No Start - Fuel rail

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MadDogJacoby
Posts: 11
Joined: Fri Apr 26, 2019 12:03 pm
Location: WA

No Start - Fuel rail

Postby MadDogJacoby » Wed Jan 27, 2021 4:04 pm

So my pathfinder will crank but won’t fire. Hearing a low grumble like it barely wants to wake up. Starter fluid barely helps.

I was looking around, and felt the fuel lines. The odd cylinder side was hard, but the even cylinders had a soft fuel line. I am thinking the vacuum lines for the regulator have a leak.

Also the gas is probably old and crummy which doesn’t help at all. The thought of taking out the lower intake plenum AGAIN made me develop mechanics block.

Any comments? Suggestions?


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smj999smj
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Location: Prospect, VA

Re: No Start - Fuel rail

Postby smj999smj » Thu Jan 28, 2021 1:52 pm

Disconnect a fuel hose and route into a clear jar or container and then turn the key on to pump some gas into the container. See what it looks and smells like. If the gas is stale, it's never going to fire your engine unless you get it out of the gas tank and replace it with fresh. If that's the case, you may also want to consider replacing the pump with new and definitely replace the fuel filter, which is above the rear axle. As far as the fuel pressure regulator, there is only one vacuum hose going to it. If no vacuum gets to the regulator, be it because the hose is disconnected, leaking or there is a clog preventing vacuum from getting to the hose, the fuel pressure will be high, the same as whatever the fuel pump's output is (typically around 45 PSI). If the diaphragm inside the regulator fails, it will cause gas to get sucked into the intake manifold via the vacuum hose. The regulator is at the not-so-convenient, back side of the engine. Checking the fuel pressure never hurts; if you don't have a pressure gauge, most auto parts stores have them available to loan if they have a tool loaner's program. Also, the fuel pressure regulator sits at the end of the fuel rail, so it effects pressure, consistently, to all injectors on the rail, not just one side.

MadDogJacoby
Posts: 11
Joined: Fri Apr 26, 2019 12:03 pm
Location: WA

Re: No Start - Fuel rail

Postby MadDogJacoby » Fri Jan 29, 2021 5:55 pm

Took off the fuel line, fuel didnt look too bad. Listened to each side of the fuel rail with a stethoscope, the odd side sounded like regular running water, the even side sounded like a jet engine. Air was mixing somewhere, so i popped off the upper plenum. The injector insulators were caved in at points, didn't seat flush to injector, etc. I believe I cut the connecting fuel lines too short, causing the insulators to buckle when installing the rail itself.

So i figured it was a good time to take out the spark plugs, clean them, replace the regulator O-ring and fix some harness wear at the same time.

WiringSpecialties(.)com has electrical connectors for pretty cheap. Not a sponsor but they have what looks like OEM or at least OE connectors for cheap, and not $89 like rockauto wanted for their EGR connector...

Now begins the snail mail waiting game

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underworld1001
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Joined: Sun Nov 27, 2016 9:05 pm
Location: Austin, TX

Re: No Start - Fuel rail

Postby underworld1001 » Sat Jan 30, 2021 10:30 pm

Thanks for that site Mad Dog. I'm in the middle of replacing a lot of things and I broke a few injector connectors, so needless to say, I need a few. Lots of brittle plastic under the hood.


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