grandgarson

This all started Monday night. I went down to the store I work at to get a pack of cigarettes and when I was leaving my car stalled as I heading out of the parking lot. It started right back up, but when I pulled onto the street it was sputtering and then stalled again right before I got to the light. It wouldn't start so I pushed it back into the parking lot.

So far I've changed the fuel filter and the fuel pump, and I even put more gas in it (just because it was down to about an 1/8th of a tank and figured it could be possible that the float got stuck in the tank and was reading more than I had). Today after I changed the fuel pump it still wouldn't start, but it sputtered a couple of times like it wanted to start and there was a little bit of exhaust coming out when I would hold my foot down on the gas while trying to start it. Somehow it's still not getting gas. I know this because I had a friend of mine get in and try to start it while I slowly poured gas into the carb and it actually started to start but as soon as I stopped pouring it stopped running at all.

The only thing I can think of now is that there must be a clog somewhere in the lines. Or is there something I need to do to really get the fuel going through the lines again? If anyone has any ideas, I'm all ears, this has been driving me insane. It's an 80 with an engine from an 83. Saturday I should be able to get a friend of mine to tow it to his shop and I'll be able to look it over better, but I'd really like to get it going and out of the parking lot at work as soon as possible.

Rx-7Doctor

iTrader: (13)

Did you check the fuse?

Check for power at the fuel pump?

grandgarson

You mean the fuse for the fuel pump? No I didn't, but I know the fuel pump is running, cause I can hear it. I have all the interior still pulled back from getting to the connection, so I'm able to hear it when I turn the key. I even double checked to make sure that's what I was hearing by leaving the key turned and pulling the connection and then plugging it back together.

trochoid

iTrader: (6)

Check the float bowl windows, you'll need a dental mirror and flashlight to see the rear one. You should see the fuel level line right in the middle of the windows. Remove the air cleaner lid and operate the throttle, there should be 2 noticeable squirts, one to each primary throttle bore. Check the rear window again, it should be going down as this is where accelerator pumps draws fuel from.

If you can't see a line in the window or squirts from the accelerator pump, pull the air horn off of the top of the carb. There should be a pair of cone shapped filter screens, check them for contamination/plugging. If they aren't there or are clean, then it's time to check the fuel tank.

The fuel tank pickup tube has a filter screen, this may be plugged or breached, causing the pickup tube to plug. If you have an air compressor and blow gun, disconnect the wupply line fromthe carb, blow air back into the tank with the filler cap removed. There should be some resistance blowing, but not much. Have someone listen at the filler neck for air coming into the tank.

Put it all back together except the fuel supply line to the carb. Crank engine and check for fuel flow. If that's good, reconnect the fuel line and with clean/fresh plugs, try starting again. If it fails to start, make sure the plugs are firing. If you still don't have fuel flow, then it's time to drop the fuel tank for cleaning and probably a reseal treatment. Most radiator shops can boil out and seal fuel tanks. I prefer to do my own sealing as I also strip and restore the outside of the tanks.

Stripping/restoring the inside/outside of the fuel tank is time consuming and I won't address that in this post. While the tank is out, before boiling, make sure all 3 steel hose barbs are clean and freeflowing. You may need to rod out the supply and return tubes to clear them While the tank is out, replace the rotting rubber fuel hoe with new.

Have fun,

grandgarson

I did do a volume test by pulling the fuel supply line from the carb and there's basically no gas getting to the carb. A little tiny bit came out just after I removed the line (just enough to get on my fingers, but not near what should have been getting to the carb.), but then nothing and I did that when I had the friend of mine in the car trying to start it and he had the key turned to the on position so the fuel pump should have been pumping. I know that gas must be getting to the fuel pump, or at least the fuel filter (it's new and filled with gas), and it's just a short line from the filter to the pump, so I'm thinking it must be somewhere between the pump and the carb (or possibly the return line, don't know if that would cause this severe of a problem). If I haven't been able to figure it out by Saturday when I can get it to my friend's shop, I plan to pull the line from the pump that goes to the carb and make sure that gas is getting pumped from the pump when the key is turned.

If it is, then I'll leave that line disconnected and then hopefully he has a compressor so that I can blow out both the supply and return line and make sure that everything there is clear. I guess it is possible that it is clogged in the tank just enough that it can slowly seep out and fill the fuel filter but not enough that the pump can really pump it, but it just seems like it's more likely somewhere else. Or maybe I'm just hoping it's somewhere else. lol

PS: If it's not getting to the pump and is clogged in the tank, would it damage anything to disconnect the fuel filter and blow air back to the tank in the supply line? Would that cause problems with the screens in the tank or anything like that, and if so would it really be a problem cause anything that was clogging it there would just end up in the fuel filter and that's cheap and easy to replace. I ask because I just spent $32 of the $39 I have to my name right now on the fuel pump and have no way to be able to get something fixed and am going to have to fix it myself.

grandgarson

Sorry, just realized that was what line you suggested blowing air through. For some reason I was thinking that you suggested the return line, and was thinking maybe there was a reason not to in the supply line.

trochoid

iTrader: (6)

Since you just replaced the fuel pump, make sure you have the lines connected correcty on the fuel cut valve mounted on the frame rail. There's a routing diagram in the 85 FSM, Sec. 4A, p.3.

Kentetsu

Yeah, fuel pump running backwards = no go...

grandgarson

lol, yea I was real careful about that. Even pulled out a volt meter to make sure I wired it right. It's a universal fuel pump, cause that's what I could afford and that's what they had in stock for my car.

grandgarson

Not really sure what you're referring too. I'll have to take a look in the FSM. All I did was make sure and find the out side of the new pump, then pulled the line from the out side of the old pump and put it on the new pump, then swapped the other line from the old pump to the new pump.

grandgarson

Woo Hoo!!! I found the problem. The original problem was the fuel pump, but when I put the new one on I created a new problem. It was a little bit different shape and I didn't realize it but when I mounted it on the plate and then tucked the plate back up in place it kinked the hose leading to the carb. I got it going by not putting the cover plate back on and mounting it directly to the frame where the plate bolted on. That way I could get it positioned just right so it wouldn't kink the hose. And before anyone says it, I don't plan to leave it that way. It's just a temporary fix. I plan to get a longer piece of fuel line so that I can mount it back behind the plate without it kinking the hose.

RX7 allnight

ya always tripple check stuff and than check again! its funny what we can miss just doing a once over..

Kentetsu

Thanks for the followup. That's a new one on me.

grandgarson

Yea, I wouldn't have ever thought of it. I found it by accident. I ran a wire directly from the battery and was hooking it up to the pump so that I could test to make sure the pump was working when I saw a crease in the line like it had been kinked and when I moved it back to where it would have been behind the plate I saw that it was folding the fuel line in half.

Of course at that point my battery was too dead to start from me trying to get it started over the last few days, but luckily it was in the parking lot at the store I work and I went in and got one of my supervisors to give me a jump start. Took a little bit, but finally got it going.

DivinDriver

iTrader: (15)

Congrats on the resurrection. Miller Time!