Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang.......HELP!

tbone

Registered User
I'm posting about the wifes' car; 1989 XR7 w/ auto. Only 86,000 miles, never been in snow, scheduled maintenance (and then some) always done. Here's the problem; we went to the local drive-in for a bite; car ran flawlessly (as always: it has never been hammered; hell, I don't even get to drive it). Anywho, after we were on our way home, :confused: it just died coming to a stoplight. After a few cranks, off we go, only to stall again. Tach became very erratic; felt like it was starving for fuel. Made it home, let it sit overnite and went out the next day. Same scenario; nuts! Asked around locally what to look for and the consensus was a bad fuel pressure regulator. I picked one up from NAPA, but to tell the truth :eek: I CANNOT FIND THE DARN THING! Can somebody please point it out (and please, please, please let it not be buried under something).

Was also wondering if (when I find it) is this a direct bolt in or are there any issues associated with replacing the FPR? The local shop changed the valve cover gaskets for us; now the owner doesn't want to ever see the car again; some people have no sense of humor even when you're paying top dollar!

Thanks everyone,

Tom
 
Look in back of the engine

Hey tbone,
The FPR is located on the fuel rail in the back. I don't know if it's possible to replace it without removing the entire fuel rail but for sure you have to depressurize the system before you do it. When I replaced the o-rings on my injectors I had taken off the entire intake and fuel system at the motor (for other reasons). The bolts that hold the FPR on are in a tight spot as well. Hope you got a few days if you plan on doing it yourself.

I know for sure there's a pressure test you can do to verify it's bad. I'd do that first.

Also.. your problem could be a sensor.. Do you get a Check Engine light too?
 
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birds4us said:
I would suggest a cam position sensor, not the regulator. Easier to install as well.

Im with him . That FPR is harder to change then my wifes mind. Check your balancer and make sure you don`t have a upshift lite while cranking. Do a search on balancers.
 
scbird1 said:
Im with him . That FPR is harder to change then my wifes mind. Check your balancer and make sure you don`t have a upshift lite while cranking. Do a search on balancers.
could also be a fuel pump?...my 91SC had same symptoms 2 weeks ago and it turned out to be a bad fuel pump.
 
ebodycab said:
could also be a fuel pump?...my 91SC had same symptoms 2 weeks ago and it turned out to be a bad fuel pump.
There's a checkout for the fuel system in the after market manuals. If you got a pressure gage, it's easy as hell to do.
 
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