Fuel Pump Fault caused by Distributor - Primera P11 (Series 3)

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I have pulled a spark plug and it was quite wet. On turning the engine It did spark against the block, albeit a weak spark rather than a strong blue one. The plugs themselves are relatively new and there were no warning symptoms such as misfiring, the car simply started for about 1 second yesterday then stopped. Since then I have cycled the ignition to prime the fuel system using the initial 2 second bursts, then tried to start the engine at which point it caught briefly but did not start. Suspecting a fuel fault I removed the fuel feed from the engine side of the filter and tested the pump operation on Ignition-On and Starting routines.

I'm thinking that : (a) the car isn't starting because the fuel pump isn't working when the starting is turning the engine. (b) the ECU/ECCS is responsible for operating the fuel pump, and (c) it (the ECU) is not doing so because it is not receiving the signal from the Crank position sensor to say the engine is turning (if it doesn't get a signal it turns off the pump as a safety measure).

This seems reasonable, but before forking out £150 for a new distributor unit wondered if I'd overlooked something more likely?

Thank you, Steve

Not sure when it operates, in the first 2 seconds or after, but there's a fuel pump relay that has been known to fail.

Reply to
SteveB

Thank you for the suggestion. Unfortunately the wiring diagram shows only one relay supplying the fuel pump and this is the operated by the ECU. Therefore if the initial 2 sec fuel priming occurs the relay has to be working. A shame, as a relay would have been a lot cheaper :)

Reply to
Steve J

Steve J, It sounds as if it is a spark problem. Have you checked the distributor to coil wire for resistance? I don't know the specific resistance but I am guessing in the greater 2k ohm less than 50k ohm range. Have you replaced the distributor cap and rotor? Weak spark will stop and engine from starting. Also check the coil and I think there may be a power transistor module on that vehicle. The module boosts the current that provides energy to the coil primary. Sparky

Reply to
Steve Parker

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