Nissan Repair: 1996 Nissian Altima GXE, nissan altima gxe, crankshaft position sensor

Question
I have a 1996 Nissan Altima GXE with a 2.4L engine. Since I have owned the car which has only been about 8,000 miles it has always been hard to start. In the morning it will just turn over and turn over and finally crank. Once that initial start in the morning it starts fine the rest of the day. What could the problem be? It recently broke down and I ended up replacing crankshaft position sensor and the distributor. The car is back running but still has the cold start issue just like before. I thought the crankshaft position sensor was the reason for the cold start problem and when the car stopped starting it finally went out. Guess I was wrong! Any advice for his would be greatly appreciated and any other advice about these cars. I have always repaired my own vehicles but have also always bought American, this car is different to what I'm used to! Thanx for any help you can give.

Answer
HI Benjamin -

Try this test -

Get some starting fluid and prime the intake with fluid, then try starting (do this when engine is cold). If the engine starts with no difficulty, then you probably will need to replace your cold start valve. Looks for it along the intake boot or manifold.

Please let me know how it goes -
aloha
calvin