Since it has been very cold out lately, I've noticed that my XB does not start very well. It seems that at around 20 degrees F or below the engine turns over about 5 or 6 times before it starts. Normally in "warmer" weather the car fires up right away. Just wondering if others have noticed this.

I haven't had any problems with mine and it's been under 20 many days with very high winds. She starts right on up.

Mine will turn over quite a few times before it starts when it is very cold. It also takes awhile for the engine to warm up so that the trany will shift.

Don't quote me on this, but I believe it's the battery. They lose a bit of charge when they're super cold. This goes for all batteries (my iPod will show "no battery" if it's fully charged but frozen).

I've had the transmission issue as well. The first shift jerks me a bit if the engine is really cold, but by the time I've gone about a quarter mile everything's smooth and dandy.

I've noticed this as well, especially since the temperature dropped a lot more recently. The engine takes a while to start. Also, since the engine is "frozen" it takes super long to warm up. I've also noticed while the engine is cold, it revs higher at idle, and accellerates very poorly. All this goes away once the engine is warm though.
I'm not sure what it has to do with though. Right now supposedly its warmer than some of the other days it didn't happen.

Just be glad it starts.

mine too, it turns 4, 5 times to start. Would that be the spark plugs?
Can anyone here with Plat or Irid plugs tell us about your experience about COLD start? many thanks please.

For some reason when is under the 30' it takes about 4 seconds, and the damn engine takes an eternity to warm up.

You guys crack me up! Could you ever imagine long ago in a land far away, cars had a thing called a carburetor and a choke. A finely tuned car would still often stall when started in cold weather. If the choke stuck or was inop things went downhill from there! As for your Xb, remember that 87 octane is the best for cold starting (and everything else for that matter!)and higher octane will result in harder starting. 5-W30 oil is the proper oil to use also. If all this is correct, the car will start as easily as it can and if it takes a few extra spins in sub-freezing weather, read the owners manual while waiting to better utilize your otherwise wasted time. :yawn:

Carlanga,

Mine takes about a second (4, 5 turns) to start. To make it warm a bit faster. Here is what I do. 1 start the engine, turn the tempereture control to cold, ____ to "D" with hand brake set (make sure the hand brake is tight or the car will move). The engine will be completely warmed up within 4 min. I usually lock the door and rush myself back to house and have a coffe while waiting. I have two keys.

Since the temperature dropped to 20 degrees Fahrenheit (and below) here in NY
I notice that my xB was hard to start too.

I just got a remote start installed (a worthy investment) and noticed something interesting.
When the remote start activates, it turns the ignition circuit "on" then waits
about 2 to 3 seconds BEFORE cranking the engine over. It is able to start the car
in about 4 to 5 cranks even on the coldest of days. The remote start does much better
than I was doing manually. So I copied the remotes starting procedure.
:ponder:
There's something about that slight delay that makes it work much better
than just sticking the key in and cranking it over.
So, here is the procedure...
:idea:
COLD WEATHER STARTING TIPS
1. Turn the ignition to "ON" and wait 2 to 3 seconds
you will hear relays click, and the fuel pump and injectors whirr for a second.
2. Turn the key to start and crank it over
If it does not start within 4 to 5 cranks STOP
3. Wait 4 more seconds
4. Start the car again
5. Vroooooommmm!

PS>
I am also using synthetic oil which is supposed to help it start little easier in the cold weather.

Carlanga,

Mine takes about a second (4, 5 turns) to start. To make it warm a bit faster. Here is what I do. 1 start the engine, turn the tempereture control to cold, ____ to "D" with hand brake set (make sure the hand brake is tight or the car will move). The engine will be completely warmed up within 4 min. I usually lock the door and rush myself back to house and have a coffe while waiting. I have two keys.

Do you *really* put the car in drive and set the parking brake to get it to warm up faster?
:shock:
This will ruin your brakes and damage your transmission's torque converter do to the strain your putting on it.
Just hope that parking brake holds and the RPM's stay low enough or it will take off on you.
:!:

Carlanga,

Mine takes about a second (4, 5 turns) to start. To make it warm a bit faster. Here is what I do. 1 start the engine, turn the tempereture control to cold, ____ to "D" with hand brake set (make sure the hand brake is tight or the car will move). The engine will be completely warmed up within 4 min. I usually lock the door and rush myself back to house and have a coffe while waiting. I have two keys.
:silly: :crazy: :shock: :no: That is nuts!!!!!! :!:

the only problem I have is waiting for the damn thing to warm up. SLAVE to the BLUE LIGHT! please go out....please go out!

i have the exact same problems with mine starting, and dont blame it on just the weather. i have a 94 metro with 150k miles and it starts on the first crank, no matter if its in my garage or outside in the cold all night while im at work.

I do believe the revolutions before starting is in the design. I had a '98 Chevy S-10 that started as soon as you turned the key. I've had many Dodges that start just after the first revolution. I had a Kawasaki Ninja ZX-9R that took a couple of turns to start while my friends Honda CBR 900RR started on one turn.

The XB does take more turns than any car I've owned. It makes me worry during cold starts.

[quote="Max2k"]Don't quote me on this, but I believe it's the battery. They lose a bit of charge when they're super cold. This goes for all batteries (my iPod will show "no battery" if it's fully charged but frozen).

