98 I30. hiccups starting

[infii30owner]

Hi

Have a 98 I30 with 167K mileage. these days its having a little hiccup at ignition. what could be going on? i had new alternator (bought from ebay) and battery (from costco) 12 months ago. i don't remember replacing the original starter. when i start i see all lights glowing on dashboard..battery..engine oil..brake. i can observe the lights more closely next time. it starts after a bit of hesitation if i turn on ignition by giving gas at same time. my wife took it other day and she was afraid it didn't start right away at 9pm. i don't suspect the 40 degree night temperatures playing any part here.

could this mean bad alternator or starter? battery is only an year old and i don't that to be going bad. any diagnostics that i can do to rule out one or other?

thanks for your help.

p.s: this car passed smog few weeks ago.

[maxhopper]

Possibly the starter going out. Possibly a fuel filter restricted. Possibly IACV dirty and needs to be cleaned. Could be any number of things unfortunately.

[infii30owner]

thanks maxhopper.

i replaced oil filter when i did oil change a month ago. is fuel filter a different one? if it is i could replace that and see if that helps.

[maxhopper]

Fuel filter is different. It's located on the firewall near the brake master cylinder.

[infii30owner]

i remember this being replaced with some filter from kragen. maybe its gone bad again.

this morning it started fine. i'll check it again in evening. but the battery and oil lights are being turned on when this happens.

thanks.

[infii30owner]

same hesitation y'day evening and few times today. i had to turn ignition 4 times on both occasions. seems to start when i pump gas and turn ignition key. is fuel pump same as fuel filter? is wix a good brand. if it can be done with basic tools I could attempt it.

[infii30owner]

finally it went dead this morning. wouldn't start. it had the hesitation as before but on 4th or 5th try nothing but a click sound. i even tried to jump it with another car. nothing at all.

took the battery to kragen and they said its 100% charged. he showed me in his little hand held tester that it was showing full charge. that guy said since battery is nearly full, alternator can't be bad otherwise it would be sucking up charge from battery. is that true? if so i can rule out alternator.

or could it be starter?

[NutriaforBreakfast]

http://www.nicoclub.com/FSM/

try cleaning connections at battery and starter first with baking soda and water

Make sure battery tray is clean (no leaves or debris to discharge battery)

Make sure battery posts and connections at starter are tight

[infii30owner]

the guy at kragen cleaned the battery connectors. haven't tried it after that. left the battery at home and got a ride to work.

how do i clean starter with baking soda?? isn't starter hidden out of sight and some electrical component?

is there any i can test alternator and rule it out?

thank you.

[infii30owner]

how do i remove the harness wire that is held by the brace or holder at the pic (pic 13) below?

http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2076435/2 ... 0764350010

it seems pretty tight..i tried poking in with a screwdriver and wiggling it but it didn't come loose. don't want to break anything. any videos or pics to help?

thank you.

[infii30owner]

turned out to be starter. once i replaced the OEM starter (got replacement starter from Acdelco for $100 with lifetime warranty) it started on first crank. my battery wasn't charged for 5 days and it worked right away.

we can close this thread.

thanks for help folks.