Hi...just brought home my project 914 (75) which had not been started in 6 years. I pulled the plugs, changed the oil, squirted some oil in heads, charged battery, removed and flushed tank, put it all back together and turned it on...electrics work (lights etc.), turned over very easily, spark at plugs...put some gas in but no firing...any suggestions? should I be able to hear the fuel pump?

don't have any manuals yet...but just couldn't wait to dig in!

Thanks in advance...Jim

 

Got a '73 2.0 running a few weeks ago after a 15 year hibernation. Even if you flushed the tank the fuel lines may still be clogged. The fuel in the lines below the tank on my car was thicker than jelly! I'd blow out all the fuel lines and then check fuel pressure with the ignition on. There is a T in the line between two of the injectors- can't remember off the top of my head which side. Pressure gauge needs to read into the 30's as pressure is about 30psi for injected cars. The injectors themselves may also be clogged. OR you can throw away the FI and put on carbs (don't mean to start the FIvs Carb debate here again). That's what I eventially did and it runs great with no leaks. Amazing since the last time it ran was in 1987! Good luck!

 

Don't throw away the FI system. Learn it, it is simple enough and you'll be glad you did.

The fuel pump should run for a few seconds after you turn the key and then stop. It won't run again until you crank the engine. That is the way the earlier ones were, and I assume the later ones were the same.

Enjoy,

Art

 

Jim,

In my '74 (not sure on the '75, but assume so) there is also a relay, and fuse to run the fuel pump. I forgot which terminals to jump, but you can jump the terminals to just run the pump so you can hear if it is running or not. Your issue does sound fuel pump related, or as skl suggested, the lines may be clogged. Hope that helped.

Good luck.
Evan.

 

Since you didn't say (or I didn't see it) whether you have a 2.0 or a 1.8 '75, the answer to your fuel pump question which I'm about to give may not apply to your car. If you have a '75 1.8 as I do, you will not hear the fuel pump run even momentarily when you turn the key to the "on" position. That only happend in cars with D-Jetronic FI. The early 1.7's and the 2 liter cars used that FI system. The 1.8 cars, however, use L-Jetronic with an airflow metering device between the air filter and the intake manifold. The easiest way to see if the fuel pump runs is to remove the air filter and, with the key in the "on" position, move the airflow meter's "flap" through its air intake hole with the blade of a long screw driver. Moving the flap causes a switch to the fuel pump (actually to a relay and then to the fuel pump) to close and make the fuel pump run. Please feel free to contact me for more help with this if needed.

 

Thanks Joe,

I had my daughter turn it over and i put a voltmeter on the pump terminals...i'm getting power there! However the pump still doesn't hum/buzz. So I took it out and wired it directly to the battery to see if it would do something and nothing...so, looks like I have a bad fuel pump.

Oh, my setup is definitely l-jet so i'm guessing i have a 1.8 litre motor!

Thanks,

Jim

p.s. have a new fuel pump on the way, will install that and new gas lines and crank it over to see if I get anything..might be messaging you again if i get no farther!

 

Sounds like you're on the right track with the new fuel pump. Too bad it's such an expensive little bugger. Please feel free to contact me directly if you think I can be of any additional assistance with the L-Jetronic. I do have a fair amount of experience with them from my work with VW transporters using this system. When it works, it works quite well, I think.
By the way--and I probably don't need to tell you this, but I will anyway--be sure to observe electrical polarity when you install your new pump. Reversing it will cause the pump to run backwards, as you may well be aware. That's something you really don't want to do.

 

Thanks Joe...I hooked up the new fuel pump and sure enough I'm pumping fuel like crazy...one step closer! Just ordered all new fuel lines for the engine compartment as they were leaking horribly. Guess I'm glad it didn't fire up! They should arrive this week and then I'll see if this thing will start!

Jim

question...is there an easy way to check the injectors to see if they are getting power?...voltmeter reading?...to use the voltmeter I just tap the injector wire and ground to the body to check? (obviously not great at electronics).

 

Yes, Jim, with the ignition key on, you can pull off the connectors from each injector and test for a voltage with your meter. Don't be surprised, though, as you probably will get less than a 12 volt reading. Mounted under the battery tray is a resistor pack (4 resistors in a silver colored housing) which drops the voltage a bit. Another thing you can do is go to AutoZone or some such similar store and buy a "noid light" for Bosch FI. Plug it into each injector plug one at a time and you will see (though not brightly) it flash each time there is a pulse as you turn the engine over. There's even a third way to see if the injectors are getting a pulse. L-Jectonic gets its initial pulse signal from the ignition points--unlike D-Jetronic which gets it from a separate set of points under the distributor's breaker plate. In L-Jetronic all injectors fire simultaneously every other time the ignition points break. You can take the distributor cap off, make sure the points are closed, turn on the ignition, and then manually break the points with a long screw driver. (Actually, I prefer to use something non-metallic to prevent grounding the movable point against the distributor body--thus keeping this test from working) On every other point break, you should hear the faint click of all the injectors. What I do at that point is disconnect all the injector plugs and then reconnect one at a time to test with this manual pulsing scheme. That way you'll hear (and feel) if one injector is stuck, etc. and is not opening. Of course, there's no way to tell if an injector is actually squirting properly unless you pressurize the system (make the pump run by depressing the airflow meter's flap), remove the injector and make it pulse to visually verify all is well with it. Good luck with your engine compartment fuel line replacement. It is indeed a good thing that you're doing there!! Hope this answers your question and makes some sense to you.

Joe

 

Joe, makes a ton of sense. I'll try these tests this weekend and let you know how it goes! Thanks alot.

Jim

 

By the way, Jim, if you decide to check for voltage at the injector connectors, check between each of the injector leads and ground. One of the two wires that goes to each injector is "hot" from the resistor pack when the ignition key is on. The other wire is pulsed ground from the ECM when the engine is running. I thought I should clarify this point, as I'm not sure what your volt meter would read if you connected between the two terminals on each injector connector. Let me know how you make out.

Joe

 

Thanks...i would have connected the two...so I take it I'll check each wire with the voltmeter while grounding to the engine. Also, are the injectors easy to get out if i want to check the fuel spray? (I have to get a manual!!!!!).

Thanks for all your help...I had a 914 about 20 years ago and loved it. I ran across this deal for a 75 from southern california. Sat outside in the desert for 6 years so alot of the rubber is really dried out...but there is no rust (paint is heavily oxidized, but it will get stripped and resprayed). Hopefully I'll get the engine running soon. Then paint stripped over the winter and repainted..then put it all back together for summer!

 

Jim, the injectors are very easy to get out. If you look, I think you'll see what I mean. There's a nut that holds a retaining ring on each injector that you'll need to remove. After that it's a piece of cake. If you're going to do this, though, I'd recommend you replace the 2 seals (big one and a small one) that you'll find on each injector. They are bound to be dried out and cracked. You don't really want air leaks around the injectors if you expect this engine to run right. Good luck.
Joe

 

Joe, thanks again for the help...I've attached a pic of my "project". Paint needs to come off for sure (pretty baked) but it is a great foundation to start with. I'm debating on steel flares or original body...such decisions to be made! (lauging)

 

Your 914 looks quite decent, Jim. Hope to hear you've got it running and running well this weekend.