Fuel system problem

[dan476]

so today i finally had time to put in new ignition coil and new spark plugs. I finnaly had sparks, so i tried to start the car and of course it didn't start. So i undid the nut (the one that has metal ball in it) at the end of the fuel rail to see if i have any fuel pressure when i crank it over - i attached hose to that and ran it to the bucket. Anyways i tried to crank it over and nothing came at all, so I tried to jump fuel pump relay at terminals 30 and 87b and again nothing. When i pulled the hose off, very little fuel came out of that hole but there was nothing in the hose or bucket, and holy crap did that fuel stink. A lot worse than regular fuel, must be old.

Does anyone have any suggestions? could it be fuel pump?
Its weird because 2.5 years ago previous owner drove it home and parked it and never started it ever since(the only problem back then was leaky waterpump), and now so many things are going wrong with it. I still never had it running yet, well at least electrical problem is solved.

[Razorback1980]

Check for voltage at the fuel pump connection. If you have 12V there and the pump isn't running, the fuel pump is bad. If it is running and you have no gas, clean all parts of the fuel system. If the gas is that old, you have other problems. Change the fuel filter...that's a must before you try to start it again. Also drain the tank and clean it the best you can. You should do these things even if the fuel pump is the problem. It's the only way to provide the most reliable car. If it were mine I would disconnect both fuel lines at the back of the car and put fuel cleaner in one side and use compressed air to blow the cleaner through the lines. Fuel turns to a varnish sticky type substance over time and you don't want clumps of sticky stuff trying to go through the injectors. Dirty fuel system = poor running car. Take your time and clean everything the best you can.

[dan476]

Hey Razor, thanks for reply,
how would i clean fuel tank and also wouldn't it be bad to blow air through all fuel lines and not having any fuel in the lines before starting?

[Razorback1980]

The best way to clean a tank is to take it out of the car, but these tanks are apparently really a lot of work to get out. I would just disconnect the fuel line and run a hose from there into a tank somewhere so the cleaner would have a place to go after you put it in the tank. I would drain what is in there and then if you can put a cleaner into the tank using some type of air pressure until it comes out as clean as it went in. reconnect lines and refill gas tank with new gas. If I had no means of using air, I would just pour the cleaner in unless what comes out looks real bad, then I might pull the tank. There might be a better way, I'm not familiar with it though.

You don't have any fuel in the lines now so you are already starting with empty lines. After I cleaned the tank, all the fuel lines and the fuel rail, I would put everything back together and then jumper the DME per clarks-garage and that would put fuel pressure up to the fuel rail prior to starting. If you don't do that, the car will just have to crank longer before it starts. If it were mine and it hadn't been started in a long time, I would want it to crank longer so it builds up oil pressure prior to starting.

[dan476]

Today i ran my power wires straight from battery to the pump, every time i applied power to the fuel pump it made little thump inside almost like something is seized and it cant turn over. I could tell power is comming to it and it tried to start pumping but it doesn't, I think i am going to pull fuel pump off tomorrow and blow some fuel cleaner through it with compressed air and see if its just gunk in there. Maybe I'll be able to clean it up with fuel cleaner and see if it will start turning over.

Does anyone have any other suggestions?

[SoCal Driver]

Take the inlet hose off of the fuel pump and drain the tank. There is a screen that can be removed at the bottom of the fuel tank for cleaning. Do so.

Take the fuel pump off and soak it in a can of carb cleaner. Might take the paint off the outside but should clean the insides. Try the 12 volts after you rinse the pump with cold water. Note that the brushes for the fuel pump run submerged in fuel so don't run the pump long when dry.

Replace the fuel filter.

Put the screen, fuel pump and filter back on. Put fresh gas in the tank. Take the nut off of the end of the fuel rail and run the fuel pump to clear the line and fuel rail.

After you purge the fuel rail (shouldn't take more than a half gallon of fuel) take the fuel rail off and remove the injectors. At the inlet side of the injectors is a fine mesh screen. You can back flush the injectors with a two foot length of hose connected to the outlet end (the end that sticks into the intake manifold) filled with gas or solvent. Blow the solvent through the hose and thus the injector with a blast of shop air. If the spintal in the injector is free the solvent will come out the inlet of the injector.

Put it all back together being careful not to pince the o-rings going into the fuel rail or the intake manifold. A dab of grease helps.

Jumper the dme relay to run the fuel pump and build pressure in the system. Put the DME relay back in and start the car. Watch your oil pressure. If it does not come up then you will need to replace the oil filter and prime the oil galley.

I would not start and run any 944 engine that has sat for more than a year without changing the timing and balance belts first. If/when the timing belt breaks it bends the valves.

[dan476]

man i made a mistake not tagging my electrical connections when i took my fuel pump apart, which side is positive? is it with bigger nut or smaller nut?

[dan476]

got it figured out big nut is for the power

[dan476]

ok guys got the pump out and had it sit in fuel system cleaner for about 6 hours, then ran cold water through it for about 5 mins, then tried to hook it up to 12v and again just clunking noise inside but nothing pumping, every time I touch it with power it clunks and thats all.
Any suggestions or do i need to get a new pump?

[TheCooler]

sounds like a new pump buddy... im having the same problem leave another post of where u got the pump and how much.

[dan476]

ok that means bad news.

Alright who knows of aftermarket fuel pumps that will fit '84 944. Is there any VW ones and so on.

thanks.
Dan

[dan476]

also a bit of topic but is there a set of spark plug wires (like nkg or champion) that will fit 944 looking for a cheaper alternative.

[dan476]

Hey guys, back on topic. I pulled the strainer out today and first thing i could say was holy f@#k
and here is why:


what do you guys suggest i do? i am going to get some more carb cleaner and clean the strainer with it, should i flush my tank and how do i do that? also am i going to have to take out my fuel tank?

[vancity944]

Berrymans works great for cleaning tanks. It should be left overnight or longer,drained and repeat in severe cases

[dan476]

got a link for Berrymans?
Also if i do have to remove the tank - does anyone have a "how to" for it?

[vancity944]

no need to remove the tank, check the tech topics for 928 tank cleaning

[Razorback1980]

Berryman's is available at any parts store.

[hpaulb]

You guys have to remember some parts shops don't exist in Canada.

[dan476]

Checked canadian tire, nothing there

[dan476]

Is the tank metal or plastic with metal attachment?
also i phoned on of the gas tank fixer place and price was around 400 to get it done. A little too steep for me.