she won't start

[chazmatic]

first off i would like to say hello, i'm new to this forum and would appreciate any and all help any one can give me.

i have a 93' atx. a few weeks ago i went to start it and it wouldn't turn over.
it was late so i decided to mess with it the next day. the next morning it started right up. it was fine for about a week, until today. i tried starting and didn't hear my fuel pump. is this a good indication that my pump is shot?

 

[SHO#7]

Welcome. Not turning over, and not starting are two different things. Does the motor crank.

Mike

 

[chazmatic]

yeah, sorry. it turns over, but doesn't start.

 

[Eric VerValin]

I smell a crank sensor problem. When is the last time you opened up the front of the motor? (Water pump, timing belt)

 

[chazmatic]

never. i've only had the car for about two months. would that cause the pump to not come on?

 

[RiceeatingSHO]

Welcome to SHOforum! If you are not hearing the pump prime, try the switch in the trunk. If that isn't it, either your pump is going out, or maybe bad electrical connections? Also, has is been humming? That is an early indicator of a fuel pump going out. These are just things that I would check, especially if you do not hear it prime. If you do, your fuel filter may be clogged, but I think that would be unlikely if it was such a sudden thing. Good Luck! And, as it has been put before, "Welcome to the Money Pit Owner's Club!"

 

[RiceeatingSHO]

if it's not priming than it must be the switch or the pump itself/ecectrical connectors I would think.

 

[chazmatic]

since i've had the car the pump has hummed pretty loud when priming only.

 

[RiceeatingSHO]

that's normal, the loud hummmmmm priming is ok, if it's still doing that and not starting, I don't know.

 

[chazmatic]

no, it's not priming at all.

 

[RiceeatingSHO]

then I would check the switch in the trunk, after that, if to no avail, maybe you need a new pump.

 

[chazmatic]

thanks guys. i'll check it out and let you know.

 

[Eric VerValin]

What about the CCRM (?) relay above the radiator. That relay feeds the fuel pump on a pink/ black wire. IIRC

 

[Mr95Gl]

Did you check your fuses?

 

[93rev2sev]

A blown fuse would not be intermittant..but check them anyway...

Possible crank sensor: big job
Possible fuel pump: big job

You don't want to do them both...right?

Check for spark and check for fuel. Spark first....

take any old used spark plug and plug it into the plug wire nearest the alternator. Leave YOUR plug in the head. Clamp that old plug to the engine lift eye; such that the threads are in contact with the metal of the eye and so you can see it from the drivers seat(or have a friend crank it while you watch). When you crank the engine, you should see spark at the spark plug. If you do NOT see spark, AND you have some RPM while you are cranking, you should pull codes and look for a PIP sensor code( I think it's 212), or just perform a front 60K.

If you HAVE spark...check for fuel.

Look at the right(drivers) side of the intake in the middle. There is a schrader valve stem there. Twist off the cover and use a small allen wrench to depress the valve. Hold a rag above the valve to catch any squirting fuel. Relieve all the pressure in the system by holding down that valve until there is no more flow. Now, go turn the key to ON. Leave the key on and press that valve again just for a moment(again ... have a rag handy). Fuel should squirt out. If it does not...then brace yourself for fuel pump replacement.

Edit: since you will have no idea what to do until you find out if there is spark and fuel, you should do these tests right away. If it turns out that you have spark and fuel, then we can move on to other possibilities.

 

[RiceeatingSHO]

Very good writeup. I used the spark test to see if my plug wire was gone on one cylinder and if the fouled plug was gone on another.

 

[Eric VerValin]

You can't say that if he has no fuel pressure then he has to replace the pump for certian. Those relays are notorious for failing. I replaced mine once already, and have a backup for the next time it happens. Plus there is a small 10 amp fuse under the hood that will feed that relay. I've had it blow out on me before @ 2 am. Took a while to figure that out, but it was a $0.25 fuse that kept it from starting that day.