Ok guys, i bought my '90 dx hatchback a couple months ago with about 214k on it, and i love it. However, it started running like crap suddenly. It would sputter a bit at highway speeds then be fine. A few days ago, i filled it up from empty and hit the road. I made it a mile and it completely died. It cranked and cranked but nothing. Also, the check engine light came on. I towed it home and here's what i did: tested the fuel pressure at the send port on the fuel filter (which was replaced about a week before this happened) and it was at 45psi just turning the key on. Checked the resistance on the injectors, both to spec (it's the 1.5 dpfi) checked the pump relay according to hayne's manual, got continuity across all the test points. The only thing I can think of is maybe a bad pressure regulator? I don't think that would cause it not to run, though. Is there a way to test the throttle body as a whole? I'm pretty stumped here and i know you guys can help me out. Thanks for your time and any information.

 

can u look down the TB and verify fuel squirty?

 

when i turn the key on? or when i crank the throttle

 

What makes you think its a fuel problem? What code did you get?

 

shouldnt be squirting fuel just key on
When cranking shine a lite in there and see if you got juice
may need to crack the plate(s) open to do so

Im assuming you checked for spark........

 

i didn't test for a code, and i actually was unaware that my car was capable of that. where do you check that? I have great spark and fuel pressure coming out of the filter, and it just won't start. I sprayed starting fluid in all the cylinders and it ran on that for 20 seconds or so (albeit rough and smoky) so I'm kind of guessing it's somewhere in the intake

 

perhaps your injectors are clogged/stuck after a billion miles
are they ticking?

 

On the ECU itself, there is a red LED. It will blink. The number of times it blinks is the code number.

Since the ECU knows there is a problem somewhere, I highly suggest looking into that before guessing at possible problems.

 

I cranked the car while my dad watched the injectors, the main (top) injector sprayed a steady stream for a few seconds, then quit before i stopped cranking. The bottom one didn't do anything. The second try, neither injector did anything. I haven't listened for ticking but i'll grab a screwdriver and try it. I'm also going to go look for the ECU code.

 

DPFI has two injectors, IIRC it runs off one injector untill the engine is under load and will fire the second.

 

whats fuel pressure during extended cranking?

 

maybe iat sensor?