[\quote]

Well I have the Optima Red top truck battery in my box, should put out close to twice the Amprage as the stock battery. So even tho i never tested it while it was cold, one would figure that it would still @ 10'deg still put out just the same if not more than the stock battery at 40'deg. But i still have hard starting problems.... Another problem i'm having is it normally idles around 1500-2000rpm when cold.... when i first start, it seems to idle <1000rpm. Like the oil is almost like a cold goo. And when you do a lil rev, the RPMs drop FAST. The worst of all is a few times late for work, i coluld only allow my box to warm up for 30-45sec (just enough to distribute the oil) before i had to drive her... Then i noticed the clutch became very sticky (hard to shift smoothly) When it would engage, it would do very quickly and jerky.

Carlanga,

Mine takes about a second (4, 5 turns) to start. To make it warm a bit faster. Here is what I do. 1 start the engine, turn the tempereture control to cold, ____ to "D" with hand brake set (make sure the hand brake is tight or the car will move). The engine will be completely warmed up within 4 min. I usually lock the door and rush myself back to house and have a coffe while waiting. I have two keys. This is quite possibly the stupidest thing I have ever heard of. Are you joking, or do you really think that it's a good idea to put the car in drive with the hand brake on?

The dumb things some people do to thier cars :rofl: :rofl:

He's basically putting a slightly higher load on the engine so it will warm up faster. How do you figure it will hurt your brakes or torque converter? What are you doing at a stop light (with an auto)? You're still in gear with the brakes applied. Same thing here, but it's the parking brake holding the car. As long as you wait for the rpm's to come down from cold start, you shouldn't burn anything up. Just hope the p-brake is strong enough to hold.

Why not just leave it in park?

It's not a safe thing to put a car in drive with the emergency/parking brake on. If they give the cars going for a lonely ride. To add more load turn the defroster on. That will engage the AC compressor putting more load on the engine.

Thanks to BigOrangexB, you speak my mind. And you are exactly right about all the mechanical stuff tho.

As I observe, xB has a very small torque converter and the tiny engine wont produce thousand torque at warm up, the rpm reading is below 1,5k unlike others with bigger engine. I found it is safe and works pretty good for me. Meanwhile, it heats up the anto tranny as well [ I think I have answer Max2K's question here ].

This method is not recommended to anyone who are not with auto tranny and not experienced. You need to double check the car if it will move(by give the box a big push before you leave the car).

Hurting brake or tranny? Why? I don't see a reason for it, as mentioned above by BOxB. Also, the parking brake is strong enough to lock up the wheel at high speed. I just think this is what they're built for.

at least, I still have to warn it. to do this, it is at your own risk, and I take my chance. he he he...

one thing that hasn't come up is that fuels are mixed differently for different temps... so butane is added to your fuel when the temperature drops severely.... so you might notice a difference after that tank gets used up... gas needs a certain temperature to burn, I think it is like 21deg F, but you have to remember that it started at ambient and then vaporized so it go MUCH colder, then it went to compression.... but anyway, if you typically live in a warmer environment (almost always above freezing) then your local gas pump's mixture might not be so accomodating to the near zero temps...

btw... a spark plug change will not affect startup "speed" UNLESS the plug is fouled...

oh, and another tid bit... front wheel drive car, rear wheel emergency brake... never a good mixture for cold mornings when ice conditions may exist...

this is just an all around bad idea...

Hey Everyone,

It was 12 degrees here in Raleigh this morning. I have been reading about the cold start timing and tried that trick....(where you turn the key one click, wait to here the fuel pump relay click-or I discovered also for the seatbelt chime to start and then crank it.)

It started right up no problem maybe after 1/2 of a second in timing. I have had other cars where I did this with as well ( VW's, Mazda's, Jeeps, BMW) and it really seems to work (at least for me that is).

-Peace,

Taknitez

i have always used a battery blanket. in alaska it's best for us to have a battery blanket and/or a block heater (that just attaches to the bottom of the engine block). but just to save a bit on money, just get a battery blanket. it just wraps around the battery. good luck!!!!

yea i have noticed that the cold weather effects my xB.....oh wait no i havent i live in West Palm Beach, FL! ahahahha, im soo sorry guys! i had to!! :)

yea i have noticed that the cold weather effects my xB.....oh wait no i havent i live in West Palm Beach, FL! ahahahha, im soo sorry guys! i had to!! :)

yea i have noticed that the HOT weather effects my xB.... oh wait, I live in Denver... I can touch my steering wheel without the fear of 2nd degree burns...

btw... does anybody know that the button does on the dash?? it is labeled A/C... when I push it, the car just drives slower... gas mileage goes down, not sure what that thing is all about...

:rofl: thats why u spanik the panisonic battery u got stock with your car's a throw a yellow top optima in there bang boom problem solved.. there only like $160... :rofl:

Its a normal occurance in any car

Not to sound like an ___ or anything, but after just getting my xB on friday, and recently reading the owner's manual, it says that the best way to warm up the engine on a cold day is by driving, not sitting at idle. I would have thought that to be the way to go also, as I just came from owning a Jeep that would sit idling hard with the choke closed for 10 or 15 minutes to warm up. Apparently though, driving the engine is the proper way to do it. Check your manuals.

my car used tohave a hard time starting too. one time it would not even start. the dealer had no clue. i do have a system so i put 2 deka batterys one under the hood and the other under the seat and never had that problem since.