tdbohannon

Hello all. New member here. My 03 with a 4.6 is having trouble starting. The truck has 57k miles. It takes about 2-3 seconds to turn over and it is a bit quicker if I step on the gas while turning the key. First thought was battery or alternator. Took the battery out and had both tested at Autozone and they are fine. Ran a bottle of fuel injector cleaner through about a week ago with no noticable difference. Have cleared two tanks of gas since it started, so I don't think it's bad gas. About a week into this problem, in addition to the rough starts, I have also noticed a slight bit of sputtering for the first 15-45 seconds the car is running. I'm going to replace the fuel filter tonight. If that doesn't help, I've read that maybe the IAC is going bad. I guess I'll try that next. Any other suggestions?
Thanks in advance.

Johnny Mullet

Changing the fuel filter makes sense to me. The IAC could be the problem if you have to hold the gas slightly to keep it running.

Tune-up recently? It is due according to age and mileage.

tdbohannon

Fuel filter last night didn't really seem to solve the problem (but it looked dirty and it needed it anyway). I asked the dealership about tune up and they said not for 100k miles. The only services they are recommending for 60k are oil change, air / fuel filter, r&b, brakes, coolant and tranny flush. I've done all except the last two myself in the last 10 days. I'm going to try the IAC tonight and see how it goes.

tdbohannon

also, just took it to autozone and it isn't throwing any codes.

Johnny Mullet

Those plugs can last 100,000 miles, but they are about 5 years old now.

tdbohannon

fair point. I took off the IAC and it looked a little bit gummed up. The piece inside isn't rebounding like the piece on the new on does. I tried cleaning it up and put it back on. It started right the first 2 or 3 cold starts, but now it's giving me a problem cold or warm. Based on that info, do you think I should bite the bullet and put this $90 piece on?