89 Century Fuel Pump Help!

If your car is fuel injected, the pump is in the tank.

You have no choice but to drop the tank.

How do you know the fuel pump is bad...?

http://www.2shared.com/document/egi9Hf8x/Buick_Century_1982-1989_Servic.html

If all else fails, read the manual

Maybe this will do it. Lift up the bottom of the rear seat. Remove the padding. Look for a large rubber plug, just wider than the fuel pump. Pull this plug out and the fuel pump will be directly below the hole. Pump is removed and replaced by unscrewing the cover and pulling the old pump out. Putting the new one in is just the opposite.

CAUTION- Be very careful with spark or flame producing items while the cover is off the tank, BOOM!

Good Luck, Old Salt

Here you go, no short cuts included

Electric Fuel Pump

REMOVAL & INSTALLATION

See Figure 1

1. Relieve fuel system pressure.
2. Disconnect the negative battery cable.
3. Raise the vehicle and safely support.
4. Drain the fuel tank.

Fig. Fig. 1: The electric fuel pump has an in-tank design

1. Disconnect wiring from the tank.
2. Remove the ground wire retaining screw from under the body.
3. Disconnect all hoses from the tank.
4. Support the tank on a jack and remove the retaining strap nuts.
5. Lower the tank and remove it.
6. Notice the position of the filter for replacement. Support the pump with one hand and grasp the filter with the other. Rotate the filter in one direction, then pull off of the pump. Discard the filter.
7. Disconnect the fuel pump connector, on wagons it will not be necessary.
8. On all models excluding wagons:
1. Place the sending unit on a bench upside down, then pull the fuel pump downwards to remove from the mounting bracket. Tilt the pump outwards and remove from the pulsator.


9. On wagons proceed as follows:
1. Disconnect the negative terminal nut and lead (black) from the pump.
2. Disconnect the positive lead (gray) from the pump, then loosen the coupler clamps.

To install:

1. On all models excluding wagons:
1. Assemble the rubber bumper and insulator onto the pump.
2. Position the fuel sender assembly upside down and install the fuel pump between the pulsator and mounting bracket.
3. Connect the pump electrical connector.


2. On all wagon models:
1. Position the fuel sender assembly upside down and install the coupler and coupler clamps to the inlet tube, but do not tighten at this time.
2. Install the pump between the coupler and the mounting bracket, then tighten the clamps so that 5-8 teeth are engaged.
3. Attach the positive lead (gray) to its positive terminal with the nut, then attach the negative lead (black) to the negative terminal.Always install a new filter when installing a new pump.


3. Position the pump filter on the new pump and push the outer edge of the ferrule until it is fully seated.
4. Install the sending unit.
5. Install the gas tank and check for leaks.
6. Reconnect the battery cable.
7. Anymore Information will require a fee.
   

I am not familiar with your vehicle but my cars all have large plastic removable caps in the floor above the tank to access/remove/replace the in tank pump and fuel gauge.

Well I got the pump changed. I knew it was bad because after changing the fuel filter it wouldn't pump any gas still. My car is still having issues though. The fuel pump and filter are both new but the car won't stay started. It turns over and dies right away, it is acting like it isn't getting any gas. I know it might possibly be the fuel injectors but most people I talk to don't think that is the issue. What do you guys think? Should I try the fuel pump relay next?

I would get a loaner fuel pressure tester at AutoZone or Advanced and check the pressure. The fuel pressure regulator maybe bad,. http://www.rockauto.com/ sells a throttle body rebuild kit which should have parts. Sometimes the diaphram will go bad and leak.

Do you know if O'Reillys has them? The closest Advanced or AutoZone is well over 2 hour drive, and since my car isn't running I doubt I could get there.

If you can wait a day or two, maybe a couple more, Auto Zone, Advance Auto and NAPA have programs where you can call them for a part and they will ship it to you. Usually overnight or a couple of days till you get it. Friends in rather desolate places have used it and say it is great, at least better than a 2 hour drive. Haven't used it. All three are less than 10 miles, now if they only had the stock!

Good Luck, Old Salt

Use a telephone and call and ask.

OK, I hope it is the same as what happens to my old Diahatzu Terios: The car's computer gets messed up sometimes, it starts but dies immediately. Removing the battery earth cable, light your pipe, kick the tires, put the battery cable back on.....and Bobs your uncle. That is if the computer reset itself!

I found that some computers deny feul delivery until the engine has cranked enough to get some oil pressure....these have more than the normal one wire connected to the oil pressure sender unit on the bottom side of the engine block.

The same happens if the pick up behind the dashboard around the ignition switch does not recognize the ignition key transponder.

jurie

Check to see if any rubber hoses have collapsed. The addition of alcohol to modern gas can cause rubber parts to swell and restrict the supply of fuel.

