Civic, Help! Ice Racer Wannabee

[budgetracer]

I have a 1989 (not 1990), Civic CX (not DX), automatic, that had a rotted fuel line that put out a little gas when you turned the key. The line is repaired, the leak is gone but no fuel comes out at the throttle body banjo fitting. The engine fires if I pour fuel down the throttle body.
I have been told to look for the main relay that contrrols the fuel pump., A larger relay that is hiding under the dash- somewheres. Can anyone tell me exactly where it is? Or as an alternative: what brand of match to use...
The ice racing season is fast upon us & I still do not have my bargain? up & running.
Many Thank You's.:)

[Do It Sidewayz]

to hell with it.. it's an ice racer.

Find a power source, and wire the fuel pump up direct! Throw in a switch and be done with it.

[budgetracer]

What sort of a pump (pressure) would I need? Most of the pumps I have are for carbs.

[Gary]

Been there, done that.

Never seen a Honda, but I presume you've got fuel injection and an in-tank fuel pump. So. You've pulled all the useless stuff like carpet and trim out of the interior, right? It should therefore be easy to trace the wiring. The tank will be under the car, but the electrical connections go in from the top. so, find out where the connections are, close to the tank. There is always a connection close to the tank so the fuel pump can be replaced. Check to see if you've got 12 volts at the fuel pump wiring harness with the ignition on at the connection closest to the fuel tank. Then check the ground wire to see if you have a good ground. What I'd call a Multimeter works well for this. Fairly cheap at Canadian Tire, if you don't have one. If you have good voltage, and a good ground at the connection, and the wires to the tank look fine, then suspect the fuel pump. If you don't have the any voltage, or the ground is bad, then either wire up a new circuit, like Chris says, and be done, or follow the wires back through the harness and find your relay. You did check the fuse first?

You can buy a new or used Honda fuel pump, drop the tank, and install it. This might be a nasty job, depending on how rusty your tank is, but if the pump is bad, then I think you at least have to remove it, even if you want to use an in-line fuel pump. My personal favourite in-line fuel pump for fuel injected cars is:

http://store.summitracing.com/default.asp?target=edepartment.asp&N=120+4294925239&x=14&y=9

The MSD 2225 high pressure fuel pump. US $80 Works great, but does not self-prime, so mount it low, and be prepared to fill the line with fuel so it will draw when you put the juice to it.

Hope this helps.

[Do It Sidewayz]

one problem with testing voltage at the connector this way is.....

most cars just turn the pump on for a second or two to prime the fuel system when you turn the key to on. They won't actually turn the Fuel pump on constantly until you have a TACH signal...so you'll prolly need a buddy to crank the car.

[Crusher45]

Originally posted by Do It Sidewayz
to hell with it.. it's an ice racer.

Find a power source, and wire the fuel pump up direct! Throw in a switch and be done with it.

This is the best way. We had the same problem with one of the Golf's. Somewhere is an inline fuse which we never found. We wired in a toggle switch right to the pump from the battery. Works great and is hidden and works to disable the car.

[MAXFLOW2]

Hope you got it going. Listen the the switch system its the best for what the car is being used for. As for where the relay is .... get a haynes manual from Canadian Tire. It'll be the best $20 you ever spent!!

:)