For the past year or so, my car has been a bit of a pain to start. Unless you wanted it to crank 6/7+ times, you had to prime the fuel pump, where it would start after 2 or 3. This is one of those problems that slowly got worse, to where it finally is now. Like it is now, one priming of the fuel pump still takes 6/7 cranks for the car to finally fire up. Now I figured it was just the starter, but I was talking to my friend about it last night, and he was saying it could be something else. Well this morning on the way to work I primed the fuel pump, and it just didnt have the usual loud prime that it used to. I did it 4 times and by the 4th it finally had the loud noise that it used to and it fired up after 3 or 4 cranks, a lot quicker than it usually does after sitting all night. So does this mean my fuel pump is going south? Or could it still be the start? Thanks.
Problems starting...fuel pump, starter or what?
- Thread starter DaveB
- Start date
94TURBO5 O
New Member
94TURBO5 O
New Member
I don't know if a fuel pump would cause probs for a year. When they start to go bad they die soon after. I think your're having an ignition prob, IMO and your plugs may be fouled.
Actually the plugs are a year old, I remember I changed them out. The fuel pump does sound really weak when I first prime it though. Also, after I have been driving around for a while, all I have to do is prime it once and then it only takes 3 or 4 cranks and fires up. I will pull the plugs this weekend though, and see what theyre looking like.
Hef5.0weisen
20+ Year Stangneter 
RIO5.0 mentioned something for a smiliar problem a while back, something about a pressure regulator (or something like that) on the pump itself. Try searching for it, good luck man, sounds like fuel to me
He was probably talking about the check valve in the pump assembly. It keeps fuel from draining back into the tank via the feed line.Hef5.0weisen said:
A FPR can also pass to much fuel and cause low pressure. The test is to use a fuel link crimp tool and crimp the return line. If pressure goes up, the FPR is passing too much fuel. If the pressure stays the same, the pump is weak.
The easy way to tell is to put a gauge on the schrader valve and not pressure before priming. Then prime once and note pressure. Keep doing this till pressure is to spec.
Good luck.
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