Replacing Fuel Pump on a Plymouth Laser

[ilarson]

Hello all;
I am currently looking into buying a Plymouth Laser (sorry for lack of other information... I just asked a few short questions beacuse my parents were not with me) from a small corner-dealer. The guy at the dealership said that he thought the fuel pump would didn't work beacuse the fuel wasn't being pumped (wow, how duragatory). Anyway, how hard would it be for a non-mechanic to replace the fuel pump? If it isn't really do-able by some-one without much experience, then how much would it cost? Please keep in mind that I am a high school student (who still needs to get a job) that may only earn around $800 this summer. The car right now is selling for $1,200, and will not start. Does anyone know if that is a rip-off? Also, the guy claimed the stereo was worth about $400 in itself, but I have not been able to look at it yet. I will post more information as available. Thanks in advance.


P.S. Let me know if you want/need any more information.

 

[Denji]

Hello all;
I am currently looking into buying a Plymouth Laser (sorry for lack of other information... I just asked a few short questions beacuse my parents were not with me) from a small corner-dealer. The guy at the dealership said that he thought the fuel pump would didn't work beacuse the fuel wasn't being pumped (wow, how duragatory). Anyway, how hard would it be for a non-mechanic to replace the fuel pump? If it isn't really do-able by some-one without much experience, then how much would it cost? Please keep in mind that I am a high school student (who still needs to get a job) that may only earn around $800 this summer. The car right now is selling for $1,200, and will not start. Does anyone know if that is a rip-off? Also, the guy claimed the stereo was worth about $400 in itself, but I have not been able to look at it yet. I will post more information as available. Thanks in advance.


P.S. Let me know if you want/need any more information.

instructions if awd- http://www.vfaq.com/mods/pump-WB-1GAWD2-print.html
instructions if fwd- http://www.vfaq.com/mods/wayback/1GFWD-pump.htm

Its not too difficult with the instructions, make sure you get the tools (especially the flare nut wrenches) listed and do it exactly as says, you dont want to strip anything, then you will have an issue.

I would say you could do it, its not a bad first repair to go for, i did it alone with these directions and not much else to go on. If you do it, it will probably take about 2 hours and cost you 125 in parts and tools, 105 for the pump w/shipping and 20 for the flare nut wrenches.

 

[steve]

Since there weren't any 2G Lasers it's safe to assume this is a 1G (1990-1994) car.
http://www.dsmtuners.com/sub.php?page=modelguide

There is a test connector to power the fuel pump. If jumpering it to the battery positive doesn't turn the pump on then you might have a bad fuel pump.

It's far more common to have ECU problems that keep the car from starting.

You can count on the fact that if the problem was a simple fuel pump replacement the guy would have done it. Running cars are worth much more than non-running cars.

As was as pricing, $1200 is steep for a non-running car with questionable history and an experienced owner on a limited budget. These cars are getting old and even the best ones need on going infusions of cash to keep them in good shape. Cars that aren't in the best shape usually need large amounts of cash to keep running.

Keep in mind that if this was a great deal there is a good chance your local, more knowedgeable, DSM people would have snatched it up already.

Steve

 

[ilarson]

Well, thanks so far for the help. I found out that it is a '91 Laser RS, but not much else (the place was already closed when I went back). The guy said that he would have fixed it but at the moment he didn't have the time or the money (he also explained how having someone else replace the fuel pump would cost (which normally would cost around $200 w/out labor) around $400 after towing and dealership costs and everything else (again, this car is at a small car outlet dealer). The thing that I'm frustrated with is if I can't get a job and get this car, it is VERY hard to find an Eclipse/Talon/Laser in my area, because the midwest is very, pro-American (?) in car buying (especially since we have a GM plant south of town). Any way, I'll look into this more sometime next week (I'm gone all day tommorow and dealers can't sell cars on Sunday in IN). I will post more information as I get it.

P.S. Going back to living in the Midwest, that may be the reason that someone else hasn't picked it up yet. It also may have been in a wreck (there is sufficient evidence), so we have to see if its still in o.k. condition.

Thanks again,
more info soon.

 

[ilarson]

If this helps... When he was describing the fuel pump problems, he said something about the gas wasn't making it to the engine (as best as I remember). Does that confirm that the fuel pump needs to be replaced. Thanks.

 

[King Salami]

Steve makes a very valid point. I'd steer clear of this deal if I were you. Buying a car in this condition is a bad idea. You're inheriting someone else's problem child. It's probably been thrashed by previous owners. A non-running car like this suggests previous owners who were either too lazy or too stupid to take care of the car.
If you really want to fix it, get a shop manual (Haynes) and test the fuel pump and fuel pump relay. If they're O.K., the ECU is probably toast.

