Expert: Vern Bullock - 7/10/2010

Question
QUESTION: I have a 1970 PontiaC Lemans sport with a 455 engine. The car runs at a temp of 210 degrees.When I turn the car off and then try to restart, I have hard time starting it.Sometime it starts and sometime I have too wait till it cools down to start it. What do I need to do to solve this problem. Had the car 4 years, orginal raditor, thremostat,water pump.The header is very close to the starter. What do you think.

ANSWER: Hi Walter:
210 degrees is the normal operating temp for most cars. So she is not over heating
at this temp. If the starter turns over OK, but she just won't start,
you most likely have a problem with fuel or ignition system. To better
narrow down which, tell which of these are true.

1. She will start OK cold, but once hot, the starter works but she won't start.
COULD BE VAPOR LOCK IN THE FUEL LINE - CHECK FUEL LINE FOR HEAT AND WRAP IT
WITH INSULATION HEAT SHIELD TO KEEP IT COOLER.

2. She start OK cold, but once hot, the starter just drags or clicks.
COULD BE BAD STARTER BUSHINGS - REBUILD or REPLACE STARTER or
TRY WRAPPING THE HEADER WITH INSULATION HEAT SHIELD. Once the starter
gets hot, the bushings inside will shrink to a point where there is poor contact.
When they cool, bushing expand again and contact is good. However, eventually it
will stop working even when cold.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Verne, the car will start, but it's a very hard start. You crank the key and it struggles to start. Sound like it don't want start, then it turns over.

Answer
OK. To be sure, have the battery tested to totally rule out
a dead cell in the battery. AutoZone will test for free.

If its good, then you have a bad starter or solenoid.
New starters have the solenoid built into the starter,
so a replacement starter should fix your problem.