Have you tested the removed fuel pump for operation?

Doing so will tell you if you are on the right track, or if you wasted time and $$$ on a misdiagnosis.

Yes, the removed fuel pump doesn't work at all.

The throttle body will cause a lot of drivability issues like a carburetor, also I used to run a can of pressurized cleaner thru the injectors. But you need to check the pressure.

If the fuel pump relay is bad, the car wouldn't start (bad relay = no current = no fuel).

If it starts and dies, it could be a number of things.

Someone mentioned a fuel pressure regulator. Typically, when these fail, the engine won't idle (rpm is unstable). It could be this, but I don't think so.

When you were messing with the fuel tank/pump, you may have dislodged some grunge at the bottom of the tank. Being that it's a 25 year old car, there's probably a lot of junk sitting at the bottom of the tank. Disrupting it can cause it to get into the new filter you installed. If you cleaned the tank, skip this.

How sure are you that it's a fuel problem? Again, a 25 year old car has brittle plastic and a sensor could be bad. Check the crank position sensor, knock sensor, mass air flow sensor, oxygen sensor or throttle position sensor. Any one of these could cause the engine to start, but shut off instantly.

Is your coil in good shape? How about your spark plugs? Plug wires? Distributor/rotor?

Air filter clean?

At some point, you need to ask yourself if it's worth the time and effort to try fixing it yourself or just send it to a qualified mechanic. Also, consider the cost of fixing this car vs buying a good reliable used car. For $5K, you should be able to find a good used car. We just sold our 2002 Honda CR-V with 148K for around that price.

My recommendation; look for a well maintained Honda or Toyota that hasn't been in an accident and the last owner has owned it for at least 2-3 years. No Check Engine light turned on! No Salvage Title. No Flood Issue. Engine runs smoothly, no smoke out the back, has decent power, transmission shifts without hesitation, slipping or noise.

" It turns over and dies right away" This sounds like the engine starts, but cuts out right away?

If I assume correctly, Remove battery pole earth clamp for a while, if it does not help, do it again and let us know if this helped...Or check if the wiring from the oil pressure sender unit is OK.

Just curious.

jurie

What???

Why not also tell him to remove the 710 cap, which can be released with 4.3 henway, and vent that excess block pressure?

Doorman, This happens to my daihatzu terios about twice a year that the engine start up as soon as the oil pressure comes up, BUT the computer shuts it off almost immediately! When this happens I do as 'n couple of auto electrisiëns told me to do namely, to disconnect the battery, leave it for a while and put it back again. The computer resets itself and it has worked every time. A friends Renault once started and idled perfectly but the accelereter movement had no effect. Uncoupling the battery for a while, fixed the problem.

As you should know, some fuel injection engines does not start before there is some oil pressure....quite a good idea. So if the oil pressure block unit does not tell the computer that there is oil pressure, the computer cuts off fuel delivery. The same happens when the computer does not recognise the ignition key.

I hope this clears your understanding [May be some method in my madness?]

Jurie

Jurie, I don't think it has anything to do with oil pressure. If a car shuts off from low oil pressure, we would never see people destroying their engines when the oil gets low. I could be wrong, but I don't think so.

This is a 1989 Buick, the computer monitors the oil pressure, but does not shut the engine down nor will keep it from starting. Any failed sensor or associated wiring would throw a code and the check engine would come on. The OP has yet said anything about the check engine light coming intermittently or staying on. Disconnecting the battery before down loading any codes is like shooting yourself in the foot, on the way out the door to go hunting But if it works for you, go for it! Dan

The check engine doesn't come on and I tried disconnecting and reconnecting the battery to no avail.

Just curious, does your check engine light come on when you turn the key on, without starting it? And did you check to see if you have fuel in the fuel rail?

Is your check engine light on? Can you hear the fuel pump run? Did you also change the fuel filter? If you did, is the arrow pointed in the right direction, towards the engine? You can check to see if you have fuel in fuel rail by removing the cap off the test port and use a small screw driver and depress the valve momentary while key is on. If you have fuel there, you most likely have another problem.

Any restriction in the fuel delivery system will cause your symptoms. The best way to trouble shoot your problem is to put a fuel pressure gauge on the injector rail and measure the pressure. You can then work from the rail backwards to locate the problem which could be a kink in a fuel line, blockage in the filter system, or a swelled hose.

Back in the era this car comes from, a Ford electronic ignition module had different circuit for start and run operation in order to provide full spark output during start-up and reduced spark energy to run. When the module went bad, it would start but die as soon as you let off the start position of the ignition switch. If you held it in the start position, it would run (but of course it would also tear up your starter). I don't know about GM vehicles but maybe it is something like this.