Pump :: 2002 Buick Century Will Sometimes Not Start
Jun 23, 2014
2002 Buick century will sometimes not start. Seems to correlate with warmer weather and happens after long drives. I try to restart within 10 minutes of turning off and it will start and then in a few seconds the car shakes and the engine dies. I can restart multiple times, but it will always die in a couple of seconds. If I wait an hour and retry, no problem. Once someone banged on the gas tank and that solved it. Mechanic cannot diagnose problem unless it dies while he is there. Should I replace the fuel pump or could it be something else?
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Most of the time it has no problem what-so-ever, but once in a while it just doesn't start. It will turn over and over but that's it. Most of the time if I just let it sit for a few minutes (5-20) it will start right up no problem, but I've noticed when it does it often revs up as if I had my foot on the gas. (that took me a while to realize since I often touch the gas anyway.) Once it's running it runs great. The idle settles down to normal after a few seconds and the car runs as if there was no issue. It does this randomly.
I can drive it for days or hours with no problem, and then suddenly it just decides to leave me stranded. Usually i wait and it gets me home, but a couple times it didn't. I've drained the battery twice on two different occasions months apart trying it, and waiting and trying it. Both times with barely enough juice the following day to turn it over, it fired right up, rev'd the engine, then ran fine. I don't think it's an issue with fuel because on one occasion while trying to start it I laid into the peddle until I could smell gas under the hood- and it never has issue while running, only on start-up.
So far the only thing I've done is replace the spark plugs- it runs better now, but doesn't start any differently.
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The car died on me the other day at a stoplight but started up again (It resisted for a sec but then caught). Now it's taking a bit to start and sounds very faint when it finally catches and the turn over is slow. I'm no mechanic but I can replace parts. I'm just wondering if it's the fuel pump or injectors, maybe low fuel pressure. I haven't had a chance to do anything to it. Where to start?
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I have a 1994 Buick Century Wagon with a 3100 SFI V6 engine that I can't get to fire at all. I have read many posts with the same problem but haven't been able to find a follow up fix from them. My Buick just wouldn't start one day after running fine before. I came to this site and tried some of the suggested troubleshooting and found, while testing for power to fuel pump, that if I jumped from the battery to the gray wire on the fuel pump relay the car would start and run fine. So that rules out any fuel pump problems or fuel filter problems. I then swapped fuel pump relay to a different similar relay on the car and still wouldn't start. I have read on this site about the oil pressure/ fuel pressure switch being a possible cause and I believe I have found that switch. It is in the side of the block toward the front of car and has three wires, (orange, tan and gray) going into it.
I was going to try to jumper the orange to gray but didn't want to do the wrong jump in case of negatively effecting the EMC controller, usually green/white wire? I also heard of the crank shaft sensor located on the back side of block but am not sure of which of three sensors I'm seeing back there to test. I guess first I'm looking for proper jumping procedure. I tried jumping the gray to orange in the fuel pump relay but no good. I get 12 volts at that orange and for a couple of seconds 2 to 3 volts at the green/white wires at the fuel pump relay when ignition is turned on, so when I jump the orange to gray at the relay it should start as it does when I jumper from battery to gray. I had relay apart when I jumpered the orange to gray, do I have to jumper with relay together and use a pin/needle wire jumper so rest of relay wires are connected? The same would apply for jumper testing oil pressure switch and crank shaft sensor? If it's not the switch or sensor then it looks to maybe be the EMC?
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1994 Buick Century 3.1
Fuel pump relay is not powering the fuel pump. I was able at one point to jump the orange wire to the gray wire but it will not even do that now. I know the fuel pump works because I can jump from the battery to the gray wire and it will turn on.
I used a multimeter and tested the volts from the orange wire on the relay to the neg post on the battery and it is only reading about 1.3 volts. Is this normal?
Checked the fuel pump 15a fuse and it is ok. I am getting spark. Could it be the crank sensor? How can I test that? (It is above the start I believe). Could it be the ignition control module? How to test? Location? What else can I test with the multimeter and post back with the results to further diagnose?
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I have a 2000 Buick Century that I cannot get to start. While my wife was driving home it started to sputter (like running out of gas) and did a little back firing. She made it home and I put in some gas (Just to make sure) and the care cranks over but will not start. I have replaced the fuel filter, checked the spark plugs and replaced the CAM Sensor. The car still will not start.
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My 03 Buick century is overheating. I changed the thermostat and the water pump. And still overheats as soon As I start driving. I am also getting when it is overheating some misfiring in cylindar 1. I am going to reflush and bleed the coolant even though it seems to be full . i dont think it is disappearing. Is it Possible i have a blown headgasket or intake manifold leak?
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I have a 1987 Buick custom 3.8L that will not run or start with the EGR valve connected to the evr selenoid. How can I verify if it is the EGR valve or the vacuum solenoid? When I connect the egr to the vacuum solenoid the valve opens all the way up and the engine stalls.
