Fuel Pump woes or not!

[schueymcfee]

Hi all, just looking for similar experiences so I can try and sort this quickly.

Fuel pump is now dead - no whirring before start up.

Now, on my way home it would stutter every often then burst back into life. This happened for about 15 miles.

Then at some lights it died totally (had to creep across junction into a petrol station - how embarrassing!)

Sat at station about 20 mins and refused to start, then after one my try it burst into life. Got 20 metres down the road and it dies again. It was then I noticed the fuel pump not priming.

I left the ignition on for about 1 min and suddenly the fuel pump primed, and she started - set off again and it dies again 100 metres further down road. After this, nothing, the pump never primed again.

Now, after all this rain the passenger footwell got soaked and on my way into work in the morning there was lots of relay clicking going on.

So would anybody hazard a guess as to which part I need to look at?

Fuel pump
Relays
ECU
Earth

Thanks

[MADMAX2]

A garage?????

[thenick]

I'd check the fuel pump relay first, there's a good chance that It's just sticking. It'll be down next to the battery/ECU and is a silver/metal relay with a couple of white/purple wires coming out of it. You could try swapping it with the main relay(next to it) as it is the same type. The car won't drive with them swapped, but if the pump primes then you've found your culprit.

I wouldn't have thought it would be the ECU or earth but you could always stick a multimeter on it's earth and check for continuity?

[bhpjon]

schueymcfee said:

Hi all, just looking for similar experiences so I can try and sort this quickly.

Fuel pump is now dead - no whirring before start up.

Now, on my way home it would stutter every often then burst back into life. This happened for about 15 miles.

Then at some lights it died totally (had to creep across junction into a petrol station - how embarrassing!)

Sat at station about 20 mins and refused to start, then after one my try it burst into life. Got 20 metres down the road and it dies again. It was then I noticed the fuel pump not priming.

I left the ignition on for about 1 min and suddenly the fuel pump primed, and she started - set off again and it dies again 100 metres further down road. After this, nothing, the pump never primed again.

Now, after all this rain the passenger footwell got soaked and on my way into work in the morning there was lots of relay clicking going on.

So would anybody hazard a guess as to which part I need to look at?

Fuel pump
Relays
ECU
Earth

Thanks

I had two years of trauma with something similar to this and it was a combination of loose fuse in the fusebox (rectified by by-passing fuse box with inline fuse to relay(sounds much harder than it is!!)), more problematic was the fact that the spade terminals were loose onto the fuel pump!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (since crimped and end of problems)

[redkarla]

Hi

I have just brought a 96 400 and I knew the fuel pump was noisy it whines like a pig. Sometimes I hit a bump and it goes off. Car starts OK, drives never faulters but the guy I brought it from said that when he filled it up thats when he had the issues of dying on him. I have only half filled it no probs.

So where is the fuel pump?
and how much are they?
Where do I get one?
How easy to fit etc?

Sorry not trying to steal the topic.

[TVR SUPPLIES]

Sometimes the fuel pump can stick when they get old,and a tap on the side can unstick them.The connections on the pump can also corrode,and also the relay can play up befoe failing.It's relatively easy to swap the relay and make sure you have good connections first before condemning the pump

Edited by TVR SUPPLIES on Friday 14th March 12:26

[spend]

Its always difficult to find an intermittent fault.... If I was you I would make a lead direct to the fuel pump that you can switch via a fuse to the battery - as an 'International Rescue' get out. Then link a led/bulb to a good earth and start connecting it along the wiring of the fuel pump, with your jump lead to the fuel pump body you can start by checking if the pump is getting 12v - if that is OK when the fuel pump barfs - then its the pump or the earth.

Dave