heres the deal, i turn the key and it cranks and eventually starts, if i push the gas all the way to the floor it starts up right away. i've been told that this is the fuel pump, but if it is the pump why wouldnt my car cut out while driving from the lack of fuel? wouldnt the pump effect the car while its running? also, could this have to do with the fuel pump relay some how? i dont want to replace the pump unless its necessary. sorry for the long post and thanks alot!

 

It sounds like the pump. If your pump is just now starting to go bad, then it will hold the pressure for driving but has a hard time building the pressure up for the initial start. One way to test is to turn the key on without cranking, let it prime, and then turn the key back off. Do this cycle 2 or three times. After that if it cranks up then it is the pump. Also, check the fuel pressure and see what it is running. Mine would drop to 0 psi as soon as I turned the car off. My car would have to turn over quite a few times before it would crank. After replacing the pump, you barely have to hit for it to crank.

 

my car has been doing this for about a week now, does that still seem like it could be the pump, would it last that long? also can you explain how to check the fuel pressure? thanks for the help!

 

Mine did it for 1.5 or 2 months. One of the reasons I finally replaced the pump was because it was getting nerve racking and all my buddies would laugh at me. Well, if you can get your hands on a fuel pressure gauge, hook it up, and check it out. Very simple.

 

what should it read

 

i think around 45 maybe

 

Pump, you will probably be breakin up at higher RPMs, if not now, soon, and be careful, replace it now if its doin that, dont want any spark knock up there, especially if you have programming that sets max retard at 5*.

Buddies car just did that, was reading about 21psi, tried the filter, but that wasnt it, check your filter first though, its the problem a lot of times.

 

thanks for the info. how exactly will i be able to tell if the filter is the problem? how do i know if its bad?

 

Replace it, $10

 

stock fuel pressure is 43.5psi, you need to check you fuel pressure at idle (vacuum line unhooked) and then check it to at WOT (under load to the shift point) it should maintain the stock fuel pressure, if it drops, you need to replace your pump....

that happened to me once

jesse

 

Mine did that too. Everyone told me that it was the pump, even teh chevy dealer. After no one could figure it out I checked to see if the injectors they were bleeding down. They were. I replaced them and it was fixed. After you check the fuel pressure with a guage and if its ok, leave it hooked up but with the key off. If it doesnt hold @40psi and it drops to like 20 psi or so start looking at your injectors. Good luck.

 

My fuel pressure would drop after I turned the key off also...replaced the pump and now it will hold the psi, so that may or may not be the case. Start with the cheapest stuff first.

 

theres 3 real possibilities it could be if your losing pressure when not running assuming your not leaving a puddle of gas everywhere: fuel pressure regulator leaking, injector leaking, fuel pump check valve leaking. By pinching of various (RUBBER ONLY, dont try that with plastic) fuel lines you can isolate which one it is...I.E if you pinch off the fuel line from the pump to the regulator and that line loses pressure, its the pump. You may have to get creative in substituting rubber line for plastic in some areas