fuel pump relay bad?

[Ameer Antar]

sounds like you need a better mechanic. They always go for the pump. That 
really shouldn't be the first thing on their mind, but it's a nice way to 
get some cash. My mom's car would die, not of a bad pump, but a clogged 
filter...anyway, you can test the relay by connecting 12V across the coil 
terminals. Usually there is a pinout on the relay so you can identify which 
tabs are the coil. If it doesn't click, try flipping the + and -, and if it 
still doesn't click, the relay is bad. Also you can check the resistance of 
the coil. It should be 50-200 ohms. If you get 0 or infinity, then the 
relay is bad. Try switching the + and - again, b/c it might have a one-way 
diode in the relay. I usually just get 12V from somewhere w/ alligator 
clips to hook it up to the relay. If you don't wanna do all the diagnosis, 
just replace the relay.

However, if the relay works, the wiring [signal from ecu and a ground] that 
tells the relay to turn on might be bad, but this isn't as likely. Make 
sure you're getting 12V at the coil conection in the relay socket when the 
ignition is on. Good luck.


At 03:59 PM 9/9/00 -0400, you wrote:
>Well, I just got my 5kcst back from the shop the other day, it started up and
>ran fine for about the 10 miles to town.  I stopped to get my other car
>registered at the dmv and when I got in and started it it idled for about 30
>seconds and quit.  It wouldn't start up.  It would crank but not turn over. I
>eventually got towed to a shop I have dealt with before, they told me I
>needed a new fuel pump. Ok, did that it ran great until I got in it today, it
>started up and we traveled down my driveway (100yds) and went down the road a
>few more yards and it stalled out and I couldn't get it started, same as the
>other day.  My 2 boys and a neighbor pushed the car back towards our driveway
>(uphill), I didn't want to leave the car there, so I decided to troubleshoot
>myself.  Now I'm not a mechanic, but I read the list daily and have the
>Bentley.  So I located the the fuel pump fuse and relay, fuse seems ok. I
>pulled the relay & couldn't visually find anything wrong and put it back.
>Next step I thought was to pull the codes on the fuel pump relay.  I put a
>10a fuse in the relay and proceeded to follow the instructions and low and
>behold the car started when I turned the key. Wow! was it suppose to do that?
>  Well, hopefully I didn't hurt anything but I decided since it was 
> running to
>back it up the 100yds up my driveway. It continued to run with the fuse in it
>and when I decided to see what happens when I removed it, it died.  Is this a
>sign of a bad relay?
>I'd appreciate any input, yes I have the Bentley, but right now, I'm a little
>bewildered, and my only knowledge comes from this list and what I comprehend
>of the Bentley.
>
>
>Thanks!
>Linda 5kcst  176,000miles
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