Hey all,

My fuel pump had recently died on me (luckily I was home). I replaced the
fp relay and it started. I decided to replace the pump anyway just in case.
Here is the problem:
As I replaced the pump, I used the new wires as suggested in the instructions
and all seemed well. Keep in mind that I needed to have a running vehicle and
couldn't solder the connections. I clamped them down as best as I could and
they were secure.
As I was driving (after the repairs), the ses light came on for a second then
turned off. I didn't panic but it did concern me. Then a day later, I did it
again as I was making a turn at a corner and the car cut off this time.
Could it be that because I hadn't soldered the connections, the pump is
malfunctioning. And just to clarify, the connections either had to be soldered
or clamped with the design of the old one. No real clean way to wire it up
as the old connections were solidly connected to the pipes on the sending unit. So I blended the wire connections as best I could and used the existing
clamps to secure it.
I would like to know if this is the cause or could be something else. I might
add that before I changed the pump, the car did flash the ses light a couple
of times as I was driving right before the pump completely failed.
The old pump strainer was absolutely filthy. It was as brown as dirt.

HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I don't want to go out and start buying parts I don't need.
In any case, I will be soldering the connections regardless but want to
get an idea of what else it might be just in case that DOESN'T work.


craig

 

Did you check to see if any codes were 'stored' after the SES light came on ? It might give you an idea what the system THINKS is wrong. But sometimes it misleads us.

 

Yeah that's the first thing I did and all I got was the "handshake" code.
Nothing stored.
There's alot of things I am thinking:
02 sensor
map sensor
tps sensor
Don't know what's up

 

Does the car restart after it dies?
How much gas is in the tank? What I'm thinking is if you bent the fuel lines on the sending unit inside the tank the pump may become unsubmerged once you take a corner. Then once you stop because the engine died, the pump is resubmerged, and it'll fire back up. ???

 

Well keep in mind that working your way up from the dirt brown fuel strainer would be the fuel filter then the injector filters ... just something I would mention to keep you awake at night !!

You should have a minimum of five gallons of fuel in the tank to make sure your pump is submerged. Stealth908 makes a good point about having enough fuel in the tank to cover the pump when you corner.

Now with my Chrysler Concorde I have been seeing the SES light come on and go off leaving no codes for about 3 years. It did pass E-check 1.5 years ago. But I looked into it (Googled) and decided to change one of the O2 sensors. It did not make a difference. So I changed the second O2 sensor and I have seen NO SES light activity. But I admit I was just plain lucky this time. Those sensors were 'overdue' for replacement (per accumulated mileage) so that is the main reason for changing them out.

If you take the same corner at the same speed and with MORE fuel in the tank and you have no problems then I would suggest the tank was low on fuel. A different corner might have a different GRADE or TURNING RADIUS or require slower acceleration, etc. Try to keep the variables to an absolute minimum.

Keep us updated on what you are experiencing when driving.

 

gas tank is 3/4 full.
Keep in mind recently I had seen the ses light come on and go right off.
It just so happened that when I turned that one corner the car cut off.
And yes it did start right back up.
I had originally thought about the 02 sensor (don't know if it has 1 or 2).
The guy that had it before me removed that cat. So it's just a pipe to the
flowmaster exhaust.
I neglected to mention that I did the "paper clip" test for the codes. Do I need to
go to the dealer so it can be put on a computer to assure there are no other codes
or is the test I did sufficient??????????????

 

What you did is sufficient for our purposes. Having the fuel tank at 3/4 full certainly removes 'low fuel level' as a possible problem. Hate to think your problems are things that you will have to be 'chasing' for the next few months. It sure is nice when everything works properly. But it is also rewarding to zero in on something and absolutely fix it.

 

UPDATE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I soldered the connections on the pump. I also noticed that on the positive
battery cable, there was a loose connection on the plastic connector, I forgot
that I had an accident and the wire got erroded. I did a quick fix and forgot
that I had put a "band aid" on it. And I only new this because when I went
to fire the car up it didn't start. I jiggled the connector and the wires running
from it and the car fired up.
Needless to say, I fixed that connection (have to get an original positive battery cable to truly be secured). Come to find out that connection is
relative to the pump and pump relay.
No more ses light coming on during turns or otherwise.
However, I still need help with one thing.
If I go to somewhat really step on the gas (not necessarily trying to "punch it"), there still is a hesitation. If I give slow, steady pressure on the pedal
the car will accelerate in a normal fashion.
I have heard two things from some people. One suggested the iac and
another suggested the tps. Neither of the two have an extensive knowledge
of third gens but have some for third gens.
I am coming to you guys whom have had similar experiences and would have
better references to go by.
It hopefully is something simple like a sensor.
Help!!!!!!!!! What does this hesitation sound like????

 

I would suggest that you start a new thread specifically dedicated to 'hesitation when accelerating'. That might bring many replies. Your question will probably be 'buried' in this thread because of the 'fuel problem' label. Also, I am not sure this is specifically an electrical problem but the sensors are part of the electrical system for sure.

With your new fuel pump I assume your fuel pressure is adequate when you accelerate.

In any case be sure to use the 'Search this Forum' in this forum and maybe in the the 'Tech/General Engine' forum and 'TBI' forum. No doubt others have had problems like you describe. The previous threads could give you some insight.