My 1994, 8v, 2 door , 2 wheel drive, automatic Tracker is almost perfect despite its 138,000 miles. It starts instantly when cold as soon as the key turns. It idles smoothly and accelerates well. It now gets 25 miles per gallon with mostly stop and go city driving. The filters (air, fuel, oil, transmission) are new. The plugs, wires, cap and rotor are new. I was getting 21 mpg until I recently replaced a cracked exhaust manifold and installed a new oxygen sensor. I now get 25 mpg. It's almost perfect EXCEPT ever since changing the exhaust manifold and oxygen sensor (which was bad) I now have a hot starting problem. Once the engine is fully warmed up (midway on the temp gage) the car will start if I immediately restart after shutting down but if the engine is hot and shut down for more than a minute it won't restart for several hours until cool without several minutes of cranking. I discovered it will restart when hot with only 10-20 seconds of cranking if I hold the gas pedal down or pump the gas pedal. It doesn't seem to matter. Either method will start the car within 10 to 20 seconds of cranking. Once restarted it runs and idles fine. This hot starting problem never occurred until the exhaust manifold and oxygen sensor replacement but this could only be circumstantial. Since my gas mileage increased I assume I'm now running leaner than before. The OBD-1 gives me a strong regular "12" code when tested. The EGR valve is clean and working. All the vacuum lines are connected and in good condition. The PCV valve is clean and working. I get no hesitation at high speed. I think I need a slightly richer mixture when starting this engine while hot but I don't know how to achieve this. My hot idle is about 700 rpms. What can cause hot starting problems and how are such problems addressed??
Almost perfect
Linear Mode
