2000 Dakota 3.9 new fuel pump and no start

116 Views 11 Replies 2 Participants Last post by immattj, 3 d ago

thomasbagnell1488

Discussion Starter · 6 d ago

Ok first off thank you guys in advance for any help given. I have a 2000 Dakota SLT and in the year we have had it this is what we have done. It's always felt like it loses power with a load or going uphill and about a month ago it started sputtering/surging while driving on the highway usually at high speeds and the tachometer would go up 2000 rpm every time it would surge. I replaced the TPS sensor and it stopped surging and had a little power back and then with a 1/8 of a tank of gas it started sputtering like out of gas and died and would not restart. Yesterday I put a new fuel pump on it and it wouldn't start. I sprayed ether in the carburetor and it started fine so it isn't getting fuel the fuel gauge doesn't work now either I can hear the pump working where as the pump I took off I couldn't hear it humming it was super low on fuel so I put 2 gallons in it and tried to start it and nothing. Idk what I could of done wrong and I know this is not a major thing but is out of my scope of knowledge. Does anyone have any ideas I could try

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immattj

· #2 · 6 d ago

Are you getting a 'check engine light'?

Even though you hear the fuel pump when you turn the key to 'on', I guess if it was me & I had just put a fuel pump in & it wouldn't start unless I sprayed fuel down the TB, I'd probably hook up my fuel pressure gauge to the shraeder vlve on the fuel rail & see if it was reading pressure while cranking the engine. I would see that as a starting point to begin troubleshooting.

Hopefully someone will have a more specific idea to share with you.

(I also realize that you may not have a fuel pressure gauge, but they don't cost an arm & a leg, especially at some place like Harbor Freight, and if you do your own troubleshooting & work, it will come in handy in the future as well.)

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thomasbagnell1488

Discussion Starter · #3 · 5 d ago

Ok so it apparently didn't have enough fuel to get it primed I went and got 5 gallons and put it in clicked the key back and forth 4 times and it started right up we went to the store to fill the tank up and it was running really good it had immediate power where as before going up a hill it would lose steam it seemed like, not now but check this out it kinda is throwing me off now it is not shifting into the last highway driving gear I assume it's third gear and I tried to get it into passing gear and it through the rpms to almost 5000 instantly any clue what or why is there a sensor that is off now that the fuel pump is working right I do however have a p0121 and the TPS sensor is only 2 weeks old

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immattj

· #4 · 5 d ago

Thanks for the followup on the fuel pump problem & happy to read that that part worked out for you.

thomasbagnell1488 said:
now it is not shifting into the last highway driving gear I assume it's third gear and I tried to get it into passing gear and it through the rpms to almost 5000 instantly

The last highway gear would be overdrive 4th. When you kicked it down into "pssing gear" it sounds like it went all the way down to first.

When you put it in D & go through the gears, are you sure you are getting second? Is it possible it is shifting 1 to 3?

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thomasbagnell1488

Discussion Starter · #5 · 5 d ago

I'm not sure how would I know we stopped several times and counted down from park and then counted as they shifted. it runs smoothly through the first 2 shifts and when we get around 45-50 for the next shift it never happens if you go faster the rpms get higher as the motor revs higher when we let off the gas it doesn't shift it actually feels like the gear that it's in is slowing us down I hope I'm explaining it correctly we came home from the store and I tried to reset the TPS sensor by turning the key to on and pressing down and releasing the gas pedal and I sent her to work and she just messaged me saying it still didn't shift and yes the passing gear did sound like it dropped back down to the first gear oh lol I see what you're saying now so what would make it skip a gear I checked the transmission fluid just now too and it was perfect in color and amount so I'm still lost

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immattj

· #6 · 5 d ago

thomasbagnell1488 said:
it runs smoothly through the first 2 shifts and when we get around 45-50 for the next shift it never happens if you go faster the rpms get higher as the motor revs higher when we let off the gas it doesn't shift it actually feels like the gear that it's in is slowing us down I hope I'm explaining it correctly we came home from the store and I tried to reset the TPS sensor by turning the key to on and pressing down and releasing the gas pedal and I sent her to work and she just messaged me saying it still didn't shift and yes the passing gear did sound like it dropped back down to the first gear oh lol I see what you're saying now so what would make it skip a gear I checked the transmission fluid just now too and it was perfect in color and amount so I'm still lost

