Engine sputters when starting

[MetallicSlate]

Hello all,

My wife's 2012 Nissan Versa SV has been having some trouble starting over the past few weeks. My first inclination was to suspect battery, but the battery is fine. Here are the symptoms.

From a cold start, the engine will start cranking strong, but will begin to sputter until it eventually coughs to life. If she turns the car off and cranks it again, it starts right away with no sputtering or coughing.

We took it to Nissan, but they claimed they could not reproduce the issue and wanted to keep it overnight. Was not an option at the time, but I want to get the opinion of some other owners.

My two main suspicions are either fuel pump or timing. I've changed spark plugs, done an injector cleaning, inspected the air filter, and checked the battery's voltage. All is good there. MAF is clean and oil was recently changed.

Anything else I should consider? Thanks for any and all help.

[VStar650CL]

I'd start by eliminating or indicting the fuel pump because it's easy. Pop the airbox cover and spray something flammable like Brakleen or Gumout down the barrel before cranking it. If it fires right up, you have a weak or sticky pump that isn't pressurizing right away. If the pump isn't the culprit, the next thing I'd suspect is a weak cam or crank sensor. Those will often misbehave at cranking speed but "catch" once the engine fires and the reluctor spins faster, increasing the magnetic flux. Because they start working properly after the engine fires, the ECM never throws any codes.

[2019Versafan]

A clogged fuel filter can also cause such starting issues.

[MetallicSlate]

Thanks all. I think we've isolated it to either fuel pump/filter or timing. I put the key in the on position, waited 5 seconds, then cranked, and it still sputtered. Once the car is on, it runs just fine.

My wife has a nasty habit of driving until the car is basically pleading for fuel, so my bet is the fuel pump/filter.