126 hot start niggle

[smoothrider]

Having been away with work for three weeks, my better half promised but 'forgot' to give my 126 a weekly run. No harm done I thought as she purred into life at the first turn of the key and I wafted along a dual carriageway at a regal 50 mph to pick up a few treats from Halfords.
Once back in the car though, she refused to start. Turning persistently but not firing up. I left her alone until the engine cooled right down and she purred into life again first turn of the key.
I drove straight to a petrol station and filled up with some premium followed by a regal 30 mile cruise on le autobahn. She was a bit hesitant around 60 mph and a bit spluttery back in the city. Been fine since, just that one incident.
Obviously linked to three weeks with no turning over, but any ideas why she would purr first time then fail on a hot start?

 

[alabbasi]

Fuel accumilator

 

[optimusprime]

.I have the same problem when the engine is hot ,She splutters to life eventualy .But starts are funny if engine has had a run , and i switch off for 1 hour .And first thing i did was replace the accumulator along with fuel filter, still the same even now. And it runs like a dream 99% of the time. Next job is injector seals and injector clean ..

 

[stwat]

Moisture in the dizzy cap.

 

[smoothrider]

Thanks all. Any tips on which order I should investigate the suggestions? I.e. Dizzy cap first, then accumulator or vice versa - whatever is time cost effective first I guess...

 

[alabbasi]

Not sure why a distributor cap would cause a hard start condition when hot. I would expect the opposite as condensation builds up when the engine is cold. Coil may be a problem as they can fail when hot, but I would expect it to fail while the car is running.

If you want to diagnose instead of swapping parts, put a fuel pressure gauge on it and see if the pressure holds.

 

[smoothrider]

Tbh, it only happened once. it is not a regular or on / off issue. It is creeping up to the 100,000 mile mark so Im saving up for a significant overhaul of wear n tear components. Injectors and fuel parts on the list. anything else I should consider? I have full service history from day one and all work has been done on time it seems.

 

[alabbasi]

Tbh, it only happened once. it is not a regular or on / off issue.

If it only happened once then it could be anything. My only advice is to start by cleaning all the electrical connections and looking out for anything that might cause problems.

Best wishes.

 

[Druk]

Not sure why a distributor cap would cause a hard start condition when hot. I would expect the opposite as condensation builds up when the engine is cold.

Actually Al, although common sense would suggest the above it's a common known fault with the 300 engine that it cold starts OK and runs but then becomes difficult when hot and it's almost always down to dampness in the cap. And drying it makes no difference. A new OEM cap and rotor is the cure. It would be better if there were some ventilation of the thing rather than it be sealed with an O-ring.

 

[optimusprime]

Moisture in the dizzy cap.

Not on mine it is like it in the summer after a good run out ..

 

[jaymanek]

Definitely moisture in dizzy cap...

Need to change cap and seal behind. The orange plate also needs to be examined incase its cracked.

 

[smoothrider]

Thanks Jay, I'll get it looked at.

 

[optimusprime]

Do the cap, it will still be the same . But take a look at it .And tell us after what you find.

 

[smoothrider]

Will do