Trouble starting on cold mornings

[snowpatrol53]

Hi all...im new to this site today...ive had my 206 cc.....2005 ..1600 petrol...for about 4 months
runs well once its started...november i had trouble starting it when we had the last cold weather...
but this last few weeks its been a right pain...to the fact that it just drains the battery..before it starts...i called green flag out yesterday...he said its my battery...i bought one off him...it didnt start straight away but after about 2 or 3 mins of turning it over...he he cleaned the spark plugs...put them back and said see how that goes...started first time this morning going to work...but when i went to go home it didnt same thing..just turning over trying to start but just wont...battery nearly was going dead again( new battery)...so as a last resort of being stuck at work all night..i gave it one last shot and gave it a good few pumps on accelerator...altho the green flag guy said u dont need to pump it these days to get a car started...but it seemed to work....anyone got any ideas? what it could be..thanks...

[IanL]

It sounds like it is underfuelling in cold weather. I would change the inlet air temperature sensor - I think it is combined with the manifold air pressure sensor, Part No. 1920 AJ.

[snowpatrol53]

Thanks very much ian...I see they have it on ebay for £12...is it easy to fit myself ?

[IanL]

Jus one screw, I think

[snowpatrol53]

does that seem too cheap £12 for a map sensor....should i get one from a dealer ?....also should i change the green sensor too?

[IanL]

I think it's fine - they are probably all made in the same factory.

Better to change one thing at a time

[snowpatrol53]

ok thaanks very much ian for your help...i will order one and give that a go

[Capncol]

Could also be coolant temp sensor. It won't add enough extra fuel if ECU thinks engine is warm. Diagnostic machine with live data will confirm.

BTW Pumping throttle does nothing on a modern injection engine. Was a trick used on carb engines to use accelerator pump jet to add more fuel (there isn't one on injected engine)

[IanL]

Btw, "not a lot of people know this", but if an injection engine won't start because it has overfuelled and wet it's plugs (like a carb engine with a "flooded carburettor"), the way to overcome that is exactly the same as for a flooded carb - accelerator flat on the floor and crank and crank until it fires.

The ECU cuts injection completely if it detects full throttle and cranking, so the engine acts as an air pump, which evaporates the excess fuel. I don't know why they don't put that in all the handbooks.

[snowpatrol53]

Thanks col...i did take it into a garage..they charged me 48 quid for putting it on there diagnostic ...and they said no faults showed up...he wanted to change the coil pack...for another 80 quid..i said no thats ok...i dont want to keep wasting money if there just fishing around in the dark...ive ordered that map sensor..ill put that on ..but i wont know if its solved it now because the weathers warmed up and it will start on the button....thanks ian for your input too ...cheers

[Capncol]

It wouldn't be fault codes you were looking for.
It needed to be "live data" so you see what the ecu sees.
The engine might be within normal operating range but wrong, eg, If coolant temp or inlet air temp are reading high.
For example, IAT 25 degrees, Coolant 45 degrees, but engine is stone cold on a winters day- ECU thinks engine is slightly warm on a summers day, and not outside the normal operating range of engine. In my example, the ECU wouldn't provide sufficient cold start fuelling, and wouldn't put up an engine management light.
Other sensors could be rail pressure or crank sensor

[snowpatrol53]

ok...i have had the new map sensor in now for 2 days...its starting first time..but its not been that cold this week...but ive got a new problem now..it stalls with the new one in..it didnt with the old one...if i start it up...from stationary put my foot on excelerator too about 2500 revs and take foot off...it comes back and stalls everytime.....should i put the old one back..my old one never did this?

[IanL]

I suppose you need to put the old one back, to prove or disprove that the new one is the cause of the stalling. If it is proven, you should return the new one as defective.

The only way to check what the sensors are seeing is the live data readouts described above. As you do not have a Peugeot Planet diagnostic system, you would either have to buy it (cost about £60 and you need a laptop with a 32 bit Windows system - there is a work-around if your laptop is 64 bit), or locate someone close by who does have one (see here).

[Capncol]

Ian, a good pro reader will give live data. Doesn't have to be planet

[snowpatrol53]

well ive put back the old map sensor after cleaning it..and its not stalling now..so ill send that new one back....col..whats the cheapest scanner i can get what will give live data? and are they easy to read?