Picked it up for $1,000. Found out it was really butchered. You wouldn't believe it.
A year's work and I got it on the road. Every day something else breaks. Not fun.
A tip for you on the gas tank - don't take it out, just cut a panel out of the middle top of the trunk, pump and lines are right there!
Situation now is it will crank and fire, run about 2 secs but not stay running.
No return fuel flow from the rail.
I've already had the rail out and couldn't find anything to fix. Cleaned out some loose rubber from the inlet/tester block seals which are degrading. You can't get a new one so I trimmed it up and put it back in, luckily it didn't leak! Maybe bad FPR.
Yes, I'm trying to get hold of a pressure tester if I can afford one right now.
I should get return fuel from the rail with a 2 sec run, right?
Does just cranking provide enough vacuum to the FPR to get return flow?
Any thoughts on what is most commonly stopping return flow from the rail?

 

Does it have the vats system?

 

Remove the FPR and use a rubber point on a blow gun to blow the crap out of the brass fitting under the diaphragm in the middle (leave the lines connected and blow the crap all the way back to the tank). No flow in the return means the FPR is clogged.

And yes, you can get new fuel line o-ring seals. Look in the Help section at the parts store or in the Help book if they're not on the shelf. May also be able to get them from the dealer (may be a wild goose chase there as well).

 

Thanks , Mav, gonna do it.
I got a pressure tester. With all the fuel problems I've been having I might mount on the dash.
Err...vats? Whadat? It took me a while to figure out "WOT", LOL!

 

Vehicle Anti Theft System... Don't worry about it. The engine is cranking and running for a couple seconds. If VATS was an issue, it may not even crank, or if it would, the engine wouldn't even hardly cough due to no fuel injection (other than the 7th injector).

Also remove the Mass Airflow Sensor (MAF) mounted in the air box assembly (remove the nut holding the top on the air cleaner, remove the top and the filter, disconnect the sensor in the can, remove the can WITHOUT cracking or breaking the MAF elbow, and remove the connector from the MAF before undoing the hose clamp holding the MAF to the middle air box). Look inside the engine (non-screened, non-elbow) side with a light reflecting off of the orange film in the middle of the sensor board. The film needs to be COMPLETELY flat. If the reflection appears wavy, the sensor is bad, and it's expensive. Luckily I have an almost new in box GM MAF (DO NOT GO AFTERMARKET with the replacement as they never fit right and die very quickly!) I can't use...

 

BTW I want to mention that I have the line to the charcoal canister disconnected, open at the canister and blocked at the gas tank. All the fuel lines were rotted out and I didn't bother to replace the canister line.
Shouldn't be a problem?
I also have no o2 sensor or cat conv since replacing the exhaust system.
What other anti pollution devices can I get rid of without throwing the computer into a tizzy? I blocked off the EGR already.

 

Don't know where you're located, but you'd better check your state's emissions laws before you go and decide to not have a catalytic converter. If you're in the US and you're caught without one, it's a BIG fine. Also, in some states, the emissions devices have to at least be present and appear functional.

O2S is required, period. ECM can't go right without it.

AIR pump and parts, if equipped, can be deleted.

Worry about this stuff AFTER you get the engine running .

 

It'll be a while before I get the FPR off, All the security torx bits I tried broke, It's 120 miles to a Sears to get a Bosch brand that hopefully won't break. They use a standard torx bit then drill a hole in it. The material is OK for standard use but not after you drill the hole. The security bit needs to be made from a completely different material. Idiots! I drove around for a couple of weeks without the O2 sensor without noticing anything other than some erratic idle. I'll look for one anyway, though.

 

I know it isn't the right way, but, the last time my return side clogged up, my torx bit broke as well. So, needing the car for work the next day (and other things), and needing to get the FPR back together NOW, I used a center punch and knocked all of those little pins in the middle of the screws flat. Then I used a regular torx bit and got it back together again. Maybe I should have outright replaced the screws with regular screws (a suggestion, if you can find something close), but, seeing as how I don't need to worry about those screws with a 3100 fuel rail, I'm not going to worry about it .

