Have a '91 RS 305. The car cranks but will not fire. Searched all the forums & I've checked the fuel pump relay, fuse, etc. which leads me to believe the pump itself is bad. Just want to make sure I'm not missing anything obvious before getting into the fun job of replacing the pump. What are some other things that could cause the car not to start?
Thanks a bunch.

 

did you look in the haynes manual and jump the wires on the ECM plug that turns the pump on. Then try and crank it??? if it doesnt kick over after that then the chances are your pump is dead. Did you also check the filter and make sure it wasnt clogged??

 

Dave,

Welcome Aboard!

Before you dive right in and drop the fuel tank, is there any fuel pressure? Have you tested for voltage at the fuel pump/tank connector? Have you checked the ground?

If you checked the relay, fuse, and tried to manually power the pump, and the pump has a good ground, then you may be on to something. However, before cutting the exhaust and dropping the fuel tank, it certainly would be a good idea to be sure first.

 

I've checked everything but the fuel pressure, which I'll do tonight. Also gonna go back and recheck everything else just to be sure. If the pump manually powers what is the next step? Since I topped off the tank the night before the car died (lucky me) what's the easiest, least messy way to get the fuel out of the tank?
Something I found last night while scanning some old posts about this subject was the mention of a "jingling" noise before the fuel pump dies. Have had a "jingling" sound which seemed to come from the right drivers side rear of the car for a couple of weeks prior to it dying. Any truth to this? Looking forward to my fun weekend......

 

Will the car start up is you shoot starting fluid in it? If it does, then you have fuel delivery issues. If it doesn't, then you probably have spark issues.

A no-start is about the easiest thing to diagnose. It takes 3 igredients for an engine to run: compression, spark at the right time, reasonable amount of fuel mixed with air. If the car ran and suddenly stopped, odds are one and only one of these things is lacking. All you have to do is find which one, and track down why it's missing. Be logical and avoid the "maybe it's this, maybe it's that" part-swapping and guessing exercise, your wallet will appreciate your troubleshooting.

"Jingling" noises from one corner of the car are usually because the sway bar end link bushings rotted and fallen out. They have nothing to do with fuel pumps. I've never heard of a fuel pump jingling before it dies; sometimes they do get loud, they make a loud high-pitched whining noise as they die, if they make any noise at all.