The cold start advance system is a key part of a vehicle and is used to make vehicle starting easier when the weather is cold by shortening the fuel injection timing my about five degrees.

The cold start advance system operates by using a temperature sensitive element which lets the system know if it’s needed.

The cold start advance system is connected to the engine cooling system via hoses. As this coolant temperature rises, an element in the cold start advance system expands. This element releases tension on a cable, causing spring pressure to move a lever. This lever then turns a cam, which pushes the hydraulic piston to the left to shorten the fuel injection timing. This reduced fuel injection timing means that the fuel injected on start-up has more time to burn which can minimise smoking during warm-up and improves the overall vehicle performance.

Failure of the cold start advance system may mean that your vehicle struggles to start in colder weather. It may also expel a lot of white smoke out of the exhaust. You may find that the engine shudders when first driving until the engine heats up.