gf ran her car dry and now wont start...
11-27-2007, 03:20 PM
#1
gf ran her car dry and now wont start... ok thankfully i dont let her drive mine but she has an 02 chevy cavalier and ran it dry on the highway. car died. she called me i told her not to keep trying to start it just leave it alone till i get there with gas. i buy some premium unleaded enough to give her a 1/4 tank and car still wont start. got it towed to my house so i can try and find out what is wrong and hopefully fix it (so i dont have to drive her everywhere). when i turn the key to run position i can here the fuel pump pressurize for a few seconds then shut off. that would imply that the pump is still working right?
now i was told sometimes if you run your car dry you could get a fuel line clogged with and dirt that has built up in the tank. if its not the pump then could this be the problem? how would i go about fixing/cleaning the fuel lines or even checking to make sure this is the problem?
also i know it is fuel injected but i tried pouring just a few drops of gas down the intake plenum to the throttle body and when i cranked the car over it would start and idle for just a few seconds then it would die. this at least shows i am getting spark and now timing belt problem correct? i also noticed when i would try to step on the gas pedal while doing this it would immediately kill the car.
i know this isnt ls specific but all chevy fuel systems are pretty much similar so figured id try and ask?
thanks
now i was told sometimes if you run your car dry you could get a fuel line clogged with and dirt that has built up in the tank. if its not the pump then could this be the problem? how would i go about fixing/cleaning the fuel lines or even checking to make sure this is the problem?
also i know it is fuel injected but i tried pouring just a few drops of gas down the intake plenum to the throttle body and when i cranked the car over it would start and idle for just a few seconds then it would die. this at least shows i am getting spark and now timing belt problem correct? i also noticed when i would try to step on the gas pedal while doing this it would immediately kill the car.
i know this isnt ls specific but all chevy fuel systems are pretty much similar so figured id try and ask?
thanks
11-27-2007, 06:45 PM
#4
It could be clogged, but you may just need to crank the hell out of it if the rail is dry. I ran a chevy cobalt dry (similar ecotec to your car). It took 6-7, five second cranks to get it to start.
Does it have a schrader valve on the fuel rail? If so, put a fuel pressure gauge on the rail, open the gauge valve, and keep keying the car on/off to run the pump until it bleeds out the air and you get a good stream of fuel. Or you could just throw it on a batt charger and crank away (don't burn up the starter. . . ).
Does it have a schrader valve on the fuel rail? If so, put a fuel pressure gauge on the rail, open the gauge valve, and keep keying the car on/off to run the pump until it bleeds out the air and you get a good stream of fuel. Or you could just throw it on a batt charger and crank away (don't burn up the starter. . . ).
11-27-2007, 06:46 PM
#5
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It could be clogged, but you may just need to crank the hell out of it if the rail is dry. I ran a chevy cobalt dry (similar ecotec to your car). It took 6-7, five second cranks to get it to start.
Does it have a schrader valve on the fuel rail? If so, put a fuel pressure gauge on the rail, open the gauge valve, and keep keying the car on/off to run the pump until it bleeds out the air and you get a good stream of fuel. Or you could just throw it on a batt charger and crank away (don't burn up the starter. . . ).
Does it have a schrader valve on the fuel rail? If so, put a fuel pressure gauge on the rail, open the gauge valve, and keep keying the car on/off to run the pump until it bleeds out the air and you get a good stream of fuel. Or you could just throw it on a batt charger and crank away (don't burn up the starter. . . ).
11-27-2007, 06:57 PM
#6
ya ive tried cranking a BILLION times for up to 15 seconds...nothing. dunno about a shrader valve but i will check for that in the morning. i figured there may just be air in the system so hopefully this is it.
thanks guys for the input.
thanks guys for the input.
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11-27-2007, 09:32 PM
#8
The fuel system could just be air locked.
The factory setup is a bitch to prime after you run the tank completely dry.
The factory pumps are not real high flow units of course.
Most of the cars that have been towed to my shop after running out of gas seem to sort themselves out and run fine after just sitting for a few hours.
