Fuel pressure and fuel pump

Anyone know the specs for the rivieras fuel pressure regulator psi? also does anyone know whether there are other vehicles that have the same fuel pump in them as the riviera?

what year riv?

Series I? Series II?

I'm pretty sure for the Series II S/C the FP should be 60 with the vacuum line off.

its a 97 series II NA motor...but thing was when my uncle put the tester on the regulator it read something like either 30 or 40 psi

Now that I'm thinking about it, I'm pretty sure it's supposed to be 50, but again that's with the vacuum line disconnected.

im not sure but gm used pretty much the same pump in the century/regal, grand prix, bonneville, and riviera? i see alot of them in grand prixs but i dont want to take that chance with it. it would be a heckuva lot easier for me to go to the junkyard and get the pump out of one of those instead of going and buying offline and not getting the right one

why do you think you need a fuel pump? Have you replaced the filter?

You need to check fuel pressure at three points.

Base pressure. Check at idle with the vacuum line disconnected from fpr. Should be 50-52 psi.

Idle pressure. Check at idle with vacuum line connected to fpr. Should be around 44 psi.

WOT Pressure. Check with vacuum line connected at full throttle. Should be base pressure plus 1 psi for each psi boost. Should hold with boost and not drop off.

thanks alot. when my uncle tested it, it was reading lower than any of those numbers you all have. so do i change out the FPR? I already changed the filter out first and that didnt do it but I had an extra FPR that Im going to try next.

Wait, this is N/A Series II. Fuel pressure is probably supposed to be lower than supercharged.

MOVED TO NA 3800 TECH SECTION

hmm, thanks for pointing that out AA. Killa, PLEASE ADD INFO ABOUT YOUR CAR TO YOUR SIGNATURE so we can help you with correct information.

I think I'm going to stop answering questions when there's no signature.

i wonder if there would be any difference in the level of assistance?...

i was wondering..i couldve sworn this was the series 2 NA section?

It was moved to N/A from SC Series II. Some of us assumed you were supercharged based on that and no sig. I don't know if you'll get any more help, but it's would prevent those posting supercharged fuel pressure figures.

hey killa, replacing the fuel pump is easy as hell in ours....one thing gm got right, they put a damn access panel in the trunk. i will say this if the fuel pump camber ring is rusted up I got to the DEALER and get a new one for about $20. I bought my fuel pump from advance auto and it cost about $210 if I remember correctly. Mine is a '96 and it was plug and play. gm might have changed the connectors on there in 97, if so then you will have to cut a connector and splice into the wires with the wire harness supplied with the fuel pump. mind you it would be a good idea to perform a tune up as well as a fuel system cleaner after installing the pump. you will notice a BBBBBIIIIIIIIGGGG difference!!!!!!

Installing the fuel pump:

to remove the pump you will need to remove the carpet from the trunk. the back piece, the push pins on the right side of the trunk. pull the carpet back. there should be a tin plate in the riight upper corner. those bolts i think are 6 otr 7 mm. take a flat head or small pry bar and easy the plate up, and set aside. take a vaccum and clean up any dirt around the fuel pump( dont want that ish getting the gas tank. disconnect the 2 fuel lines, it should be lil plastic fuel connectors(just squeeze on both sides till you hear a click). hold the plastic clips and pull the fuel line. replace those plastic clips with new ones from the help section at your local parts store(~$5). those clips are 2 different sizes, i think 3/8 and 5/16. remove the 2 different connectors. take a hammer and a small chisel or flat head. position it so when you hit the fuel camber ring/fuel lock ring it turns in the counterclockwise position. this may a couple of times as you must distribute the force evenly(bang on the damn thing in 2 spots opposite of each there). now be cautious as to not hit the metal tabs that hold the fuel camber ring/fuel lock ring, those tabs are attached to the gas tank. bam the lock ring off the fuel pump popped up. pull it and then tilt it sideways to get the sending unit out(the thing that tells you how much gas is in the car). make sure you have couple of towels to catch any dripping gas. compare the old and the new to make sure you have the right one. take the old pump and burn it!! clean up any dirt from where you remove the old put especially where the rubber o ring was at. take the new one tilt it to put the sending unit in first and turn it right side up to completely insert it in. make sure the rubber o ring is psoitioned properlyon the gas tank(it should be a nice groove where the o ring goes) i used vasoline on the top of the lock ring where the clips attach to hold it in place. now, once you have the fuel lines lined up slide the lock ring over the pump and press down and turn the lock ring clockwise. once you get it as far you can go grab the hammer and chisel/flathead and tap it in the sameway you tapped it out. mind you that the lock ring has to be full turn or YOU WILL LEAK GAS! basically look at the way the old one was one there before you took it off, well thats the same damn way the new one has to be. grab a drink and put out the old fuel pump and smoke thing.

if you have subs, they have to come out.

i meant to put this down also....the fuel pump should put out about 48-55psi. my mitchell manuel doesnt say if thats at wot or at idle, also my manuel only goes up to '96. another thing to check would be the resistance in the injectors would be 11.4-12.6 ohms.

i got a fuel pump put in but turns out it wasnt the pump primarily, it was the clogged converter. my uncle punched a hole in the pipe after the converter and shoved a metal rod in it and broke it up then sealed the hole with a steel clamp and a piece of pipe and a sealant. its louder, but far less constrictive than before. but it still didnt fix the problem of the low fuel pressure on the regulator so i think im going to switch it out with the spare one i have. i had no idea a clogged converter would do so much damage as it did. the damn car would take like a minute to do 35mph! as soon as the hole was punched and cleaned, it immediately picked back up. only question i have now is why cant i downshift and take off like i did in the grand prix? maybe i just need to go ahead and straight pipe it out all the way. my uncle says the low fuel pressure could be a cause of the lack of downshifting so im going to have to trouble shoot it.

Was your fuel pressure measured with the vacuum line disconnected?

nope. im going to go back and have him test it with it off as well. mind you, this is a crack addict whos doing this. damn good mechanic, just low on moral character lol

Loud whine from gas

Tank Area, intermitent usually when cold....goes away leaking vac line?

Dennis wrote:

Tank Area, intermittent usually when cold....goes away leaking vac line?

Neither of your posts has enough info to understand your problem and help you out.

...need to know what year Riv, which engine (they used different FPs), and what your problem actually is.

...if you are diagnosing a fuel pump you will need to buy or borrow (usually for free with a 100% deposit, at an auto parts store) a fuel pressure gauge.

If you are diagnosing a vacuum leak you will need to physically inspect the vacuum lines.  If your Riv is more than 10 years old (like any are not) you probably have some sort of vac leak.  The  vac circuit  isn't complicated.  Primarily from the factory it's a set of nylon tube with rubber tees.  The tees let go. You can temporarily secure them with 3M Strip-Calk while you either wait for a new vac line set to come in, if they are still available (I don't know, BTW the one for the Chevy-installed GM 3800s fits although the part numbers are not listed as such) or you get some vac lines and plastic tees to make up what you need. Check all the lines.  

IF your fuel pump is good, it runs intermittently unless you're burning a lot of fuel at the moment. Then it just runs.

Do not mistake the fuel pump for the self-leveling suspension's air compressor. If things are normal it runs for a bit pretty soon after a cold start and quits when the rear end is up to level or in a bit less than a minute, whichever comes first. If it runs longer than that on the first cycle after stating the car, something is wrong.

I have no idea what 'loud whine from gas' even means.

What will you do next?

100% Tks was the air compressor whine..
Pulled the relay