Cold Engine won't start, and it's not the weather!

[amarjeet27]

I live in California and have a 1999 Camry. It's almost summer now, but my cold car engine won't start as soon as I turn the ignition on.

The trick I need to use is to hit the gas pedal while trying to start it and let it heat up for some time while I have pressed the gas pedal. Once it is warm enough it works just fine. But if I leave the gas pedal while trying to heat up the engine, it coughs and gives up.

Now the funny thing is, I take it to a auto repair shop and by this time the engine is heated up - so the problem is not reproducible in the repair shop. I am not sure what to do, this thing's a real pain in the mornings and in the evenings after work.

(The batteries are relatively new)


Does anyone have any pointers?

[Kep]

You might want to troubleshoot the Engine Coolant Temperature (ECT) sensor. The ECM uses that to determine the appropriate mixture for a cold or warm engine.

Kep

[gladis]

I'm no good at troubleshooting, but my parents had this problem before I got the car. They took it in and the starter got replaced (not sure if there's anything else), it's worked fine ever since.