First try topping off the fuel tank. If you can get more gas in the tank it will help the pump prime.
You can also try pulling the schraeder valve off the fuel rail and attach a gauge or just a hose between the rail and a small gas can to it to help speed up the process like Murdock suggested.
Keep priming the pump by repeatedly turning the key to on and listen to the pump run.
You may have to turn the key to off for a few seconds to repeat the prime signal from the PCM.
The fuel pump will sound differently when it starts building pressure.
As soon as you see fuel drain from the attached hose and into the can you should be able to reinstall the valve and start the car.
Good luck.
The factory setup is a bitch to prime after you run the tank completely dry.
The factory pumps are not real high flow units of course.
Most of the cars that have been towed to my shop after running out of gas seem to sort themselves out and run fine after just sitting for a few hours.
First try topping off the fuel tank. If you can get more gas in the tank it will help the pump prime.
You can also try pulling the schraeder valve off the fuel rail and attach a gauge or just a hose between the rail and a small gas can to it to help speed up the process like Murdock suggested.
Keep priming the pump by repeatedly turning the key to on and listen to the pump run.
You may have to turn the key to off for a few seconds to repeat the prime signal from the PCM.
The fuel pump will sound differently when it starts building pressure.
As soon as you see fuel drain from the attached hose and into the can you should be able to reinstall the valve and start the car.
Good luck.
11-28-2007, 03:53 PM
#9
well so far i know there is no pressure what so ever as i disconnected the main feed line that goes to the rail and turned the the key to run and nothing even came out. so there is definately no gas getting pumped to the fuel rails which leads me to think a clog or air lock? now if the pump wasnt working then it wouldnt make noise at all correct? or is it possible it could make the normal noise and still not work?
11-28-2007, 04:02 PM
#10
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the fuel pump will still make noise but may not be pumping fuel. it doesnt make sence for the lines to be clogged since there is a fuel filter in the line. i would change the fuel filter in case it is clogged. if that not the problem im betting the pump is fried.
11-28-2007, 07:07 PM
#11
After you check the filter, the last thing I can think of is you could try putting a mity-vac on the line you disconnected and see if you can apply vacuum to draw fuel through the pump to help it prime. But at the same time, if the pump is that screwed, I probably wouldn't trust it to stay alive much longer even if you get it running.
11-28-2007, 07:41 PM
#12
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like others have said its prob. not priming, or it cooked it self. I have had pumps that sound like they are working but dont actually move any fuel. Alot of pumps use fuel for cooling and lubrication. Between the car running for a while on the fuel in the lines/rails when she ran out and you (and her) continueing to crank it the pump has seen quite a bit of 'dry' running time. I wouldn't be surprised if it doesn't last much longer or its already done.
11-28-2007, 08:19 PM
#13
after an evening of drinking with the guys, we decided to race our cars. my friend was driving my car and i was riding with another friend. they were way ahead of us when i get this call that they had run out of gas with my car. we tried everything we could think of (in our intoxicated state) and couldn't get it to start. took it to the shop and found out it was the fuel pump, nothin $649.86 couln't fix!! apparently running it out of gas and priming and trying to start it for 10 minutes isn't good on a fuel pump, who would have guessed it?!? it sounded like the pump was working just fine but the mechanic said when it pumps nothing, it dries up the pump...fuel = lubrication?
11-28-2007, 08:39 PM
#16
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like others have said its prob. not priming, or it cooked it self. I have had pumps that sound like they are working but dont actually move any fuel. Alot of pumps use fuel for cooling and lubrication. Between the car running for a while on the fuel in the lines/rails when she ran out and you (and her) continueing to crank it the pump has seen quite a bit of 'dry' running time. I wouldn't be surprised if it doesn't last much longer or its already done.
IN tank GM pumps use the fuel for cooling. Running dry does it no good. When you turn the key to "on" the pump runs 10-15 seconds, and then cranking it come back on when the system sees oil pressure. It's entirely possible the pump is cooked..