 

Yes I'm going to try punching the bolt centers this morning. If it works no reason why I shouldn't re use them.

 

Couldn't find anything wrong with the FPR. Stuck an airhose in the orifice in the fuel rail after disconnecting the the return line at the fuel tester block. At first I got blowback from the orifice, nothing out the return channel. I stuck it in there tight and gave it a good shot. Got flow through the return channel. I didn't see anything come out but there you go!
Hooked everything back up and cranked her. She started and ran. Fuel pressure at 42psi.
Went for a drive. Suddenly the pressure dropped to 30, then lower and on down to 0. Engine quit - dead in the road. Started back up drove home. This keeps recurring.
When I turn the key on the and the pump runs the needle will glitch a little but no pressure.
Crank it and the pressure comes up and she starts, 40/42psi.
Turn the key off pressure drops to 0. The system will not hold any pressure but starts and runs fine until it decides to drop to 0 and quit.
Sometimes when I turn the key on - no fuel pump run so now I'm going to have to trace an electrical problem.
It never ends with this car.

 

Since you made the access hole, double check the fuel pump on the sending unit to make sure that the pulsator is in the right position and is fully seated on the sending unit line and the fuel pump outlet.

Other than that, get a couple pairs of either hose pinch-off or locking pliers (use LOTS of padding between the jaws and hose if you decide to use pliers!) and pinch off the fuel hoses one at a time in the engine compartment. Build up the fuel pressure and then clamp off the pressure (fat) hose. If the pressure holds, there is a pressure loss between the hose and the fuel tank, which means you will need to check the lines under the car first, and the fuel filter connections, for a leak, and finally, if no leak is found here, the check valve in the fuel pump could be bad, but check the rest of the system as per the following. If the pressure still drops with the pressure hose clamped, release the clamp and build the pressure again, this time clamping the return hose. If the pressure holds, the FPR is leaking. If the pressure still drops, build it up again and clamp the pressure hose as well. Pressure loss here means a leaking injector or 2 or more.

Oh, and you should get fuel returned to the gas tank once the fuel pressure has reached enough pressure to overcome the spring in the FPR. Pressure should be between 37-47 PSI. Pressure should hold for a minimum of 20 minutes without losing even 1 PSI fuel pressure.

 

Thanks, Mav, great advice. Just the guidance I was hoping for! I'm gonna check all that a.m.!

 

It was a fuel pump problem. The first time I took it out last month there was no bag filter and some kind of black goop was mostly gone from around the base. Some of this stuff had gone up into the pump vanes which had initiated my first investigation. In putting it all back together I was at a loss as to what to do about the positioning of the pump and it was too loose causing the lack of pressure holding. I put a hose clamp around it to keep it tight to the sender and used a body nut clip wedged between the bottom of the pump and bottom of the sender. It doesn't shift around now. The system now holds fuel pressure. I still fear I'll have to find the electrical problem that causes the pump to run intermitantly once I trace the NEW problem of all electric going out when I hit the crank button. There must be a short somewhere tripping a breaker. Like I said, it never ends with this car.

 

Generally, if everything dies when you go to crank the engine over, you have a loose electrical connection, either between the battery and the positive cable, or between the end of the cable and the starter. It's either loose or there is corrosion causing power loss.

And do get a strainer sock for your fuel pump...

 

Loose negative cable. Pump has sock. Fuel system holds pressure. Engine idles steady, runs smooth, sounds great, car has as much power as the wimpy 2.8 engine is supposed to have I guess. I guess I'll look for an O2 sensor just to have one.
Cleaned up my tools and put a spare in the well and leaving it sit for a day just so I can say it went a day without breaking something!
Going traveling for couple of months (not with this car). Be back late Sept or Oct.
Thanks for all the help, Mav, your a life/car saver, I'm sure I'll need more later!

 

At least your 2.8 didn't blow up like mine did when I finally got it back running... #4 con rod bearing had been gone for a while, I guess, and it broke into 4 pieces on the crank end, blowing the piston out of the bore and a 2" hole in the side of the block and oil pan . That's how I got my 3.1, now 3100 hybrid .