Another Hard-Starting Astro....think the problem's fixed!

Was recently reading here about the problems a lot of Astro owners have been having with intermittent starting, hard starting, etc. Been experiencing the same problems on my 1986 Astro with 230,000 miles on it; crank and crank and crank and after three or four tries, it finally starts. Really rough at first, then smooths right out and runs great until it sits for 5 or more hours. Then the same scenario was repeated. Called an old-time mechanic who used to work on my '77 Malibu before he retired and he said to run the tank to below a 1/4 tank and then put a quart of LACQUER THINNER in it and run it until you're almost out of gas. So I did it; ran the tank with the lacquer thinner in it almost dry and then filled up. My Astro seems to be working almost perfectly now. Called my old friend again and he said I could do this once more to get any gunk that is still left in the tank out of it. Doesn't hurt the injectors, fuel pump, or anything else. And he also said to do this twice a year, spring and fall. After all the expense I've endured at the shop where I've been taking it for years (new distributor, new computer, and a bunch of other stuff).....and it was gunk in the tank. My mechanic friend said that because they don't put lead in gasoline any more, it gets like a gel in the tank (especially on a tank as old as mine) and the lacquer thinner vaporizes it and it mixes with the gas and basically cleans the tank. Just make sure you use Lacquer thinner only--not paint thinner. Big difference!! Hope this helps.

Does anybody have a comment for or against this lacquer thinner procedure for those of us with hard-starting astros?

OK Suzilla...I tried it. I left my gas tank go below 1/4 tank...dumped in a quart of lacquer thinner to clean out the tank and then ran the tank real low. Unfortunately, it didn't solve my starting problems. However, tonight I replaced my fuel pump and I took a peek inside the tank while it was off and it was spotless. So yes, I believe you have stumbled onto something. Thanks!

Just curious.......did changing the fuel pump solve the problem? What did the furl filter look like? Also clean?

Yes, changing the fuel pump fixed the problem...starts great now! The fuel filter was already brand new so I can't answer that.

There seems to be 2 ways to check whether your fuel pressure is adequate. You can buy a fuel pressure tester for $35 and that will give you pretty exact measurements. The other way is to check under the doghouse...on the intake manifold. There is a little black cap that looks like the cap to a tire's valve stem that is right above where the fuel lines hookup. (that's where it is on my 93 W Astro anyways) Before I changed the pump, I unscrewed that cap a bit and pressed down on it...and a small squirt of fuel came out. After the new fuel pump was in...I did the same thing and got soaked. That told me my pressure was strong now.

If anybody has anything to add to this alternate non-scientific means of checking the fuel pressure...or even to refute it...feel free...I yield to the forum's suggestions. But fuel pressure seems to be a pretty big deal with these Astros and a fairly common thread on this site.

Fuel pressure should be around 50-61 pounds...any less and starting will be hard.....if at idle you quickly depress the throttle the guage should reach 61 pounds for just a half second "briefly" if it does not you may have a weak pump.