No start issue fuel pump not engaging

2HANDBAND

MEMBER
1991 HONDA ACCORD
2.2L
4 CYL
2WD
AUTOMATIC
140,000 MILES

I determined that I was getting no fuel to the fuel filter. After consulting the almighty, all-knowing internet, I replaced my main relay. And still no fuel. So I replaced the fuel pump. I um mm chopped a hole in the rear deck to do this, instead of dropping the tank. Never mind. Put it all back together. No fuel! I got bold and removed the lines that connected to the pump to see if it would squirt fuel when the key was turned over, nope. Clearly it's not getting power. I repeat: the main relay is a brand new part. I can hear it click when I turn the key to the run position. How do I troubleshoot this?

Tuesday, June 18th, 2019 AT 5:36 AM

10 Replies

KASEKENNY

MECHANIC
18,907 POSTS

Hi 2HandBand,

Sounds like you have a wiring issue. Here is the procedure for testing the harness.

You need to find out if you are actually getting power to the pump. If the relay is good but the wiring can't deliver the power then the pump will not work.

Let me know what you find at each step if you don't find the issue after you do this and we can walk through it.

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Tuesday, June 18th, 2019 AT 8:48 AM

2HANDBAND

MEMBER
7 POSTS

Thanks for the quick response. I went through the steps and it failed test #8. I'm not getting voltage between wire 6 and wire 2 with ignition in run position. Fuse #9 is good. How do I go about troubleshooting the issue in that mess of wiring harness?

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Tuesday, June 18th, 2019 AT 11:57 AM

KASEKENNY

MECHANIC
18,907 POSTS

Just to clarify, were you testing the voltage while in run or start? This appears to be testing cranking signal.

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Tuesday, June 18th, 2019 AT 12:21 PM

2HANDBAND

MEMBER
7 POSTS

In run. I'll try cranking it and get back to you.

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Tuesday, June 18th, 2019 AT 12:46 PM

2HANDBAND

MEMBER
7 POSTS

Okay, it works when cranking. However, we fail test #9: with the jumper wire in place, the fuel pump does not work. So I clearly have a wiring issue between the relay and the pump. If I can figure out which wires to splice off of, I'll just run new wire back there.

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Tuesday, June 18th, 2019 AT 12:58 PM

KASEKENNY

MECHANIC
18,907 POSTS

Here is the wiring diagram for this. Looks like you want to start with the yellow wire back to the pump then your ground if that doesn't do it. Let me know if you need more info but it looks like this your issue.

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