I think I understand what you are saying, & it does sound as if you are getting 1 & 2 but not getting past 2 & into 3.
When I asked you that question it wasn't the fluid I was thinking of (although that's always something to consider) but I was thinking you would have the 42RE with adjustable bands & I was remembering a post on another Dodge forum where the OP had lost his fwd band (2cond gear band) & therefore lost 2cond gear. But now I cannot recall exactly what his symptoms were . . . it was either winding out a bit in first & going to straight to 3rd or it was a quick shift from 1 to 3 wich initially made him think he was going through all his gears too quick (when in reality he was missing 2), but regardless, it wasn't shifting smoothly as you described and I don't think that the band scenario applies to you.

Hopefully you'll get some better input, but maybe try the search function at the top of the page & use something like "won't shift into 3rd gear" as a search engine.

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immattj

· #7 · 5 d ago

. . . something that might be helpful is to start a separate thread on your transmission shift question as anyone who might have input would be looking at this thread title & just seeing fuel pump problem. . . .

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immattj

· #8 · 5 d ago

. . . here is a thread that may or may not be help ful (one of the participants mentioned the transmission speed sensor acting up without initially sending acode)

Shifting hard

What can it be.:cool: My 98 Dakota 3.9 4x4 auto, shifts hard ? first in to second and second in to third every time warm or cold it holds the RPMs up to 2,800 before it shifts. No sliping, mounts good & the only code is 320 Ignition/Distributor Engine Speed Input Circuit :confused:

www.dakotaforumz.com

and I am curious as to how fast & how many RPMs you've pushed it to, so far, to try to get it to go 2 to 3?

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thomasbagnell1488

Discussion Starter · #9 · 4 d ago

Ok just to let it be known what has happened. She came home from work last night said it was hitting all the gears and this morning I tried to reset the transmission sensor from something I read on the internet I turned the key on pressed the gas pedal down and turned the key off released the pedal and then started and drove it and I can't explain it but it drove better I would say it felt like the gears were tighter cause it shifted good like better than before somehow but it still wouldn't go into the 3rd gear I took it to the highway and got it to 65 with rpms around 3800 and no inclination that shifting was coming I came home hooked the reader up and it still had the TPS sensor code p0121 I believe so out of curiosity I put the old TPS sensor back in and cleared the codes and I'm happy to say she just texted from work said it is running tiptop and shifting all gears better than before. So is there anything I could have done wrong with that new TPS sensor to make all this happen

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immattj

· #10 · 4 d ago

Thanks for the follow up & good to read that your Dakota seems to be back to okay.

As far as the TPS sensor, I have read posts on a couple of these Dakota sites about after market sensors being the cause of issues that did not exist before they were installed. I wonder if the sensor you put back in was the OEM Mopar? What brand was the replacement? Anyway, that would have to be my best guess ('guess" is the operative word) that you got a bad sensor from the parts store.

And as far as learning something every day, I was not aware that the TPS sensor would have an effect on the transmission/shifting. I will have to do some reading on that one.

On a quick edit, however: I guess what must happen is that if the TPS does not correctly correlate the position of the throttle, the TCM doesn't think it is time to upshift the transmission? I would have thought that shift points would be more based on RPMs & vehicle speed versus throttle position . . . that's what I would have thopught anyway. . . .

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thomasbagnell1488

Discussion Starter · #11 · 4 d ago

I agree and considering the TPS sensor we bought was off of eBay and definitely not a A+ parts source

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immattj

· #12 · 3 d ago

thomasbagnell1488 said:
I agree and considering the TPS sensor we bought was off of eBay and definitely not a A+ parts source

I buy pretty much most of my parts from rockauto.com. Their prices beat the chain part stores (even with shipping) & on most parts they offer numerous manufacturers to choose from. Which is not at all to say that an after market sensor made in China & sold by Rock couldn't be of poor quality.

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