what might cause fuel starve after new pump and filter and strainer in 2000 saturn LS2 3.0? engine accels well till starve for short time then repeat.
18 Answers
Any check engine light? Sounds like a bad MAP sensor. But it should trigger the check engine light.
Thanks, Reelin68, but no eng. lite, no codes, just like turning gas on and off. pressure good, then not, until it recovers, as if it is draining in-tank pump reservoir temporarily....Thanks again, mikber
Thanks for the advice, Ill go there before I pull the tank again. Had a couple of chevys myself, and small blocks, one I built for my Henry J, the other a steel crank 283 (with rock crusher) in an alfa romeo roadster. Mikber
But what are the tests for a fuel regulator? what does a pressure gauge reveal ? does his fuel pump stop running intermittantly ? who knows, but some readings would be nice, for the tests. would it be a ruptured diaphragm ? a vacuum supply hose disconnected ? spring broken inside ? I notice in the haynes, they give tests and inspections for the engine controls for preliminary part of a full tune, yours may be the same. For your kind of vehicle.
I suppose the fuel would have to be returning to the tank even though the vacuum was not there during the throttle opening time....hmm. What about a problem with the assembly of the parts inside the tank. Hate to say it but I have seen supply hose issues even though it looked ok going together. a theory.
Fuel starve solved, thanks to all for suggestions ! Unfortunately, the good folks at Saturn did not see the need for a screen at fuel reservoir inlet. I removed the complete reservoir, (difficult-made for ease of assembly,not removal).After I removed the STINKBUG from opening, (the dang things crawl in everywhere, probably also into nozzle at gas station) , fuel supply restored. In other words, make sure your nozzle is good to go, before inserting!
this may have been as puzzling as a jap-mopar-mini truck that I fixed one time,that would not start-run, (checked fuel,spark, ign, and cam timing, disconnected cat at header pipe) . found that it would run with 1 plug removed, ................all exhaust coming out the open plug hole! SECOND cat hidden in fat cast iron header!
........in tank, pump reservoir, Back at the beginning you were saying it's like that goes empty.(causing temporary starvation). So you have the vane type in a plastic cup that sits spring loaded to the tank bottom ? Wouldn't that have a screen sock for its inlet ? was the creature in the filler tube of the car? or inside the fuel tank, sounds like the latter.
Now you can pick the answer that saved you money and time sending you to the right place. Those reading after can use the info if they know where to look when having the symptoms.
this Saturn has pump(with strainer) inside tank, inside multi-section bucket, housing float unit, pump,and return hose. the pump unit can be removed without removing entire unit, although it's a bit tedious swapping old strainer over to new basic pump. The return hose connection as well as tank-to-reservoir orifice are in bottom-most section, that is a challenge to remove, with nylon clips hidden near the bottom. NO SCREEN at gravity inlet at bottom of unit !! A screen could be added easily,(with unit out) if concerned about next time.
They try to contain fuel around the area where the system draws it in, and cornering or parking off level should have less effect on starvation, I suppose, then your creature was able to get inside at fill up, but blocked the entry below and away from the pump starving the supply where the pump gets its fuel to draw out of. Many cars have just a simple vane pump within a cup. the cup has a strainer sock that lays across the bottom within a baffle that tries to keep the cup surrounded by gas regardless of cornering or parking off level. The fuel can still leave the baffle area under extremes since it has an opening to let the fuel in or out of the baffle area, enough remains to prevent no start. hopefully. Then yours was blocked at entry where gas was supposed to be sitting for the strainer to be hung?
You could say your creature came from the fuel station hose nozzle? Or some helper came along and inserted it ? With the cap off, is there not a flap that gets pushed open by the fuel station nozzle? I ask because so many failed parts in fuel are caused by tampering. I have found some things that you would not believe got in there by themselves.
Then you can pick the answer that sent you to the tank for supply starvation. I recommend a locking cap, but that still doesn't stop everyone. And keeping that area clean is important on many vehicles because things can get in as you remove your cap. That kind of dirt gets through and ends up in the filter and if it can get through that, it is eventually found in the injectors or floating in the fuel rail wreaking havoc intermittantly.
Amen to locking caps, and good filters to keep trash out of injectors. I would hope that most (if not all) auto/truck makers would include a good way of keeping foreign matter from blocking fuel entry AND use pre and post pump filtering. My son (his 2000 Saturn) keeps up with cleanliness, and knows what I know about good maintenance. HAPPY MOTORING
Why leave without choosing the answer that sent you to look for fuel starvation causes inside the pump and sender area ? Certainly saves the money you could have wasted on sensors and regulator without testing, or thinking. Not that you were going to go there next, but some folks go and buy things and start trying them because they already did the fuel pump ? Lets give credit where credit is due, or, what is actually your agenda ?
Manufacturers already have to provide so much for idiot proofing its putting them out of business. GM Delphi had so much complaints about the j-car pumps and what results from working on them at home, they made it all one module now. If you have them touch it a second time, they make you buy the complete tank and all. we dont want to see that. in my humble opinion.