What were the signs before your fuel pump quit?

[Car Addict]

For me the sign that my fuel pump was going to quit was well...nothing.
Got in the car after work turned the key, cranked, started, then died.
After that it would only crank.
picked up the back seat, removed cover, hit the pump with the handle of a screwdriver while cranking, car fired up, drove into the shop and replaced the pump.

[harv]

So ....

Today,,,, I pick up my daughter from school (she's 4 and goes to the local Montessori school and my e30 is the cheapest, but coolest car in the lineup). On the way home we stop by the local BMW dealer to pick up some transmission seals for my 2002 project. We finish our biz at the parts counter and then my car refuses to start. Dead in the water... well not in the water per say. So here I am, 4 year old belted in the seat, dead e30 infront of brand new dealer. I cycle the key and try to start it a few times but all I got was sputter and die, sputter and die. Anna yells at me "Daddy! You have to turn the wheel to make it go!"

So there I was. Dead e30, and 4 year old kid in a kid seat, what to do? UG. I had a tech there diagnose the car down to a bad fuel pump relay. 104$ for the diagnosis and the relay was in his tool box.

I ordered a few other things that were suspect.

See y'all at the Vintage!

John

[harv]

So today I finished "The mess under the intake", oil pan bolts (3 were finger tight), new idle air control valve, heater plate delete, new intake boot, new K&N air filter, new spark plugs, cleaned the throttle body and painted the intake and valve cover.

This car has never run this good. I mean, I didn't have any complaints before but now it feels so much more responsive and smooth. Especially the transition from off to on throttle.

John

[harv]

Ok,,

So there I was, driving down to the Vintage, when we pulled off to get gas. Dead car once again, the car restarted and I filled up. Drove the rest of the way to Winston Salem NC with the car dying almost every time we would come to a stop. Long distance, and close distance diagnosis (big thanks to Laurence Charlemaign and Dave Mason for advise and actual help) was all over the place. From bad connections to faulty cam or crank sensors.

What's a guy to do.

Senior Blunt came over and was asking what was going on? I said I think I need a cam and crank sensor. He said "I can have them here by tomorrow". I said add on a new fuel pump for good measure. His reply was "not a problem".

So today after the show, beer in hand I started in on the sensors. We switched them out and the car ran like it always did. Perfect. At this point I thought it was fixed. Moved the car a little and then it died.

At this point the sun was going down and we were loosing light. let's do the fuel pump! Out with the seat, and in with the pump.

Bang!

All fixed..... I think!

John

So far so good.

[Simon S]

You have an enjoyable style of writing John.

Glad to hear things got sorted.

Cheers

[harv]

Thanks Simon. You should have made the trip. I hung out with people from the Chicago area. They drove down in Neu Klasses!

The Car ran perfectly all the way home to Cleveland. Every once in a while (emphasis on the H) when the AC would cycle, I would think it was going to die again. Only to be given more perfect performance from the mighty M42.

John