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‘88 3vze no start help

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Old 01-27-2019, 03:32 PM
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‘88 3vze no start help

I recently bought a 88 4x4 pickup with the 3vze. The guy said it started sputtering and died 2 years ago and has been parked since. engine was free and could turn by hand. So I bought a new battery, terminals, plugs, wires, fuel pump, and fuel filter to start. Changed the plugs and wires and decided to see if it would try and fire. Sprayed a shot of ether in the intake, and it fired. Ran for about 15-20 seconds smooth as could be. Sweet. So I go down the line to the fuel filter, take it off and it’s dry as a bone , as I suspected the pump was not gonna work. Changed the filter, and then dove into the tank. Lots of rust and pump was seized. Changed pump and put the pump into a bucket and added clean fuel. Just to prime the engine and see if it will crank now without ether under its own power. So crank crank crank, nothing. Check fuel pressure at the rail, got plenty of fuel there. But won’t fire up. Spray some more ether, and it cranks up and runs until the ether is burned off. But won’t crank and fire in its own fuel. This has to be a something stupid I’m overlooking. Can I check the injectors to see if they are getting the power to fire them, and if not what are some culprits not letting it fire. Knock sensor? How to I test that? Cold start timer sensor? How to check that? Anything else?! Any help is greatly appreciated
Old 01-27-2019, 04:14 PM
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It's not the knock sensor or the CSI timer. Lack of CSI might make it a little hard to start, and the knock sensor will make it run with low power, but yours doesn't fire at all.

Check for fuel flow by putting a 1/4" vinyl hose on the FPR fuel return. Start the pump with FP to B+ on the diagnostic connector. You should get about 1/2 liter/min with the engine not running.

Next, crank it for about 10 seconds, then remove some plugs. They should be damp with fuel. If not, the injectors aren't distributing fuel. You can use a "noid" light to check for injector pulse, but you may also have 6 clogged injector from all the crud that was in the tank. Each injector has a tiny screen to protect the pintle, and if you fill that up you're out of luck.
Old 01-27-2019, 04:22 PM
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Originally Posted by scope103
It's not the knock sensor or the CSI timer. Lack of CSI might make it a little hard to start, and the knock sensor will make it run with low power, but yours doesn't fire at all.

Check for fuel flow by putting a 1/4" vinyl hose on the FPR fuel return. Start the pump with FP to B+ on the diagnostic connector. You should get about 1/2 liter/min with the engine not running.

Next, crank it for about 10 seconds, then remove some plugs. They should be damp with fuel. If not, the injectors aren't distributing fuel. You can use a "noid" light to check for injector pulse, but you may also have 6 clogged injector from all the crud that was in the tank. Each injector has a tiny screen to protect the pintle, and if you fill that up you're out of luck.
how do clogged injectors work with ether?
Old 01-27-2019, 04:49 PM
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I’m assuming a noid light is different than a test light? I have a test light, so where can I find a noid light. And how do I test with it once I get it?
Old 01-27-2019, 05:07 PM
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Nevermind I looked up a noid light. So once I get it, what do I do? I’ve never used one. Also, is there anything else I can check besides the pr and noid light? What else would cause injectors not to fire
Old 01-27-2019, 05:11 PM
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Originally Posted by wallytoo


how do clogged injectors work with ether?


ether is sprayed directly into the intake manifold, injectors don’t have anything to do with that. The injectors aren’t atomizing the ether into the cylinders. Spraying the ether eliminates the spark issue. And makes sure the engine will run . And has narrowed down to a fuel problem. Changed the pump and have the pressure on the rail, so now I know fuel isn’t being delivered by the injectors. But what could be causing them not to fire...
Old 01-27-2019, 08:58 PM
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"Sputtering then died" could be .... clogged injectors. (Who knows?) The noid light just tests for injector signal. (which is important). It doesn't tell you that the injector is actually opening (a stethoscope can help you there; audible click). If the injector is opening, it's not telling you that fuel is actually getting through (wet spark plugs can help).

Just so you know, the injectors open when the ECM GROUNDS one of the leads (don't get excited that you have 12v on the injectors.) Also, the ECM opens all 6 injectors at the same time.

Clogging doesn't (usually) knock out all 6 injectors at the same time. But a broken wire could. The noid light kit is for that. (the kit really just gets you the fancy connector set. You can make your own noid with an LED and a 1K ohm resistor if you are handy enough.)
Old 01-28-2019, 03:00 AM
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Alright so I see I can probably rent one at O’Reillys. I’ll do that after work one day this week and see what I got.
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