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I have the GM shop manual and I have gone through the flow chart for an engine which cranks but does not start. I have confirmed that there is fuel pressure and spark, but the injectors do not fire when cranking. I have gotten to the final troubleshooting step of disconnecting the crank angle sensor connector, jumping A and B terminals on the connector, and momentarily grounding the jumper with a test light. The injectors fire as confirmed using the GM injector test light (in place of an injector). The flow chart conclusion is that the crank angle sensor is bad or misadjusted or the connector is making a bad connection. I have replaced the sensor twice and adjusted it using the GM adjustment tool. The connector terminals appear clean and undamaged. 1989 Buick Century 3.3 liter ...
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My 2004 Buick Century is parked outside, it starts up fine and runs fine every morning and anytime it sits for a period over an hour in any kind of weather including minus 25 degrees. Sometimes when I shut it off for say 15 minutes or half hour and then go to start it again it will crank over fine but not start up. I can try several times, same thing.. But then if I leave it alone for maybe another half hour and try it again it starts and runs fine. also no warning lights etc. It's like something needs to reset itself. What is causing this ?
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I bought a well-used 1991 Buick Century for my son in December '12. At that point I put in a battery that was bought brand new just the month before. The car ran fine until a couple weeks ago. He tried to start it but only got a slow crank, like a low battery. I tried to jump start it, with no difference. Since the car was at his school, I asked his auto shop teacher to take a look at it. The teacher tested the battery on two different machines and determined the battery was bad. I returned it to the store I bought it at, where it was tested as working fine. I then swapped the battery from my car for his, and his battery (the one that was tested bad) started my car with no problems while my battery would not start his car. It produced the same slow crank. I talked to the shop teacher again, who pulled the starter and took both the starter and the battery to various auto parts stores. The starter tested good, but the battery was tested bad at 3 shops, and weak at a fourth. So the car is still sitting at the school, and we're at a loss. What might be causing this problem and how can we get his car running again, short of just buying another car?
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When damp or foggy, my 1990 Buick Century 3.3 will either not start or start and idle rough. Spraying WD-40 on coil packs and wires work. I tried click and clack's method of misting water on the 3 coil packs and wires when idling, and got arching on middle coil, # 2 wire to top of coil pack. Do I need to replace that coil, or just the spark plug wires? The slight mist of water on that middle coil stalled the engine, and it would restart after WD- 40 was sprayed on the coils/ wires.
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[URL] I even pulled the same P0170 code. And what I need to do before I spend a boatload of money and wind up sleeping in my car instead of driving it to work or lack therof is to start a troubleshooting list starting from where Sabot's update left off, i dont even know where the vacuum line is that he mentions and if i sprayed carb cleaner on it would i get a jump in engine RPM or a stall as a test?
What I have done: Cleaned MAF sensor, changed fuel filter.
What I have not done: Checked all vacuum lines, Tested fuel pressure, Tested for compression issues due to blown head gasket.
there is also a puffing noise coming from the exhaust side of the engine, im gonna grab a bottle of baby powder this afternoon and test for air leaks, i dont believe it is a misfire...
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I have a 2000 Buick Century and i just recently had the fuel pump replaced because it was totally shot. Everything was fine except i realized when i started it sometimes it would crank really slowly, i thought it was the battery because the one i had in there was like 4 years old. One day it just straight up wouldn't start in a Public parking lot so i bought a new battery and it still wouldn't start. Every time i try to start it, it makes one click then a weird electric swirling sound, but wont crank at all. My buddy who has a lot of experience with cars thinks its the starter. We tried banging on it but no luck. How to confirm if this is the starter?
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My car would not start yesterday, and I realized the fuel pump was not running. So I bought a new fuel pump today and put it on, the car still won't start, the fuel pump still does not run and I have been told to check the relay. I cannot find the relay for this car.
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I have a 96 buick regal thats been giving me problems for over a year now. it from time to time acted like it was out of gas even though it might have a half a tank. Turns over fine but won't start after it sits for a couple of days then it starts fine. Last summer my son replaced the fuel pump after doing a pressure test and getting a low reading. No more problems until jan then it started doing it again. Well about 3 months ago it wouldn't start so I had my wife turn the key on and I stuck my ear in the fuel fill tube and I could not hear the fuel pump.
I checked the fuel pump relay by putting my finger on top of it and I can feel it click when the key is turned on. Also the air relay next to it is the same so I switched them no change so I replaced the fuel pump again and also the sending unit so every thing in the tank is new. Car still won't start can't hear the pump running and i checked for spark no spark now. My other son has been saying he thinks its the ecm so I just put a reflashed used ecm in. Did the security relearn procedure still nothing. whats next? Somebody told me check the cam and crank sensors and wiring. I also replaced all the ignition coils last summer.
