Chrysler Repair: Town and Country fuel pump, neon glow, air breather

Question
My 1993/1994 minivan won't start. It ran  out of gas, and when we put in more, the engine turns over, but won't catch. We sprayed starting fluid in the air breather and  it started just fine..until we quit spraying. Is there a reset button that we can press on the fuel pump to try to get it going again? Our friend says there is. Any info would be helpful.

Answer
Hi Kelly,
I don't believe there is any such reset button in the fuel pump circuit. What you need to do is assess whether it it is really running or not. The engine controller, when you first turn the ignition key from off to run (but not to the starter position) will apply power to the pump which is in the fuel tank for about 1 second (you may have heard it buzz but were unaware that is what that sound was). Then if you don't go ahead and crank the starter motor it will not run so you won't hear the buzz after that first second. Then if you crank the engine the noise level is too interfering to hear the pump start pumping again while you are using the starter. So have a helper crouch down in the area at the middle of van while you turn the ignition switch to the run position so he can listen for the sound. It will not be loud and it will only last for about a second. If it does, then the fuel pump is being powered and is probably pumping out fuel under pressure. If not then you need to check whether there is voltage to the pump for that one second period or not (use a neon glow light at the two wire plug to the pump, just measure across the two terminals on the plug (dark green/black and black wires). If you get 1 second of voltage (but no sound when the plug was attached) then also try cranking the engine to verify that you aren't getting voltage to the plug. If you get voltage then the pump should put out pressurized fuel if it is making the sound.
If that proves out, then the next thing I would do is change the fuel filter which is located under van very near to the tank pump outlet (mounted on the frame). The fuel will be under pressure built up by the pump so you will want to wrap a rag around the hoses where they connect to the pump to catch the fuel when you loosen the clamps and remove the hose from the filter. You want to avoid getting sprayed with fuel in your face. Replace the filter then see if that solves the gas supply problem. The bottom of the tank has alot of junk in it and all that stuff may have clogged the filter. Also, you might try the starter fluid trick again just in case the fuel circuit needs to be primed a bit by running the engine for a few more seconds than you can realistically do with the starter without putting too much of a strain on the start or the battery. But if it doesn't catch and run on its own, that priming possibility is probably not the answer either. By the way, some people report that they have had to add more gas to the tank to get the level up a bit higher for the fuel pump to really get going again, so consider doing that.
If you aren't getting voltage then the fuel pump relay and the ASD relay circuits need to be tested. Write back about how to do that.
You might also want to run a trouble code test on the engine controller memory. But I can tell you how to do that when/if this test/filter replacement doesn't do the trick. Also if you write back tell me which engine you have. If you get good results too, let me know.
Roland