Does anybody else have difficulty starting their '88-'91 V6 Camrys on very cool or cold mornings? It just seems like it takes an excessive amount of cranking to get 'er fired. Almost never hits on the first try, usually hits on second try, but sometimes takes four or five attempts (one long try followed by short ones where it sounds like it's going to catch but sputters and stalls).

I've read somewhere about cold start timer switches going bad on these cars...could that be the culprit? It's not a major problem, but I don't like the idea of having to do so much cranking on a cold morning when there's not a lot of oil circulating in the engine. Or could something as simple as spark plugs/wires/rotor button being worn out cause this?

Tune-ups are a maintenance item that could cause this.The timer,if faulty would trigger the check engine light.Also the oil pump will do it's job when the engine is just cranking.

I agree with Joe there, maintenance and a tune-up are what need to be taken care of with this car first. After that you need to be looking at the fuel injectors, the oil density, ignition coil pack, and plugs.

About every second or third time the engine is started when cold (off 10-12 hours), the C/E light comes on. On the next restart, it goes out. But I will go ahead and have it tuned up to see if that solves the problem (and maybe they'll read the code without fleecing me).

Autozone will usually do it for free!!