sounds like your choke isn't working worth a damn. The choke gives a richer fuel mixture to help the motor run when cold.

If it's an automatic choke it shuts off when the motor reaches normal operating temperature. But if the auto-choke is not working (meaning it may be stuck closed), then you'll have exactly the problem you're describing.

If it's a manual choke and you pulled it out at startup and the car wouldn't go right, probably the choke cable has slipped. It's attached to the side of the carburettor. To check it, just have someone pull the choke full out while you watch the carb. If the cable end moves and so does the lever it's attached to, then there may be another mixture problem. But if the cable moves and the lever doesn't it will need to be tightened up.

If the cable end doesn't move yu've got a busted cable and it will need to be replaced.

If you're not sure how to do the adjusting or replacement it's best to get a mechanic to do it, otherwise you could set it wrong so the choke won'tclose. That means the car will start great then run rough and splutter when it's warmed up -- and you'll burn heaps more fuel, which is bad for the car and your pocket.

Hope this helps,

Lenky

EDIT: Thanks to the others for their excellent tips. They are ALL good points. About the fuel mixture. There are adjustments for it on the carb, but DO NOT try messing around with it yourself. You can run it way too lean (not enough fuel) and burn a hole in a piston -- and that's BIG bucks. If in doubt get a qualified mechanic to check it out. Same goes for injectors if your car is running that system!

Answer 2

It may be a carburetor problem if you've got an older car, but if its a new car, I recommend running some fuel system cleaner through the car with a full tank of fresh gas. Think of your injector as an artery for your engine, and its been eating a LOT of fried food and has wond up with high cholesterol. Something like a couple of bottles of HEET would do the trick, or you can pick up something specially made for injector/carburetor systems. If doing that doesn't do the trick, you may wanna consider going with a new set of sparkplugs, a new distributor cap and a new set of wires as well.

Answer 3

This is a emergency starting situation.
Your carburetor needs cleaning or better to fix a new unit.
Fuel pump works when you start the car.
You need not have your foot on the gas pedal.

Answer 4

You didn't say how old the car is, but it could be a stuck choke butterfly in the carb, if it's an older car.

Sounds like it needs a tune-up in any event.

Answer 5

Hey, even I know that it's most likely a carburetor problem, my son uses this can of stuff called Gunk. He even wears disposable plastic gloves when he works on cars and says "Mom, this is something you can do easily". So if he thinks I can do it, then, anyone can.

Answer 6

The problem is that you have a gas padel. That's usually for rowboats. Try to replace it with a gas pedal, and see if you have better luck.

Answer 7

not enough info to diagnose, what kind of car that also matters. carberated or fuel injected? could be fuel filter...accelerater pump, dirty injectors, just to name a few! Cheapest part to replace is the fuel filter...

Answer 8

Sounds like your throttle is messed up, that usually keeps it at higher rpm's while warming the engine

Answer 9

you have a carbeurator adjustment issue ,,,,,,,, it may just be sticking a bit , then when it warms up it is fine ........ I would clean it up a bit and see if it isnt sticking a touch ..........

Answer 10

needs servicing