Today when I started my car it ran for a while & then shut off. I tried restarting it but it would not start. I checked the plugs first to see if they were getting fire. They were, so that left me with a fuel presure check, Damn no presure!!! So that brings me to this question. Are there any relays for the fuel pump circuit that might be bad or do I need to drop the tank? I have a 86 trans am with a 5.0 tpi set up & if it is a relay where are they?
thanx
njdaewoo

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www.njdaewoo@excite.com
New Project car
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All stock for now

 

Did you check the fuel pump fuse in the fuse box?
I'm pretty sure there is a relay by the maf burn off relay(the 3 little black boxes on the drivers side engine compartment area, they are all mounted near each other).


Brendan

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1987 IROC-Z L98 350 SuperRam, Edelbrock Performer 6085 Aluminum Heads, LPE RollerCam 219/219, Crane Gold Race 1.6RR, TF 1 pc Moly Pushrods, Underdrive Pulleys, Edelbrock TPI High Flow Base Manifold, Accel 58mm TB, ADS 24#, Crane AFPR, K&N, Edelbrock TES Headers, Catco Hi Flow Cat, 3" Borla Cat-Back, Accel Cap & Rotor, MSD 8.5mm, MSD 6AL Ignition, MSD Blaster 2 Ignition Coil, Hayes Clutch, 1LE Aluminum DS, 94' Z28 Disk Rear, Wilwood Adjustable Proportioning Valve, Torsen Series 3 Posi Carrier, Precision 3.73 Gears, Southside Machine Sub-Frame Connectors, Hotchkis Lower Control Arms, KYB Shocks/Struts, Suspension Techniques Lowering Springs, Polyurethan Bushings all over the place, Moog Upper/Lower Ball joints and Tie Rods ends/Idler Arm,

To see the ROC, Check out the webpage Here

 

I checked in the fuse box ,but i didnt see anything marked fuel pump fuse. I did see Fuel injection 1 , fuel injection 2 fuses though & they were both okay, as a matter of fact all the fuses were okay under there .
njdaewoo

 

On the pass side inner fender there is a little connector with two wires going to it. Take it apart and there is a fuse inside. If its blown thats your problem. If it keeps blowing i bet the wires going to the relays on the firewall above the brake booster are freyed and shorting.

 

If the relay went bad then it should still run on the oil pressure backup switch. Unless that went bad too. Maybe the pump is goin out to lunch

 

Yea, sounds more like its the pump.
The fuel pump relay on your car is on the firewall, driver side. I cant remember exactly, but I am pretty sure its the third one over from the right, it is closer to the front of the car than the rest. Theres no fuse in the fuel pump wire itself. Up by the battery though there is a fusible link wire, and a 2 wire connector with orange wires in it. Check to make sure none of that is melted.
For the pump, you can try this: I used an old fuel filter, pick your weapon of choice. A piece of wood like a 2x4 the size of your hand would be good. Get under the car and give the gas tank a good whack just enough so you dont dent it. Then try to see if the pump works. If it does, do NOT drive the car. It means the pump is history, and the only driving you want to do is on ramps to swap it out, or move it out of the way.

 

It is the fuel pump!!! AUGHHH, I hit the fuel tank a couple of times with my fist of steel and turn the key & vroomm it started. It ran for about 5 minutes and died again. Can any one tell me how hard it is to drop the tank & replace the pump and did anybody ever buy a high pressure 277liter walbro fuel pump from APE = auto performance engineering in Garland Texas? Ive heard that he has the pumps at a very good price.
njdaewoo

 

Sucks to hear that.

Its really kind of a PITA to change the pump. You have to get the exhaust down (out of the way is better) drop the rear axle (careful with the rubber brake line) and give birth to the tank. Almost every car I have seen that the tank has been out of has a metal plate about 2" back from the outside of the car that has been bent a little to allow more clearance for the filler neck. Its no fun at all. Try not to bend the flimsy filler neck, its hard to get it lined back up and you can damage the gas tank too.

[This message has been edited by madmax (edited February 15, 2001).]

 

One mechanic was telling me that they have done enough of these that they have a system down - fold down the back seat, lift up the rug and cut a 4" diameter hole a couple of inches above the fuel pump wires. Says he can then reach in there with both hands, disconnect the hoses and wires, pop the pump
and replace it. When they are done, they cut a 5" diameter piece of sheet metal and tack weld it to the top of the plug. Smear with black silicone, stick it over the hole, and tech-screw it in place. Takes less than an hour.
I dunno if I would want to do this to my car, but this is what he told me when he came over and saw me with my tank out...
I asked him what people said when he told them that that was how they repair the pump. He replied that most of them were happy to save 3-4 hours in labor charges...


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I don't see how that is possible given the pump and float assm. is attached to hard lines that run up, out, over, and down the drivers side. You have to take the tank down. Solder the connections and use gas/oil resistant wire.

 

Dont even try doing that haneous act. Do it like madmax said.

 

yes there is a relay

 

The cutting-the-hole-in-the-floorpan trick must work, because they do that at the dealerships around here, too.

I'd probably do that with mine, but I plan on swapping axles anyway so I'm gonna take full advantage of the fact that I'll be able to get to the tank!

 

I would be hard pressed to believe beating on the gas tank made the fuel pump work. If there is any problem in the fuel tank it sounds like you knocked some crud away from a fuel sock and then sucked it back up and stopped the flow.

Before I went through the PITA you're about to go through I would change the fuel filter and Fuel Pump Relay. It sure isn't going to hurt anything and the "beating on the tank" diagnosis may have been a coincidence.

<img src=http://www.gmtips.com/3rd-degree/dox/tips/specs/photo-id/relays/relays.jpg>

 

APE link.......

[url}http://members.home.com/syclone/APE/fuelpump.html[/url]

Many of my fellow Honda buddys have dealt with him. Never a issue. Just make sure your CC transaction goes through.

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86 T/A 5.0 A4 & 2.77 gear
15.62 @ 86 mph
93 Civic 1.6L
13.5 @ 100 mph

 

I can't believe no one has mentioned what I'm going to say. The relay and fuel pump are easy to test. Turn off your stereo, turn off the vent blower, make your idiot friends shut up, etc... turn the key to run and listen. You should here a click, then a buzzing for about 10 seconds. The click is the relay, the buzzing is the pump. If you hear both, the relay and the pump are working. It is possible that the pump can run and not have enough pressure to keep the car running, but its not very common. If the pumps running and you still suspect its the pump, hook up a fuel pressure guage and watch the dial... It should come up to pressure right away and hold the pressure for awhile.

It would be a total PITA if you changed the pump and it wasn't the problem.

 

BTW GM fuel pumps like to stick when they get hot. Beating on the tank will get em unstuck. I drove my S10 for 9 months after I had to beat on the tank without a problem.

 

I have done and heard the following. yes i have beat on the bottom of the fuel tank to get the veh to start (several times) due to a bad fuel pump. i have also seen and heard of the fuel pump being removed from inside the veh by cutting a hole under the carpet(i dont suggest due to the amount of sparks when using a cutting tool). hope this help. tom

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86 iroc 305tpi auto. mild cam