Fuel Sending Unit

[Tungsten]

I don't know if this is already on the forum but I tried doing a search and did not find anything so here it goes...

 

One time my truck died on I-80 and I had to force it to the side of the road. Towing took forever and it was pouring hard but that was the least of my problems. I had it towed to the nearest garage where they replaced the fuel filter and it started up fine so I got it home. The next day it died again and would not start so I got another fuel filter and worked fine again until it died again. Had to get it towed to a garage again where I was told that the fuel pump was bad because the fuel pump fuse exploded. So there went $400 to replace that... Guess what the damn thing died again and it was towed back to the garage this time for free... The problem turned out to be a bad fuel sending unit. The plastic thing which insulates the electrical connectors on the sending unit has cracked and kept shorting out. The garage wanted a ridiculous amount of money for replacing it plus I found later that they put a burn mark in one of the seats so I glued up the sending unit with some epoxy in their parking lot and took it home. I got a new sending unit from the stealer for around $100 and replaced the fuel pump from the old sender into the new one then dropped it back in the tank. When I was putting the access hole cover back on I somehow managed to knock out the thing that holds the cover (must be rust) so I just sealed the cover with some silicone. Starts up and works good as new since then.

 

Anyway watch for rust and cracks on top of that fuel tank or you may be left disabled!

[Simon]

I don't know if this is already on the forum but I tried doing a search and did not find anything so here it goes...

 

One time my truck died on I-80 and I had to force it to the side of the road. Towing took forever and it was pouring hard but that was the least of my problems. I had it towed to the nearest garage where they replaced the fuel filter and it started up fine so I got it home. The next day it died again and would not start so I got another fuel filter and worked fine again until it died again. Had to get it towed to a garage again where I was told that the fuel pump was bad because the fuel pump fuse exploded. So there went $400 to replace that... Guess what the damn thing died again and it was towed back to the garage this time for free... The problem turned out to be a bad fuel sending unit. The plastic thing which insulates the electrical connectors on the sending unit has cracked and kept shorting out. The garage wanted a ridiculous amount of money for replacing it plus I found later that they put a burn mark in one of the seats so I glued up the sending unit with some epoxy in their parking lot and took it home. I got a new sending unit from the stealer for around $100 and replaced the fuel pump from the old sender into the new one then dropped it back in the tank. When I was putting the access hole cover back on I somehow managed to knock out the thing that holds the cover (must be rust) so I just sealed the cover with some silicone. Starts up and works good as new since then.

 

Anyway watch for rust and cracks on top of that fuel tank or you may be left disabled!

Been there done that. I've "modified" two of them so far.....for the very same reason.

[westslope]

Thanks for sharing Tungsten.

 

I examined and thoroughly cleaned the fuel sender unit on our '93 pathie last summer. The fuel guage works for the first and last quarter tanks but goes to zero for fuel volumes between the 1st and last quarter tanks.

 

I keep a running log of fuel purchases and kilometers travelled so running out of fuel is not an issue. I decided to do nothing as the ground and sender units appeared to be solidly attached.

 

 

 

However, I notice that some of the plastic seals were slightly cracked. Should I cover those plastic shields with some

silicone compound as a preventative measure?

 

 

Another question:

 

I try to thoroughly high pressure hose the pathie everytime I take it off-road. Is aiming the high pressure above the fuel tank running the risk of accelerating corrosion in that area? Or if I am driving the vehicle for a sufficient distance after high-pressure hose washing, will any accumulated water immediately evaporate minimizing the potential for corrosion?

[Tungsten]

Thanks for sharing Tungsten.

 

I examined and thoroughly cleaned the fuel sender unit on our '93 pathie last summer. The fuel guage works for the first and last quarter tanks but goes to zero for fuel volumes between the 1st and last quarter tanks.

 

I keep a running log of fuel purchases and kilometers travelled so running out of fuel is not an issue. I decided to do nothing as the ground and sender units appeared to be solidly attached.

However, I notice that some of the plastic seals were slightly cracked. Should I cover those plastic shields with some

silicone compound as a preventative measure?

Another question:

 

I try to thoroughly high pressure hose the pathie everytime I take it off-road. Is aiming the high pressure above the fuel tank running the risk of accelerating corrosion in that area? Or if I am driving the vehicle for a sufficient distance after high-pressure hose washing, will any accumulated water immediately evaporate minimizing the potential for corrosion?

 

Yes, if you even see the slightest cracks on the plastic insulator on top of the sender, patch them up as soon as possible!

 

Hosing it down really does not do anything to it.