Here is another case of the non starting fiat fuel injected. This is not my car it is a friends and i am doing my best to help him out.
Its a:
1980 Fiat Spyder 2000 Pininfarina
15,600 Miles
2.0 L Fuel injected
5 Speed Manual

Ok now heres the scoop
My friends dad drove this car back in 1998 and all of a sudden it died on him, not needing it for transportation he towed it home and parked it for 10 years.
My friend asked if we could work on it to get it running, to see how far we'd get, he said have at it. So here's what we got. It had no spark found out it was freyed wires on the pickup coil. changed it got spark. It has a new starter in it, and a good battery. Its not getting fuel. we had it running off of starting fluid(ether). and the motor purrs like a kitten, stop spraying ether motor dies. Hooked battery charger to fuel pump and it runs. checked fuse and it seems to be ok, next step is the relay. but i am looking for some insight from others who might have had the same problem, and where is the relay located for the fuel pump?

Your first steps to get the Fuel Injection Diagnosis Manual on-line. It will walk you through diagnosisng your problem. You could have one or more problems - bad Air Flow Meter, bad ECU or bad combination relay come to mind.

i work with computers all day long. hate 'em. that is why i prefer carbureted engines to F.I. engines (no computer). though, i pay attention to most posts concerning maintenance on all issues.

the #1 common no-start issue that my F.I. buddies see is fantastically easy to resolve. and, it is a common sense thing too, and very well fits your symptoms. also, it does NOT involve any computers.

Fuel pump. my buddies say replacing the fuel pump is #1 on the restoration list for F.I. engines... and i would concur in your case. sitting for 10 years, after a catostrophic shut down? yeah... no fuel delivery? yeah... getta new pump.

now... Frayed mag pickup wires after only 15,000 miles? i seriously doubt that. in fact, i doubt i ever heard or met a guy that recently saw a Spider with only 15,000 miles. i am betting 115,000. just my opinion, however, that leads to several other safety and maintenance issues that you should be aware of before you get that car on the road.

timing belt and guibo and brakes all need serious attention and replacement before you get that former beauty on the road. please do not neglect them in the initial phases of restoration.

Would the fuel pump be bad if the pump runs off of a battery charger?

of course, you have already cleaned the entire fuse panel, and have installed brand new fuses of the correct amperage. you have tested the hot wire to the fuel pump with the ignition switch in the on position with your multimeter... and have found the pump is being supplied with current. and you have assured yourself that the ground wire from the pump is a clean, secure connection.

you can disconnect the in and out hoses and perform a test run of the pump just from the battery charger. small tube to a quart jar of mineral spirits or similar... and a hose with an empty jar. hook up the pump and see if it pumps fluid.

then... if that works... i suggest two things.

1. the steel line between the pump and the engine is clogged (very likely after 10 years).
2. no power to the pump via the key? then it is the pump relay gone bad. NOW go get that wiring diagram as previously suggested, find the correct relay and replace it.

[QUOTE=mbou
now... Frayed mag pickup wires after only 15,000 miles? i seriously doubt that. in fact, i doubt i ever heard or met a guy that recently saw a Spider with only 15,000 miles. i am betting 115,000. just my opinion, however, that leads to several other safety and maintenance issues that you should be aware of before you get that car on the road.

He knows this car history for quite a few years, and it does have only 15700 original miles, as the odometer has not been rolled over.

My friends dad had 5 fiats, now down to 2 one fix er upper and 1 parts car the parts one has an automatic transmission that we might pull before scrapping for possible later use. but were going to pull the relay and see if that works. and from there its more hair pulling if that doesnt work. hopefully if we get it running we'll clean it up, paint it and then get a photo up here. and has anyone recovered a hard top, we pulled 2 hardtops before scrapping the cars. and the top covering is torn. whats a good material to use?

you have spare hardtop(s)???
condition?
pictures?
location?
wanna sell?

yes, the '80 came with a federally regulated 85mph speedometer (shallow face) and a 99,999 odometer.

interesting that the mag pickup wires would deteriorate in under 20,000 miles, since that deterioration is due more to heat over time than anything else. Yes, deterioration is a very common problem. I keep a spare mag pickup in my tool box as security against that for myself.

he has 2 or 3 tops. i do not know if he wishes to sell one. the main structure is good. the covering material is ripped on 1 and the other is descent, but not of show quality. i think the one with good material may need a window. but they dont appear to be cracked or broken(fiberglass structure) i havent seen them in a while( over a year) and we live in NE ohio

It Runs!!!!
Ended up being bad relay for FI/Pump.
Somehow when we swapped the relay and checked some fuses, we lost spark. found out no power to coil. Hooked wire from battery to + on coil, bumped the key and literally fired in less than 1/2 of a second. Now we believe the no power issue is a bad ignition. Any suggestions.

yeah, well... i intend on making a run to n/w pennsylvania soon. I should see if we could hook up on my way there or back, 'eh? especially if i could see pictures of those tops that might be up for sale. i want one, and so does a friend....depending on style and condition.

unfortunately, when just getting started to sort out all the issues with a restoration project (and for some unknown reason..electricals are the worst) something else frequently breaks while we are working on a totally different circuit.

such is the FUN of auto restoration.

behind your ignition switch is a large white connector. frequently that connector will develope bad connections, and needs to be taken apart and the connections cleaned and tightened. the pink wire from the ignition switch to the coil goes through this white connector.

or, the pink wire is damaged somewhere between the coil and the white connector.

we pulled a ignition switch from the donor car, and its all fine, thankfully. now after we had it warmed up a new problem emerged, white smoke. So now it needs a head gasket. thinking about ordering one from autozone, Does anyone have any pro's/ con's about autozones gaskets. i believe the brand is felpro.

never used one myself. no opinion.

don't forget to retorque the head after a month or so of running the engine.