Greetings Bricksters.

The red herring in this issue may be that the radiator started leaking about a month ago, or it may be a cause, but I haven't a clue. I kept driving it and just kept a VERY close eye on coolant levels. It never got more than about 1.5 liters low, but did blow some steam from time to time.

I replaced the radiator 2 days ago, in record time. Got it at IPD in Portland, OR, btw.

1. Some time in the last 3 weeks the car began requiring 10 to 30 seconds of cranking to start. After several cranks it begins firing intermittently and eventually idles rough for 5 to 10 seconds and then idles and runs normally.

About 60% of the time, it will start normally after having been driven. The rest of the time, it does #1 above.

2. The cooling fan comes on full blast at start up whether the car is dead cold (it's in the low 50's F in the Seattle area right now) or has warmed up and been driven for a while. The fan turns off at some point, accompanied by a brief drop in RPM's, then normal running.

Only one code for 3-4 weeks: P0117, "MAP/BARO Circuit Low Input", according to Actron.

When I clear the code with the car running (is this a no-no?) the fan stops and the car runs rough until the fan comes back on about a minute later and then it runs normally again.

Thanks for reading and please let me know if I can answer any ?'s that may help in getting to the issue.

Norman in Renton, WA