Car will not start, possible bad fuel pump

1988 BUICK LESABRE

165,000 MILES • 3.8L • 6 CYL • 2WD • AUTOMATIC

CBASS47

MEMBER
1 POST

So i have the car listed above v6 . i just changed out the harmonic balancer, the timing chain, cam sensor magnet, and a couple other smaller things. went to start it and battery was dead, put in a new battery and it will crank but will not start. seems there isn't much fuel pressure but before changing all this it was fine. it did sit for a year. Sounds like the fuel pump is turning on so i'm at a loss.

Sep 5, 2021 at 1:34 AM

KASEKENNY

✓Experienced Mechanic
18,907 POSTS

Just to confirm this car was not starting prior to you replacing these parts? If so I suspect we have an issue with the crank sensor but if not then I am sure you are right.

So here is what we need to do to confirm this.

First we need to start with check the fuel pressure.

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-check-fuel-system-pressure-and-regulator

Then we need to make sure there is good fuel in it. If it has been sitting then we need to make sure the fuel that is left in there is not stale. If there is not much in the tank then you can just add high test fuel to it and that should be good enough to get it running.

If it is full then you will need to drain the tank.

Let's start with what the pressure is and we can go from there. Thanks

Sep 5, 2021 at 9:55 AM

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