Hi im new here and could use some help getting my 87 Ford working right,

Its an 87 F-250 4 wheel drive pickup with a carb. 460 auto tranny if it matters and here is the problem.

You can switch the tank with the switch and it wont switch from front to back. Supposedly if you bang on the bottom of the tank it would switch but i cant get it to work. I was thinking maybe its some tank selector valve or somthing there is a fuel pump directly under the drivers door and if that doesnt work it wont run (believe me if you dont jiggle the wire somtimes it no run gotta listen for the whine)

Any help would be appreciatted

 

I do not know of any 87 F-250 4 wheel drive pickup with a carb. 460 that had a fuel pump on the frame. Only the fuel injected trucks had this pump there from the factory.

So the frame pump must be an add-on.
You should have one pump in each tank and a electric motor driven fuel selector valve on the frame.

It should be wired like this:


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The title says 87 but who knows I guess Ill have to take some pictures tommorow morning but the pump on the frame looks just like the pump for the fuel injection but it is most certainly a carb if the pump in the back tank is bad would that not allow it to switch

 

The FI trucks used the fuel pressure from the tank pump to switch the fuel tanks but not the carb. 460.

Send us a photo of the selector valve on the frame and the pump on the frame.

I think some have used a high pressure pump add on and a special non stock fuel pressure regulator to get the pressure down to the carb pressure.

Does the VIN code say it is to have a carb. 460?

 

1986 F-150 XLT Extend Cab, 300cid 6 cyl, 2WD, Dual Tanks
<HR style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #d1d1e1; COLOR: #d1d1e1" SIZE=1><!-- / icon and title --><!-- message -->Hello All, after reading this thread slowly and carefully, I have thought of another solution to the dual tank selector valve/fuel guage problems that plague this series of Ford Trucks.

But first my problem: Fuel guage does not work on one tank, and only very occassionally on the other tank. It seems one tank is always fuller and both tanks are not reliable when estimating Miles To Empty. Here in Texas, I need a Fuel Gauge!

My first idea to a solution: Replace the Fuel Tank Selector Valve with an aftermarket Pollack valve...The one Ibought has no return ports. Then I could just cap off the return lines to the tank. Also, I could do away with the return line from the motor (SINCE MY TRUCK IS CARBUERATED). YES, IT'S CARBUERATED!

WHY would FORD put such a RUEB GOLDBERG system on this truck...other than to only use existing parts off their shelves...knowing they would rake in the huge bucks on replacement parts---does this sound about right?

My second idea to a solution (after reading this thread): Replace the Dual Fuel Tank Selector Valve with two Single Tank Reservoirs from "86-89" Bronco/II thereby only slightly modifying the routing of the 6 lines and eliminating the problems of crossfilling, valve malfunctions, etc. I can make a bracket to mount the two single tank reservoirs side by side off the frame.

I think my second idea will fix all the problems associated with the dual reservoir system AND it will also aide in troubleshooting problems with tanks, sending units, in-tank fuel pumps, tank selector switch & wiring problem identification. WHAT DO YOU ALL THINK OF IDEA #2 ?

I will check this in a few days for any ideas/problems/suggestions that this forums members can see/shoot holes in the second idea to a solution.
Thanks for a great knowledge base, isn't the internet great!

 

In Texas without the return to the tank you are asking for the truck to vapor lock.

No I do not buy any of your ideas and I think the Ford idea was a good one when building the fuel system for trucks on years that had Carb trucks and FI trucks.

Most of the problems I have seen on the 3 pumps system comes from the driver either not switching tanks on a regular basis, the truck setting for a while or junk in the tank.
Other than that just fuel pump going out after years of service being replaced by cheap pumps.

The low pressure 2 pump system for the Carb trucks the motor driven selector valve sometime fails again after years of service or one of the pumps.

They also had a wiring problem under the Power and Fuel relay sockets for both systems.

The fuel sender to the gauge could also corrode over and the gauge would be off or the float sometimes would sink.