I'm suspecting that my fuel pump isn't doing its job, or perhaps my float level is too low. The big problem is cold starting in the morning.

I recently rebuilt the carb, and everything is running great when warm. When I start it cold, if I apply the choke and crank it won't start. I have to pump the pedal four times or so and crank with no choke for it to fire, then it dies, then repeat, then dies, then repeat for a third time, and when it catches I can apply the choke, about halfway. I suspect that the fuel pump isn't delivering enough fuel pressure right away. Anyway, once it catches I can apply the choke and let it warm up. When its warm it starts right away, and it runs perfectly.

What is the cold start tank thing? How does that work? I see that it says 90% antifreeze, but what does that do? And what temperature does that system become mandatory? Its been getting down in the 30's and 20's at night, and my motorcycle and Rodeo occupy the garage, so my car is outside all night.

Thanks for any feedback

 

I'm not sure whats up with your starting problem, but that sub zero tank is useless. No one here uses it, most of us have removed it completely. Its only for below zero starting, and it doens't do much if anything.

 

The Rodeo can handle livin' outside, put the bike in your bedroom, let the lil' 7 have the garage. poor lil' 7.

My car will only start 1 way when its cold. turn the key so the fuel pump starts, give it 3 stabs on the gas. start it with no gas and as soon as it catches give it just a little bit. no choke no nothing and it always starts on the 2nd spin. But then again thats MY car and they've all got different personalitys....thats why we love and hate them so.

 

What year is your car? When I turn the '85 on, I can hear the fuel pump come on - it's not supposed to, only when it's cranking. If you don't hear it come on, it's not the end of the world. I wired mine so it runs all the time. To check that the fuel pump is working, pull the fuel inlet hose and crank the engine. Gas should come out of the hose.

 

hi
my 85 gs doesnt want to start when its cold either.
it started this afternoon when its warm out but as soon as it gets cold it wont start.
confused

 

The fuel pump is supposed to run while the key is in the on position, reguardless of whether the car is cranking, running, or not.

 

Not on an 85 it isn't. I don't know when they added this "feature". Forgot to mention, my car is a 85 GS.

Yeah, I can hear the pump start after I start cranking, and it shuts off shortly after the motor dies.

 

Ha You have to understand that the Rodeo is flawless. Its a 95.5 (the first year that the interior was redesigned by Honda) and the paint is almost as shiney as when it was new. (Only one very small parking lot ding from some idiot letting their door swing too far.) It has been laborously washed and waxed every Sunday afternoon since we got that car. It was the exact same for the 93 Amigo that I had before the Rodeo. The only reason that I traded up to the Rodeo was that the Amigo didn't have enough power to tow my boat.

Anyway, that is my usual Sunday afternoon routine, mow/rake the yard, wash and wax all the cars and my bike. I use The Wax Shop liquid canuba, it only takes a few minutes.

I know that I might be an infidel for saying this, but I bought the RX-7 as an alternate means to get to work when its too cold to ride my motorcycle, so there's no way its going to push my bike or Rodeo out of the garage! I've always had a habit of buying interesting cars for my daily driver. Before this it was a Peugot 505 STI V-6, and before that is was a Jaguar XJ-6 (estate sale auction, total steal. After I was tired of it I sold it and had enough money to buy my boat and the Peugot.), and before that it was a Pontiac Transam, and a VW Beetle, etc.

I held onto that Peugot for quite a while. I kept buying junkers for parts. When I sold it, it had over 250K on the clock and was still in perfect mechanical order.

I'm thinking that I can do the same thing with the rex, just keep getting junker parts cars and keep mine alive. The body on mine is perfect, with only a slight hint of surface corrosion on the bottom of the driver's side door inside at the seal. Never been wrecked or dinged.

 

That's what mine does, too, and it's an 84.
Would it be best to wire it up so it runs when switch is on?

 

Not necessarily. The fuel pump cut relay is there for a reason.

 

I'm thinking of adding a switch, located on the wall by the driver's side storage compartment, like flip the switch, fuel pump with the key on, flip it off and it acts like normal.....I'll have to think about it. Hmm, a switch that bypasses one wire circuit and connects another when flipped on, then reconnects the origional circuit when switched off.....I'm not a sparky (electrical engineer type), I'm a mechanical / nuclear engineer, but I'm thinking that type of switch is called a single pole double throw?? Something like that.