Thank you everyone for all the great advice and information on my oil change riddle.

By the way, "necessity is the mother of invention". I was able to make my own oil filter wrench this weekend out of a tin can, ring clamp, bolt and washers. Diagrams and patents pending (ha ha)

On to my next challenge . . .

Cold Start Problems

I understand what a cold start value is for but, I don't understand how it works and, how can I test it to see if it is working.

What I've done so far.

Checked all the hoses for cracks, splits or vacuum leaks leading into the CSV. Everything looked good.

Took the value off and looked it over for whatever . .

In my attempt to trouble shoot it, I plugged it back into it's electrical source leaving the hoses off to see if:

a) the valve opened or closed when the ignition switch way turned on.

b) to see if the engine would start at all.

Neither experiments seemed to confirm or identify my cold start problem.

Any help?

What exactly is the problem on the car?
The cold valve only works at certain temperatures and for a few second.
To test it you can simulate a resistance on the coolant temperature sensor plug (10 kohms). You can measure the voltage on the plug of the start valve. Should be at least 10v for 5sec during start. If you just want to test valve and not the whole system you can apply 12v and check if it opens by spraying fuel into a container.
Just be careful so you don't start a fire.
The proper procedure is to simulate the resistance with ohm decade or some resistors, but these are hard to find sometimes.

Vinamg