Fuel pressure increase when in open loop due to CEL

Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.

dfib

TYF Newbie
Joined
Jul 9, 2012
Posts
9
Reaction score
2
I am try to trouble shoot a misfire (cylinder 6) on a 2008 Yukon xl 5.3l with AFM DOD. One question I have that I noticed is the fuel pressure goes from 43.5 psi in closed loop to 58 psi as soon as the CEL has come on and goes to open loop. As soon as I clear the code and it goes back to closed loop the pressure drops back to 43.5 psi plus or minus 1/2 psi.

Is this supposed to happen?

I will make another thread with questions about the misfiring after I am done troubleshooting it if I can’t figure it out.
 

TSOL

TYF Newbie
Joined
Mar 14, 2025
Posts
6
Reaction score
7
Yes. Mine does that exact same thing. I have 43 PSI closed loop, 58 PSI open loop. I have 2013 Chevy Suburban 5.3L V8.

Misfires are typically due to spark plugs as far as I've seen. They have plenty of other causes, but these are by far the most common and a great starting point. Have you checked yours in a while? Also make sure your wire is properly seated. If it looks properly seated, change the wires with another plug and see if it moves. Repeat with the other ignition components until you've ruled ignition out.
 
OP
OP
D

dfib

TYF Newbie
Joined
Jul 9, 2012
Posts
9
Reaction score
2
I appreciate the response about the fuel pressure. I have been troubleshooting. This is my old car that I bought with 3 miles on it and gave it to my son at about 200,000 miles. He took it to a mechanic a month ago, cause it was misfiring and the mechanic said the motors blown you need a new one and want to charge him $9k to $10k for it. I told him if you’re driving it it’s not blown, bring it back to me and I will look at it and try and fix it to sell it. He has bought a new car since.

Things I have done so far.

Swapped spark plug still misfired
Swap wires still misfired
Swap coil packs to misfired
Took all the valve cover off and rockers seem to be tight.
Ran seafoam through the vacuum line and now it’s not misfiring all the time.
Did a compression test. First result 30 psi, second result 120 psi, third result 20 psi fourth result 125 psi all on the same cylinder. I checked the sale next to it and it was close to the 120 psi.
My next step is to take the valve cover off crank the motor and make sure all the rockers are moving. Hindsight I should’ve did this when I had the valve cover off the first time.
If that doesn’t show any results, I’m gonna swap fuel injectors because my long-term fuel trim on that bank is -20%.

At this point I am thinking one of my valves is not seating tightly.
 
Last edited:

rdezs

Full Access Member
Joined
Nov 6, 2023
Posts
300
Reaction score
416
Cylinder number 6 should be one of the AFM cylinders.... Very likely a collapsed lifter or an issue with the VLOM. The VLOM controls the AFM lifters, so if they issue is there, the lifter itself could be intermittent. Could easily be one of the o-rings under that VLOM as well.

I've never bothered with repairing the AFM system.... It's better in the long run to just delete it. But that depends on what your plans are for the vehicle?
 

TSOL

TYF Newbie
Joined
Mar 14, 2025
Posts
6
Reaction score
7
In the grand scheme of things, if your goal is to sell the vehicle, I'd just get new (parts) from rockauto (or wherever you get your parts) whenever you find out what the issue is. Given the history of the AFM in this vehicle and your poor compression readings on that cylinder, I'd venture to say its a collapsed lifter like rdezs says.

AFM deletes are expensive if done properly (can be $800-$1500+ depending on whether or not you decide to add a little power by picking a larger cam), while just replacing the parts is probably like 400 bucks, depending on what failed (just parts, no labor). If the lifter wiped your cam which is VERY common may I add, You'll have to get a new cam. While you're in there, theres no point replacing only 1 lifter. If one goes out, they all are probably on their way out. If I was tackling this job, I'd get a set of new lifters, cam, maybe pushrods because of how often I hear those get killed, and then the consumables like the VVT Cam bolt and head gaskets.

Usually, the best route is to delete AFM, but trying to sell the vehicle is entirely different because the buyer is likely not going to be super thrilled that some "goofball previous owner" was messing around in the engine. If I was buying a vehicle at 200,000 miles, I would likely be buying it as a school vehicle for my kid, and if it's hot-rodded, you can't easily take it to the shop if something breaks because it's non-standard. I would turn away from a vehicle like that. I'd just fix the problems and sell a properly working vehicle.
 
OP
OP
D

dfib

TYF Newbie
Joined
Jul 9, 2012
Posts
9
Reaction score
2
If I was keeping it for myself, I would delete AFM. I plan on keeping it stock and just fixing the problem. I’d like to sell it as soon as possible. Nobody’s driving it or needs it and it’s taking up room in the driveway.
 

rdezs

Full Access Member
Joined
Nov 6, 2023
Posts
300
Reaction score
416
Then I would start by pulling the VLOM and hopefully you're looking at a broken o-ring.... That would be the best scenario
 

j91z28d1

Full Access Member
Joined
Feb 28, 2022
Posts
3,658
Reaction score
4,521
back when I looked into afm before buying one I saw a few videos where there pulled the valve cover off, lifters worked fine at idle, few seconds after start they collapsed like afm activated. I figured this was a vlom issues, sending oil down to the lifter at the wrong time. it shouldn't happen at idle. but there's another thread not to long ago where it was happening, the guy blocked off the oil supply completely and the lifter still collapsed.

I guess the locks just wear and don't hold.


it will make a mess, so be ready to shut it off quickly. but worth popping a valve cover off and having a look while cranking and maybe even running.
 

Forum statistics

Threads
134,070
Posts
1,896,002
Members
99,525
Latest member
Spencer4991
Top