I am looking into purchasing an '88 GTA. The owner said that the fuel pump just died on him one day while he was going down the road. Is this normal for a car with 99k miles? I asked if it was humming beforehand and he said "No, it just quit on me." Is this normal for the 3rd gens? Could he have just blown a fuse? This isn't a deal breaker or anything, I would just like to have an idea of what's going on. If it is the pump, do you recommend a stock replacement? If it's the fuse, where is it located? Fuse block?

 

Its possible that the fuel pump went bad. Turn on the key and you should hear the pump prime for 2 seconds. There should be a fuse for it in the fuse box under the driver dash. Just make sure all the fuses are good. If you dont hear the pump run when you turn on the key, shoot some starting fluid in the throttle body an try to start it. Myself, I would recommend a stock pump if you plan on keeping it stock. I use only an acdelco pump. I have run into problems with aftermarkets.

 

Ok, I will check the fuses first. He says that he doesn't hear the thing prime so it may just have died. How long will it run on starting fluid?

 

It should run for a few seconds or so depending on how much starting fluid you spray in. Just spray a couple good shots in there.

 

I would just pull a line and see if its actually pumping or not. I thought mine was dead but it turned out the injectors were not firing because the wire that tells the injectors when to fire wiggled off the distributor.

I am not saying that is your problem but it could be something simple like that.