fuel pump issues.......need help

[WRChris]

Hello, my girlfriends 89 civic hatch is having issues. every now and then, the car would have to turn over for ~30 seconds several times to start up. sometimes the check engine light would come on during cranking. finally the car sat for a week or so while we were driving my car, and when i came back, the car refused to start.

checked the codes, im getting code 16. i tell a mechanic friend about this, and he says its probably the relay above the hood release handle. i grab one from a junkyard, and the car fired up for about 5 seconds, and when i went to let it idle , the car died and refused to start again.

i got another relay from Honda and now the car still will not start, and im still getting the code 16 when i try to start the car. i can feel the relay clicking if i hold it in my hand when i try and start the car. but when i got out and checked, i can tell the fuel pump is NOT coming on at all ( no noise, no pressure in the lines).

so my guess is that the fuel pump is dead........but is there a way to check the fuel pump without dropping the tank from the car. is there a jumper i can set that will send power to it, so i can tell if its dead?

any ideas about things im overlooking here? im not new to working on cars, but im new to civics. any help would be appreciated

[Shadowkahn]

code 16 = fuel injectors. Check those.

[WRChris]

well........i might think it was the fuel injectors if they were actually getting any fuel.

the fuel pump is not coming on for one reason or another. the fuel system is in no way getting pressurized, so i dont think it has anything to do with the injectors.

[CZ-R]

You can get at the fuel pump by lifting up the bottom portion of the rear seat. You don't have to drop the tank. Then just use an OHM meter to see if the pump is getting any power.

[Perfectionist]

You may already know this, but the pump will only run as long as the 'check engine' light is on when you first turn on the ignition. The code 16 is interresting though. Normally, any break in the circuit for the injectors will cause this. Such as... ignition switch, main relay, faulty injector resistor(s), and all the wiring between them and to the ECU. A faulty pump would not throw this code as far as I can figure. The pump is powered off the other half of the main relay. Like the previous poster said, you can remove the rear seat to access the pump and check for voltage there. Again, it will only be present for about 2 seconds when the ignition is first turned on.

[WRChris]

hmm..... i checked and the car is getting spark etc. but at no time from the key being off, to the car turning over, does the fuel system get pressurized ( i was holding the lines in my hand).

also, i pulled the rear seat, and the only access hatch i saw was where the actual fuel lines come out of the tank, and one for the fuel level sender not the pump.

[jnifong]

i am having the same problem. no pressure. i've changed the fuel pump out and still no pressure. i've taken the regulator off and if the fuel pump were coming on when the switch was ingaged, fuel would have flowed out. but there's nothing there. maybe something electrical? i've pulled fuses and they were all good. anyone else have any ideas?

jon

[Sargento69]

i had the similar problem and i checked the fuel pump by not dropping the tank. email me and ill tell u how [email protected]