Hi, I have a 16v KR engine golf gti and its struggling to start. I can sit cranking for a couple of minutes when it will struggle but finally start. I can here what I think is the lift pump but not the main pump. I’ve checked the fuses and changed the relay but it’s not improved. Is there a way to check the main pump?
Bridge out the 2 largest terminals of the relay to put power to the pumps. Get a piece of wire and two male spades on it to bridge it. That will give you power to the pumps.
The fuel pump relay on post 88 cars (CE2) with hazard switch on column is bottom right usually has 67 or 167 on a blue relay. Not sure if its pre 88 sorry.
If the main pump is unserviceable it won’t start even after cranking for a couple of minutes unless the cranking somehow brings the main pump back to life. When you crank for a couple of minutes and it runs does it then keep running ok?
How I work it is I crank it for about 30 second and stop. I would the start cranking it again for again about 30 seconds. Then for a third time and just as the crank is starting to slow down it starts rough starting. It’s like it’s getting fuel but not enough to run but finally gets enough and will run fine (if that make sense). When it’s running I can go anywhere but if I stop even for a short period of time I have to start the process all over again.
My experience has been if the lift pump is getting tired the main pump will make more noise than it should ,due to the fact that they are lubricated and cooled by fuel when the lift pump fails they will seize up . A perished rubber jointing hose between pump and sender unit will cause starvation @ the main pump also .
Hi, The weather’s finally held out enough for me to take a look. The underbody fuel pump is running but the lift pump isn’t. Is there any fuses or relays specific to the lift pump and what’s the best way to rule out other options before I order a replacement pump? cheers Rob
Continued to play and I have 9.9v coming down the purple and black wire, all other 3 wires have 0 volts in them. Does this mean my lift pump needs replacing? Regards Rob
I took my lift pump out today and applied 12volts off of the battery to it. It span then stopped. Seemed an easy test. The Bentley manual suggests removing the outgoing fuel hose and putting some hose from the lift pump flow joint into a jug and running for 10 seconds. Should give 300cc, or 400cc if kjetronic. Both tests will give you the answer you need. Goodluck with swapping out the lift pump rubber joint. It will need replacing with submersible fuel hose. Others have had success with 10mm ID hose so I have ordered a piece. I think Gold is better value There is a thread on here where people have managed to do this. Hopefully by the end of the week my new parts will have arrived for me to try this, I will let you know
