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Do bad rings cause a hard start?

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Old 08-30-2009, 04:40 PM
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Default Do bad rings cause a hard start?

My car has become increasing harder to crank up. It will occasionally start right up, but most of the time, it takes a few tries to get it to idle. I know my car needs a new tune, but it wasn't always this bad. This is also only when the car is cold, once its already warmed up, starts up fine.
Old 08-30-2009, 05:27 PM
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Its hard to say I would check fuel pressure. I have seen the check valve go bad in a lot of GM pumps and the pump actually loses its prime after it sets like over night (they usually start right up and then die) after cranking for awhile the pressure builds up and it starts. After you finally get it started it will start every time until it sets again for a long period of time. How does the car run other wise?
Old 08-30-2009, 07:33 PM
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Rings could but that would be the last place to look
Old 08-30-2009, 07:43 PM
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yea it could but other things would be going on also with the bad rings, like smoking and stuff
Old 08-31-2009, 12:01 AM
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Doubt it's your rings. Check other places first such as making sure it's getting fuel/air/spark. You can go ahead and check cylinder pressures but it's going to have to be pretty low on more than one cylinder for it to be hard starting like that. Also, if the motor is that worn out you will see other issues as well such as smoking, excessive crankcase pressures and possibly blowing oil out of seals.

But like I said, check other things first. Fuel pressure would be the first on my list...
Old 08-31-2009, 12:50 AM
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it is a possibility, however I doubt they are that bad.
Old 08-31-2009, 09:30 AM
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The car has been smoking, and i've posted a couple threads in the past seeing what is wrong with the car. It has to be valve seals or rings, and I still have not had the time to get the compression and leakdown test done. My question then would be are hard starts a symptom of either of those problems? I guess i'm trying to figure out what else am I going to have to fix now other than a rebuild

The car doesn't always smoke at start, in fact I drove it yesterday and once it cranked I didn't notice any smoke. I noticed that it doesn't really smoke that bad unless I get on it. Afterwards, it will keep smoking for a long time. Once I saw it was smoking, I haven't really got on it at all. The car had been sitting for a few days when I started it up yesterday, and I was suprised that it didn't have a huge puff of smoke at startup like it does some times.

Also, with the car being a '01 I know that they have the bad rings in it . I was talking to a local guy, mentioned it was an '01 and instantly the first words out his mouth were rings! lol
Old 08-31-2009, 10:33 AM
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I still have not had the time to get the compression and leakdown test done
Quit assuming things first and get these done. A compression would be the first thing to do, that'll tell you if the rings are tight or if you've got a bum cylinder.

Also, with the car being a '01 I know that they have the bad rings in it . I was talking to a local guy, mentioned it was an '01 and instantly the first words out his mouth were rings! lol
Tell your local guy he is thinking of the wrong engine. 01 LS1 engines did not have rings issues, that would be 01 LS6 engines.
Old 08-31-2009, 10:58 AM
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If the rings were that bad im pretty sure youd find oil on the plugs with the eye or using an otoscope
Old 08-31-2009, 11:52 AM
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Originally Posted by Damian
Quit assuming things first and get these done. A compression would be the first thing to do, that'll tell you if the rings are tight or if you've got a bum cylinder.:
I don't want to have to assume, I know I have to get this done...tell my boss to actually give me time off and i'll get it done .

My main question was just trying to find out if my hard starting problem would be attributed to bad rings, or if I have a whole different problem on my hands.

As per the 01 issue, thats awesome to hear , but I'm still pretty sure it has to be rings . Thanks for the info!

Last edited by matrik; 08-31-2009 at 12:18 PM.
Old 08-31-2009, 11:53 AM
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Originally Posted by AutomagicLS1
If the rings were that bad im pretty sure youd find oil on the plugs with the eye or using an otoscope
I'm gonna pull a few of the plugs and take a look once the weather here clears up.
Old 08-31-2009, 12:41 PM
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Some others already answered your question accurately. Yes, bad rings can attribute to slow/weak starting. If the engine is down on compression in 1 or more cylinders, it'll have a tough time firing. On some of the import stuff I work on, those motors won't even turn over if they're 15-20psi below factory specs.
Old 08-31-2009, 02:20 PM
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Thanks Damian, thats exactly the answer I was looking for.
Old 08-31-2009, 03:44 PM
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Not a problem sir, good luck.
Old 08-31-2009, 04:10 PM
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Slow to start or taking a long time to start?
Slow to start-Whats the voltage at the starter?



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