 

[elementalwindx]

shit tell him $200 for the car, not only cause you'd have to tow it home but cause you'd have to buy the tools and the parts to fix it.

 

[ilarson]

Well, actually, I can get the tow and access to the tools for free (I have a friend whose dad is a mechanic), and I got onto their website and supposedly I get a free Carfax report when I go in. I wasn't going to buy it anyway w/out a Carfax report... BTW, does anyone know how accurate Carfax is?

 

[lasertim]

I would highly suggest listening to what Steve said. He makes a couple of good points.

If you do buy the car be prepared to put money into it since you dont know the history. Who knows, maybe it will need a fuel pump or ECU and then it will be good to go, maybe not though.

 

[Nanan]

Well, actually, I can get the tow and access to the tools for free (I have a friend whose dad is a mechanic), and I got onto their website and supposedly I get a free Carfax report when I go in. I wasn't going to buy it anyway w/out a Carfax report... BTW, does anyone know how accurate Carfax is?

Carfax is only as accurate as the people who report or fail to report accidents and work done by shops who actually care. Shade tree crap doesnt get reported obviously so you will find errors or totally missing data often.

I would not touch the car for more then $500 if I were you. More then likely the caps in the ecu burst and gooed the crap out of the circuit board and killed the poor thing. I have seen this in so many 1g's it isnt funny, it is so common that there are several people out there who do rebuilds....

What makes you suspect that the car has been wrecked? Overspray in odd places, waves in bodywork, bad body lines, miss match paint colors...?

 

[ilarson]

Carfax is only as accurate as the people who report or fail to report accidents and work done by shops who actually care. Shade tree crap doesnt get reported obviously so you will find errors or totally missing data often.

I would not touch the car for more then $500 if I were you. More then likely the caps in the ecu burst and gooed the crap out of the circuit board and killed the poor thing. I have seen this in so many 1g's it isnt funny, it is so common that there are several people out there who do rebuilds....

What makes you suspect that the car has been wrecked? Overspray in odd places, waves in bodywork, bad body lines, miss match paint colors...?

Well, the right side door is slightly darker red than the rest of the car, so, it may have been replaced (not entirely a bad thing). I do know someone who drove it before it died, and he said it drove just fine. And again, I still have to look at it more. If it's a problem with the ECU, how do you fix it (or is it even worth it)?

Someone also said you should look at the timing belt because if it snaps, its about $1700 to fix. Is this true? How do you get to the timing belt?

 

[Nanan]

You can find ECU's in the classifieds, ebay, or have the one in the car sent to a shop that does ecu service work.

As for the T-belt, the black plastic cover on the drivers side of the head covers the belt. Look up a walkthrough for T-belt replacement for further details.

Ah it could cost you $1700 for a rebuild on a snapped belt or you could squeek by in the $300 + T-belt range. It really depends on how bad things got, some cars just kill the valves, some eat pistons, some punch holes in the piston or cyl. If the belt is snapped or the timming is really off then you should prob just skip this car unless you have a good sized pile of cash and either a good mechanic or know what your doing. The T-belt replacement on its own can be dawnting for most as it requires time, tools, and skills most people don't have.

The door being a different color could be an indicator that it was repainted or its a newer door. Check how it closes, does it require more then normal force, do the gaps in the bodywork look uniform. It could be that the door rotted out and was replaced, or the car could of been hit on the door which tends to cause further damage to the body by tweaking it in/out etc.

 

[LunarEclips]

i think that you guys might be scaring him a little more than you should be. Though the car is old, ANYTHING is fixable if you end up getting to know your car. But if you rely on other people to fix your car for you, you might not want to even think about owning a DSM. (in my opinion)

DSM's are high maintenance car's. No matter what you end up buying (a GS,GST,GSX, TSI....whatever), its bound to be a mouthful regardless what year you decide to get.

Even a 2g 95 or 96 is bound to be a gold digger. Its the nature of these cars.

I'd say go for it, just try to bring him down in price as much as you can. I would say $800-$900 is a good price for a car that has problems starting.

Also, another thing to keep in mind is that dealers usually dont know what the car has as far as engine problems. They just know the value of the car in general. If a dealer has a 95 GSX and he knows they are of high demand to the DSM community, then they know what they can get for it. But im sure they lack knowledge of crank walk and every other disease that DSM's occur of.

Point being, this dealer is most likely just trying to get his cut. As for fuel problems, it may just be a bad injector or fuel filter and just needs minor maintenance. Try to look optomistic, its a car that will definitely give you more hands on experience. Knowledge is power.....