So, our Accent has been having difficulty starting randomly. Usually after shorter trips of less than 15 minutes driving, but not always. We have to hold the throttle open while cranking to get it to catch and fire up. It does throw the code P0497 Evaporative Emission System Low Purge Flow and occasionally thinks there isnt a fuel cap in place when there is. I have swapped out the purge solenoid and the fuel cap, but the problem persists. Not sure what else to check at this point. Charcoal canister maybe? It's at the point my wife is afraid the car will eventually not start at all for her and doesnt want to drive it any more. Also, the time it sits without running may or may not be relevant, the longest it has sat and still hard started was an hour, but sitting over night or while she is at work it seems to always fire right up. Most times it's after a shorter drive and a shorter time sitting, less than 30 minutes between starts.

 

Just a quick update, the wife got stranded at work. Car cranked and cranked, but even putting the throttle down didnt get it started (which usually did when it was "acting up" with the hard start). She left it and went to dinner with some co-workers, then called road side assistance. When they got there two hours later, the car fired right up without any issue. Im starting to think maybe fuel pump? Would that cause the code Im getting?

 

The DTC (diagnostic trouble code seems to have little to do with the hard start, no start.
When it doesn't want to start, do some checks
See if there is spark,
Check for fuel injector pulse,
Turn key to on position and listen for fuel pump to run for about two seconds
Spray starter fluid into throttle and see if it starts

 

it would be wonderful if it actually did it at the house where I have some tools to check things. Every time it's done it, Im at home and the wife has the car out somewhere, either at work or at a gas station. And even if I gave her the basic tools to check a few of those things, she wouldnt have the patience to do it.

To further describe the hard start... it cranks like normal and will slowly sputter to life while cranking, like it has a distinct lack of fuel or too much fuel (like my old carb'd Z28 would do when I pumped it one too many times). Im going to try putting a fuel pump in it and see if that clears it up. Avisitor, you are right though, this last time it didn't start and there were no codes stored, even though my wife said the light came on during her trip to work that morning. It must have cleared itself somehow between her afternoon outing where it almost didnt start and the three times the tow truck guy started it to put it on the truck and back off again into the driveway.

 

An intermittent problem is hard to diagnose when it is not acting up.
Also, not doing any checks when it is acting up .... ???

To me it is doubtful to be the fuel pump.
Check is .. in a quiet place, tun the key to the "ON" position
And listen for the fuel pump to run for about two seconds. This primes the fuel rail.
If it does this even when there is a no start then probably not fuel pump.

Could check all fuses by pulling them out and inspect each socket for corrosion.
Also doubtful but sometimes it works to find the problem.

Now, the most common problem which causes no check engine light and hard starts
it is a faulty crank shaft sensor. They are cheaper than a fuel pump
And much easier to replace. Still, I don't like throwing parts at a car to see what will fix it.

Good luck.

 

Well, I ordered up a crank position sensor and waited for it to come in. Went to change it out this morning and immediately felt a little dumb. I got my 10mm socket down on the bolt with just my fingers, trying to get it to catch the bolt head by feel and then would put the driver on the extension once I knew the socket was engaged. Well, there was 0 resistance and I spun the bolt out with just my fingers. It was so loose it practically fell out. The sensor also basically fell out of the hole once the bolt was out. I changed out the sensor anyway since I already had the new one, but most likely, all of this was caused by the sensor just being loose and vibrating in the hole. First time I've seen a factory bolt just loosen itself like that, but I guess stranger things have happened. The car seems to start without any issues. It threw a random misfire on multiple cylinders code on initial startup, but after a quick code clear, it hasnt been back. Ran it out to Home Depot and WalMart and it seemed like nothing was ever wrong. Thanks for the advice. Will report back if it acts up again.

 

Good luck and hope that is the final fix