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I changed a fuel pump that a service shop said was bad. It would start and run for a few minutes and then stop. If it started at all. I dropped the tank and put a new pump in. The car did not start at all, not once. Not even fire. I had to install a new electrical connector inside the tank on the pump. The connector was different than the one in there. I connected black wire to black and grey to grey, thinking that made sense. Took off inline fuel filter next to tank. Had someone turn on key to see if fuel would come out. Nothing. But I did hear fuel running loudly through the return line. Which confused me at the time.
Thinking of it over night, could it be not likely, very likely those lines are in reverse, causing the pump to pump backwards. Which is why I heard fuel going through the return line? If this is the case I am going to try tomorrow to reverse the lines going into the tank. Instead of the fun of removing tank again. Why would pumps have black and grey wires that hook up differently?
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My wife has a 2000 Buick Century with about 150,000 miles on it. It has been relatively trouble free. Recently, the "low coolant" light began to come on.She took the car into a garage where she was told there was oil in the coolant and the sensor had been compromised. The cooling system was flushed and cleaned and a new sensor installed. The "low coolant" light continued to come on. She took the car back in. She was told the wrong sensor had been installed. When she went back for the car the second time, she was told the oil in the coolant was preventing the new sensor from working and there was nothing more the garage could do. I went in and asked questions, primarily how serious was the condition, and couldn't get a straight answer.
We are due to drive to Florida in November. My wife would like to take it to a garage there. Is it save to drive it as is? What are the implications of oil mixing with coolant? What is causing it to happen?
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I am having a very tricky problem with my Buick.
For approximately the last 4 months, it has been (at least according to the heat gauge on the dash) running pretty hot. Not overheating, but getting close. And it doesn't take long for it to get there. This all seems to have begun right around the time that my father and I flushed the coolant system.
Since then, I have replaced some parts, and learned a few things in the process.
I learned that there are bleeder screws which can be opened to let air bubbles out. And I have heard that the 3.1L is especially susceptible to them.
New parts which I have installed:
- thermostat
- coolant temperature sensor
- radiator cap
- upper radiator hose
- lower radiator hose
I have checked the water pump and it seems to be perfectly fine. No leaks. No signs of bad bearings. And it circulates coolant just fine. I have not been witness to either cooling fan, primary or auxiliary, switching on in a while.
The exact symptoms are these:
The heat gauge does not take long to get to mid-way point, but will sit at that point for a bit if the vehicle remains stationary. Once the vehicle is in significant motion, the heat gauge will climb fairly quickly, especially with moderately high RPMs. It WON'T touch the red though, but will get very very close to it. The car runs fine. It does seem to be a bit underpowered, but I am comparing it to my fiance's 1996 Olds Cutlass Ciera, which I believe has a different transmission. My Buick does not seem to have lost power since this problem arose. The cooling fans no longer kick on. The oil appears fine. The coolant as well. With the radiator cap off, coolant does not bubble out or shoot out.
I made sure after changing upper and lower hoses to fill the radiator, let the car run long enough for the thermostat to open, and then slowly poured more coolant into the radiator until it was full again. And the reservoir is at proper level and the the reservoir hose s not clogged.
I am not SURE, but I don't believe the radiator is clogged. I believe that covers it, at least as well as I can.
BTW, I do not know where the fan relays are, otherwise I would test the fans to see if they still work.
What the heck is up with my Buick? Also, it has 97,xxx miles on it, and the transmission fluid is at proper level and looks normal.
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My grandpa's old wood paneled station wagon is sick. The idle seems to be getting rougher and rougher with every time I kill the battery (I've somehow left my headlights on four times in the past two months and needed a jump). It's to a point now where if I don't throw it in neutral at stop lights and keep a tiny bit of gas on the engine it stalls out.
Notes:*When it first gets jumped after being dead, if I stop even for a second, it dies instantly.*While cruising - it is fine. *It idles smoother stopped in neutral than it does stopped and in drive. *It seems a bit rougher with the engine is cold, but still rough and can stall with the engine hot. *Some random times it idles just fine (like for example the first few seconds on start up, and then it sounds like the engine is decreasing in rpm automatically, and then it is rough again).
Could the dying battery and rough idle be related?? The battery guy says "if it starts fine, the battery is fine" (it does start fine, although keeping the radio on for 20 minutes without it running will kill it).
Also other problems with my car in case this has anything to do with it: *I have a leaky tail pipe*my ABS has recently been randomly engaging at low speeds (next problem to work on...)
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I have a 2001 Buick Century that started making a noise from what seems to be the engine. It sounds like a jet engine when I accelerate. The noise is still there when I cruise, but it evens out. It is loudest when going between 40 and 50mph. The car is not overheating, and other then the noise it drives fine. My husband at first thought it sounded like the catalytic converter had been stolen, but he rarely knows what he is talking about. What could it be?
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