Hi everyone,

My 2001 mk1 Focus won't start, thestart is going, and the key is in the on position I hear 2 clicks from the engine bay. I'm unsure if the fuel pump makes a noise as I don't know what that should sound like. But it seems quiet back there.

I get this error code:

p0232 - Fuel Pump Secondary Circuit High

I have tried this so far:

• replaced the fuel pump relay

• replaced the power hold relay (the one next to the fuel pump one, closest to the windscreen)

• cleared the code and tried again

• cleaned up the earth points in the engine bay with a wire brush

• pressed the inertia cut off switch just to see if it was triggered - didn't move

• all fuses look good

Now i'm guessing that something is causing a short? Like a wire to the fuel pump touching metal?

It's difficult to check that! I've lifted the back seat and pulled out the rubber grommet to look at the connections, they look fine? It looks like a real ***** to get a decent look at it though. Some posts have people cutting a hole in the floor to change the pump. I'm on a sloped drive, and can't lift the car, and if I move it, I can't move it back, and parking is permitted! So i'd rather cut than try to lift.

Anyway, is there any advice on checking the wiring to the fuel pump? I have a mysterious multimeter. I might be able to undo the connectors to the pump and check them.

Is there a way to test the pump without removing it? So I know it's the wiring or not that's causing the issue.

I've attached a screenshot of the pump where someone cut a hole in the floor.

The fuel pump is just an electric motor. So it should produce a constant high pitched whine for a few seconds, similar to a hoover or a washing machine spin, just not as loud.

You can also check whether the pump is priming by disconnecting the fuel pipe from the injector rail to see if fuel flows out with the ignition on.

The pump takes full battery voltage, nothing smart about it, so you can use a spare battery and some spare wire to power the pump directly to check whether it works. Obviously need to work out which plug pins are the ones for the motor first. The other two are for the fuel gauge on the dash. You can test for 12v from the wiring plug, but that doesn't necessarily prove anything, as there may not be enough current reaching the plug if there is a weak wire anywhere.

Thanks for responding.

I decided to cut a hole in the floor to take a decent look. I was looking at the connector to the fuel pump when the key was in on position, there's a constant ~12v from red white wire, and 6-8v from green orange. I believe the green orange is from the inertia switch, so i'm guessing that the problem is the fuel pump itself, if there's power to it and it's making no signs of life.

As said above, voltage alone doesn't prove that. All that proves is there's at least one strand of cable all the way through. However one strand would not be able to carry enough current to run the pump.

Having said that, on balance of probability it is most likely to be a faulty pump.

Solved! It was the fuel pump. I think that some of the wiring in the pump itself, not the connector, had failed, throwing that error I saw. Replacing the pump resolved it.