My fuel pump came two days early, so I dropped whatever I was doing and charged down the driveway with my tools.
No tutorial or photo album because... It was surprisingly easy. Although the evap line or whatever (on left) was a real you-know-what to get the holding clip back on.
Then of course the moment of truth. And the car would NOT start. Panic. Turn the key. Panic. Pace back and forth in the garage. Turn the key. After many attempts, it did fire up. The idle was way too low, shuddering the vehicle. But it’s a new pump and I disconnected the battery so I suspected the car was “relearning” the correct idle and fuel flow. I drove it moderately hard for 30 minutes. Idle went back to normal quickly. Pulled back in, exhaled, not feeling totally accomplished.
I then took a break for dinner and a walk, and tried again after a few hours of sitting. With half a flick of the wrist, it immediately fired up. Idle was normal. Maybe even a hair higher than previously. Normally this would be false hope. And it IS false hope. But before this, the car hadn’t fired up on one attempt in nearly two weeks, whether the engine was hot or cold.
In conclusion, I probably didn’t fix anything but Jesus Christ gimme one fucking break, Car Gods, please!