This has been going on for years.

Car is a 97 M6 Z28, with typical bolt-on mods plus a xe cam and valvetrain, etc.
This problem has been occurring ever since the car was basically stock some 10 years ago though.

Here's what's going on:

Get in the car, cold start. Twist the key, starter turns over, and over, and over. Car won't start. Turn key back, then hit starter again and it fires right up. This ALWAYS happens on a cold start, and sometimes when it's been sitting for an hour or two but not quite all the way cooled down.

It usually will start up on the first crank if it's not completely cold or is still close to operating temp. But it will NEVER start on the first crank if it's cold.

Also, if I get in it, just bump the starter, then hit it a second time it will start right up, which is how I've started the car most of the time for the last few years. It's as if I have to bump the starter to "wake up" the car, then hit the starter again to start it. Just a niggling problem, but now it's started to irritate me. Car runs fine after it's started in all scenarios.

Anyone had this problem, or know what in the hell it could be? I've pretty much ruled out fuel pump, opti, wires, or anything else that people usually cite in things like this, and I have run the car with 2 different PCMs (both OBD1 and OBD2). Still does this no matter what.

 

How did you rule out the fuel pump(how did you test it)?

 

Pull the injectors and have them checked to see if they are functioning properly.

 

His question is valid. The most common long cranking problem is from a bad check valve in the fuel pump assembly. The longer the engine is off, the further the fuel drains back away from the engine.

To confirm, turn key on for 5 seconds and then off. Do this 5 times and then finally crank it over. If it starts quick then, you pretty much confirmed the pump assembly needs replacing.

Other things could be leaking but you would have symptoms that you did NOT describe that rules them out.