I've learned a few things about replacing the fuel pump in these wagons after doing a couple of them.... I took a few pictures of those things that could be done wrong and make the job more difficult or unsuccessful if careful attention isnt excercised!
A while back, a question was asked about a half-sized white pingpong ball found in a gas tank..... It is original equipment, but is encased in a filler-tube insert that prevents right-turn fuel surge against the left-mounted gas-cap.
This tube and it's check-ball also prevent a siphon hose from reaching gas in the bottom 2/3 of the tank...... I'm gonna stop here for a moment in case the car has simply quit and has over half a tank. You will obviously want to suck as much out thru the gas filler pipe as possible, even jacking up the right side of the car to get the level below the fill pipe, so that when you disconnect the fill-pipe hose, the top half of the tank of gas doesn't run out on the ground!
If you don't wanna spill the bottom 13 gallons of gas while attempting to bench-press the tank to the ground ALSO WHILE disconnecting the hoses..... It's much easier to pull the surge device out of the tank and finish siphoning the gas BEFORE unbolting the tank! When you undo the two hose clamps on the tank and fill pipe and slide the hose back, you will see the end of this surge tube inserted into the tank. You are likely to need to pull it out with a pair of pliers as it has a tongue that is inserted into a buckle in the tank. Be sure to re-install this tube and put the end back in it's buckle before re-installing the pump assy into the tank
[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]The last picture is looking left into the hole in the tank and shows the end installed partially back into it's buckle. If it's not put back where it belongs, it could interfere with the float assembly, pump, or wires...
Another issue that came up when my 91 caprice wagon quit running while showing half a tank is filter sock orientation....
[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]This picture shows the correct orientation for this type of filter sock.... It is the ONLY orientation that allows it to lay flat in the bottom of the baffled area provided
[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]This picture shows the walled sump wher the pump pod and filter sock reside. The slot cut in the rear wall (bottom of pic) is where the fuel level float arm goes and the float runs in the chamber behind (below in pic)...... The filter sock is designed to be pressed into place ONE TIME ONLY! If you press it anto place at the wrong orientation, you wont be able to re-use it and may ruin the end of the pump while getting it off! (The ring has barbs like a fish hook inside of it)
I also discovered how fragile the the clip that holds the float arm is, so I recommend being VERY CAREFUL when loading and unloading the float into the tank!
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Sun Apr 22, 2012 7:25 pm
