Help! Why is my 2007 Saturn Ion suddenly taking so long to start?

Help! Why is my 2007 Saturn Ion suddenly taking so long to start?

Help! Why is my 2007 Saturn Ion suddenly taking so long to start?

Posted: 06 Jul 2013 06:01 AM PDT

I own a 2007 Ion 2.2L and recently had a problem with difficult cold start requiring 8 to 10 and sometimes more cranks before ignition. After the engine ran for a while the vehicle emitted a gasoline smell from beneath. Closer inspection revealed a small amount of fuel leaking from the fuel tank area. After dropping the fuel tank I found a small volume of fuel in the channels the fuel send and return plastic tubing clipped into. I removed and replaced the fuel pump and and associated tubes and filter and seem to have cured the fuel leak issue but not the cold start problem. I connected a fuel pressure guage to the fuel port near the injectors and measured around 61 psi during idle. I also measured from the preignition setting when the fuel pump pressures up and got different results over different samples. Prior to difficult cold starts the pressure didn't exceed 10 psi at preignition and after cranking began gradually built to over 50 psi before ignition. Other preignitions resulted in a spike of about 40 psi that dropped to 0 and an immediate ignition when cranked. I used the pressure relief button on the side of the guage to purge the fuel system and witnessed large bubbles passing through the tubing then I would turn the key to preignition purge then repeat. The bubbles got smaller and fewer and the pressure spike became consistent. And when cranked ignition occurred very quickly. Thinking I'd solved the problem I removed the pressure guage let the car set for 10 to 15 minutes only to experience another difficult start. Any ideas?

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