So, my FC racecar has been sitting for the last month as Ive been installing new toys in it, and preparing for my next event this coming weekend. Today I go to test something out and try to turn the car on for the first time in weeks and it wont turn on. The starter cranks fine, and I hooked up a timing light to the plug wires and I know that they are firing so I have ignition. I took the fuel pump out of the tank (Ive got the stock one) and hooked it up directly to a battery, and It seems to be pumping alright. I measured the current going throught the wires to the pump and they light up very faintly. It seems to me that the car isnt getting fuel, as Ive had a bat feeling about the pump for some time now. Ive hooked the pump assembly up in the tank and pulled the fuel lines out of the nipples and cranked the engine. No fuel spat out of the pump, even after priming. The EGI main relay clicks as you turn the key on and off, and all of the fueses that I saw looked good.

Recently Ive hooked up a couple of electric fans to cool the radiator, as well as cleaning out some of the unused wires and relays in the front of the car. As far as I was concerned all of the wiring in front of the radiator was relative to the headlights, and other small systems that I dont use in the racecar. I also removed the relays attached to the left side of the bumper foreward of the radiator.

Do you guys have any leads as to what this might be. Im getting really close to my deadline with my event this coming weekend.

Thanks in advance.

 

Check your actual voltage to the pump, not just using a test lamp. You should also make sure the connections are secure and clean, this includes the in-tank connections. Once you can get 12V to the pump see if it's pumping properly, if not get a new pump. You might as well change your fuel filter while you're at it, too, especially if the pump has gone bad, in which case the filter may have also gone bad for whatever reason(s) the pump died.

 

So Yesterday afternoon I checked the voltage at the pump wires and it read in at 3.5v, as opposed to the 12v. I went ahead and hooked up a battery directly to the pump and it began to pump properly. I tried to start the car with the second battery supplying the pump and it still wouldnt crank. Now I'm totally lost.

1. what would cause the voltage going to the pump to drop down to 3.5?

2. after making the pump work, what could still be causing the engine to not crank?

 

Have you gone through the standard checks for flooding? Have you pulled the plugs and checked for gas smell?

 

Have you tried a different battery for the whole car?

The battery reading 3.5V instead of 12V could be the battery dying from sitting so long.

 

I don't think that if the battery itself was only at 3.5 volts it would even turn over the motor at all. I'm not familiar enough with the 2nd gen systems to be of much more help though. Good luck...

 

Thanks guys for the suggestions but even though I havent checked for flooding yet I dont think it would be possible, as under the normal conditions the pump is not pumping. I will give it a shot in any case. As far as the battery is concerned everything else is getting plenty of juice and working fine with the exception of the fuel pump. The thing that screws me up is that even when I do hook up the pump directly to a battery and get it to pump The car wont start, so its more complex than just getting the correct juice to the pump.

 

well with the extra battery attached do you know for a fact that you are getting fuel to the engine? I'd check that...


as far as your 3.5 volts go: follow the wires man... got a wiring diagram?

hell it's a racecar, if it comes to it, rip all the stock wires out and rewire it up with a relay triggered by a switch!


I hate cars sometimes lol