So I have a 1999 Dodge Intrepid ES. The battery is fine. It turns over well, lights don't dim, etc. However, the car wont start. It sounds like perhaps it isn't getting fuel.

It was perfect last night, not starting this morning. No warning signs or anything.

I thought it could be the fuel pump fuse. To that end, I switched the starter fuse and the fuel pump fuse (as they were the same type) so that I could eliminate or verify whether the fuse was the issue. The results were unchanged.

I was under the impression that a fuel pump wouldn't just go out overnight, and there would be some warning signs leading to its death. So I'm stumped as to what this may be.

Anyone have any ideas? Thank you so much for your time.

Nate

 

Edit: Got it to start. I turned it over and pumped the gas pretty hard and it started up... Unhappy though.

When I did this, a crap ton of exhaust poured out of the pipes for about 20 seconds, and then started running normal.

Since I've done this, she's started pretty normally. Sounds better.

Any idea what might cause this? I'm not the type of person to turn down good news, but I imagine it's not just a clogged fuel line or something that is 100% resolved...