Anon

I had a new fuel tank and fuel pump put on and was told to put in a can of seafoam fuel injector cleaner as my old tank had rusted. Not a tank of gas later my car will not start and seems as though it's not receiving fuel. i need to know how to get to the fuel injectors and clean them manually. Thanks!

Injuneer

Which engine - 3.8L V6, or 5.7L LT1 V8?

When you get them out, they will need to be professionally cleaned, or replaced, if they are plugged.

You need to pull the fuel rails up with the injectors intact, put a container under each injector, disconnect the ignition, and turn the key to "start" briefly to see if they are spraying fuel. Engine should be cold, car outdoors, no smoking or flame or spark source, and the correct class fire extinguisher handy.

You might also want to check the fuel pressure first, and change the fuel filter. That may be the real problem.

Anon

it's the v8 and the fuel filter was replaced less than 300 miles ago

Injuneer

Was the filter replaced before or after you put the cleaner in the fuel?

Injuneer

To access the fuel injectors:

Release fuel pressure by pressing down on the core of the Schrader valve. Have a rag over it to contain the fuel that squirts out. Doing this with a cold engine is a good idea.

Photo courtesy of Shoebox - you can see virtually every part I mention in this photo.

http://shbox.com/1/fp_reg.jpg

Disconnect the GM quick connects at the fuel rail hard lines. This requires a release tool. This step is optional. You can pull the rails up with the lines in place, as long as you do the next step, to release the hard line clamp.

http://shbox.com/1/quick_connect.jpg

Release the clamp that attaches the fuel rail hard lines to the intake manifold. The screw to release the clamp is a PITA, since the head is pointing downward.

Remove the vacuum compensation line from the fuel pressure regulator.

There is a bulky wire harness bundle at the rear of the fuel rails. It is held down by two plastic clips that press into holes in the rail. Either open the plastic clips, or pull the clips out of the rail, and move the harness bundle out of the way.

There are 4 bolts that hold the fuel rails to the top of the intake manifold. Remove them. Be careful, they are long and thin. You don't want to break one off.

Try and clean any debris away from the holes in the manifold that the 8 injectors push into. Compressed air is the best method.

Unclip the injector harness connectors. You have to pull the "staple" shaped connector retainer clips outwards from the clips to release them. Or maybe it's push them in... quite a while since I did this.

Leave the top injector retainer clips in place.

Pull upwards on one of the fuel rails. It may take a lot of effort if the injectors have never been pulled out before. You can protect the intake and rail with a towel, and GENTLY use a pry bar. I have found that if you reach across the manifold from the opposite side, and then pull up on the rail, they seem to come out easier (e.g. - to pull up passenger side rail, stand on the driver side of the car).

To remove the injectors from the rails, slide the retainer clips away from the injector.

When reinstalling, use a dab of engine oil to wet the O-rings. Use new O-rings if possible.

When tightening the rail bolts, remember, they are fragile.