hey guys, when i do a cold start the car turns off by itself after 2-3sec, sometimes it revives itself but most of the time it turns off and then it will turn on fine the second time i start it. any ideas as to what it is?

thanks.

a mate had this problem in his vrx, think it was something to do with the immobaliser. think it came good after a while tho

Look here

http://martybugs.net/articles/magna-stall.cgi

There was some issue with the connection between the immobilizer and the ecu.

cool thanks, will check connections

tis the battery, i had the same problem after coming back from europe

mine did the same thing. and i didnt replace the battery.

all i do is turn the key to ON and leave it there for a few seconds, then flick to start. hasnt stalled on me since. try that.

actually could be either one of those 2 things

or even the third option might work - havnt come across it myself - ut a battery on its way out or th immobilizer connections are always the culprit for these start/stop issues

mine did the same thing. and i didnt replace the battery.

all i do is turn the key to ON and leave it there for a few seconds, then flick to start. hasnt stalled on me since. try that.

to me, that would suggest a fuel pump not being able to prime the lines well enough before intial kick/start/crank of the engine.

(my LTD wont start unless you turn it to ignition and wait for the fuel pump to stop whirring/priming the lines - and thats EFI as well)

my 2c

well, i have the same issue and im sure its because of my battery on its way out. as mentioned before, this is an issue some people have when the batt is low.

Similar to slyts6, if i keep the car in acc till the engine light goes away, it will start right away.

But..

If i keep the key in acc and the engine light stays on.. then it will crank but not fire

this is guaranteed..

anywho, hopefully it goes away when the battery is replaced

tis the battery, i had the same problem after coming back from europe

Some people have reported that a new battery resolved this issue for them...but despite 2 new batteries, it didn't fix the problem for me....
Mine was caused by dodgy connections between the immobilizer and the ecu, and once that was diagnosed, it was a pretty easy fix (http://martybugs.net/articles/magna-stall.cgi).

Cheers,
Martin.

Could be the above could also be the fuel pressure reg, a leaky injector or non return valve in the pump.

The fuel system needs to hold pressure for a certain amont of time and at best still hold the fuel.

If you get a pressure guage hooked up and run the engine, then shut down, you should have pressure for a certain time, can not remember the specific time or pressure but the manual will tell you.

the Eb had the same issue, stall on cold start, was the non return valve in the fuel pump, overnight all the fuel in the rail would drain back to the tank. By the time we hit the key a second time, the pump had pulsed a few times and then had allowed sufficient fuel to run.