On a relatively warm winter day (42 degrees), we decided to see what the problem was with starting the car. We found out relatively quickly that the fuel pump was not running. When you make a discovery like this, you are thrilled because you believe that you have discovered the root cause of the problem. 
Then we went back to the fuse box and found that the fuse was blown. Wow, we’ll be home in half an hour! No such luck. A new fuse did not get the pump to come on, so we went to the relay. BTW, this car has more fuses and relays than all of my other vehicles combined! It was not possible to test the relay, but we did find out how to bridge it. 
Once we bridged the two terminals, the fuel pump came to life. Aha, we thought, but upon further cranking, the beast would not fire up. By this time, we were freezing, the battery was getting weak, and it was getting dark. We were convinced that we were on the right trail and we decided to retire for the night and return to fight again another (warmer) day.