e30 won't start - need help!!!

[Kilomph]

1989 325is 5sp-

The car died about 2 weeks ago while driving around in a parking lot after a snow storm. The car started to hesitate a real little bit and then it just died. It was towed back to my house. My friend and I thought for sure that it was the fuel pump because the car will start up if you spray starting fluid into the intake and it will run off of the fluid mixed with the air so there has to be a spark. Anyway, new fuel pump arrived and it sill doesn't work. So far we've replaced the fuel pump, fuel pump relay and reference sensor and it still won't start.

The ignition coil has voltage at the terminals and like I said before I am sure the ignition is fine as it will run off of starting fluid. The relay for the fuel pump definitly works but the fuel pump does not get power when the car is turned on! There is voltage going to the relay, but it guess its not enough to switch the relay on?? I've never heard of this before! Also, if I jump the relay manually the fuel pump will turn on but the engine still won't start!

So what now? What else could this possibly be? The engine cranks over but will not start and the fuel pump does not turn on. All fuses are good and all relays are good. I am completely out of ideas and really don't know where to go from here...

Thanks!

[kowalski]

change your spark plugs if you havn't done so, i had the same problem fixed with a set of plugs get copper plugs. im hearing the bosche supers are good for about a buck a piece, anyways umm if that doesn't work check your relays maybe you got them mixed up when you put in the new ones, also fuse 9 is the fuel pump fuese check it its supposed to be a 7.5 and other then that check the plug on the pump too see if its getting voltage could be the connection to the fuel pump cause its a male and female part maybe its expanding and not making good contact. or its your presure regulator.

[Kilomph]

Spark plugs have less than 1k on them, and they're Bosh supers. All the relays are in correctley, and they're all working properly, other than not tripping and sending power to the pump. The Bently manual says that fuse #11 on my 89 325iS is the fuel pump fuse, and it isn't blown. The plug that powers the fuel pump doesn't have any power, but when I jump the fuel pump relay it does. My fuel pressure regulator has less than 500 miles on it.

Thanks for the reply, but I still have no clue...

[kowalski]

pull the relay and look at the diagram, on there there is an actrivator wire put a amp meter on it and see if it gets power when you turn the key if not then figure out where that wire goes, or it could have fallen of the connector you can pull the clips out of the braket that the relay plugs into and see if the wire has a good connection to it.

[JeffG]

check to see what your applied voltage is to your fuel pump coming from the relay. you still need to establish why your fuel pump doesn't get the proper voltage it needs in the first place. check schematics. smell gas anywhere? check your fuel lines and filter going to the engine. you're pumping fuel by directly feeding power to the pump but is the fuel getting to the rail? i find it's helpful to break it down and solve one problem at a time and keep going from there rather than try to figure out several things at once. merely a suggestion. hope things work out for you.

[Axxe]

Fuel filter? My car was stuttering and hesitating and stalling until I replaced the fuel filter.

[kowalski]

wont be your fuel filter cause you said it ran fine when you bypassed the relay? it would be your relay activator wire thats activated by the key.

[Kilomph]

wont be your fuel filter cause you said it ran fine when you bypassed the relay? it would be your relay activator wire thats activated by the key.

Where is that located?

[kowalski]

the wire i duno where it starts i would imagine your ignition or computer. now that but in order to figure out which wire it is pull out the relay and look at it it will haev a diagram on the side, and the one that looks like it toggles the bar is your activator wire, you will know what im talking about when you look at the relay, check that wire before and after you turn the key if its getting voltage then its you relay.

[tonytony]

did the problem ever get figured out? I'm having the same problem