Auto Parts: !999 alero, mass airflow sensor, intake hose


Question
i cannot get my car to start ,   hit some tough weather and i let my tank go on E   but didn't think that was the problem.  battery went dead and try to boost it almost kick over. waited 2 days before grabbing a new battery with the hopes of it working   .. i guess what else can i try  

Answer
    If the battery you have in it now is really good and charged up, then it's got to be the fuel.  As long as the starter cranks the motor over briskly, it should start.  The fuel pump is in the tank, and its got a little sock on the end which keeps the crud out of the fuel system.  That sock may  be clogged up with the residue that was on the bottom of the tank.  You need to make sure you've got at least two or three gallons of gas in the tank, along with a bottle of injector cleaner (Redline is the brand I prefer) and a couple of small bottles of gas-line anti-freeze.  The gas line anti-freeze is really just ispropyl alcohol, it will cut through any water-soluble dirt.  The injector cleaner will clean the system between the pump and the injectors.  Put all of that in the tank together, and rock the car to slosh it around.  Repeat the sloshing every ten minutes or so for an hour, then let it sit for an hour.  Then turn on the ignition and wait for the pump to stop running (you should be able to hear it).  Now crank it and it should start after a bit.  If it still won't start you could try some starting fluid sprayed into the intake hose upstream of the mass airflow sensor.  If that doesn't start it, then something is really broke.