Ford Repair: Hard starting Mercury Villager!, mercury villager, fuel pressure

Question
I just got a '95 Mercury Villager with 180k miles. When starting cold, you have to crank it for 10-15 seconds then it will hit and miss a couple times then it smoothes out. It runs great after you get it started. Restarting is not so bad within about 1 hour of shut down. I have checked the fuel pressure and it checks 42psi ignition on engine off, 39psi engine at idle, but it doesn't leak down when shut down. It will hold pressure for 15-20 minutes at least. Could this cause the injectors to leak raw fuel into the intake causing it to flood or should I check for another problem? This van has been to a mechanic with no problems found!

Answer
I see very few Villagers at the Dealership that I work at, but I will try to offer some advice.  The oldest service manual I have for a Villager is 1996, it states that the fuel pressure should be approximately 43 psi with key on, and approximately 34 psi with the engine running.  The fuel pump should not leakdown more than 8 psi in 3 minutes.  If your fuel system is holding full pressure for '15-20 minutes at least',  I would guess that your fuel pump and fuel injectors are fine.  I might test for leakdown longer, to see if the fuel pressure drops as the engine cools.  The problem that you described, does sound like a fuel system problem.  I would test the resistances of all the injectors, they should be within 10-14 ohms.  Because of the mileage on the vehicle, it would be a good idea to clean the fuel injectors from the fuel rail service port, and change your spark plugs if they are worn.

I hope this helps,
Dave