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In January my 2004 Mazda 3 S was involved in an accident. The car was hit in the rear quarter panel on the drivers side..the panel crumpled..the wheel was pushed in and the tail light broke, and the rear bumper got "bumped" out a bit. Both the rear passenger door and the trunk still shut thankfully and there is no damage elsewhere on the car.

Immediately after the wreck I attempted to start my car to see if I could at least roll it off the road. It would fire up, run for a second or two, then die. I tried several times and this was the behavior each time.

I eventually had it towed to my house where it has been sitting in the garage for the past 7 months. I am now trying to either sell it for parts or to someone who has the time and know-how to fix it up. It would really be helpful if I could show that the engine is running! After talking to my dad he mentioned there was some safety feature where the fuel pump gets cut off in an accident and the only way to get it working again is to hit some reset switch. I have not been able to find it. Could someone help me out here?

I know it's going to be a bear to start either way since it's been sitting up in my garage for 7 months not running but I also know I'll NEVER start it if gas isn't getting delivered to the engine.

Again..the car was hit on the rear drivers side..nothing about the gas tank, fuel line, or engine was damaged.

 

OK so spraying some starter fluid in the air intake works and I checked the fuel pump fuse under the hood and it's good...anything else I can check? A couple people told me the mazda3 has no such reset...so I'm not sure what else to check...I put my ear against the gas cap an had my wife turn the key and I THINK I might hear a faint hum but should I be able to clearly hear the fuel pump? Is there any other fuse I might be missing?

 

the fuel pump is audible from under the rear seat - the front unclips from the floor (just pull) and the access door is on the passenger side. that should be the best audible point.
does it still start at all? like when it did just after the wreck?
there are wire harnesses that could have popped fuses & causing some systems to stay offline. u could try a code reader & see if it helps u figure out what is dead.