I'll try to keep this short. About a year and a half ago I started getting a fuel drip and realized the fuel lift pump was leaking. I understand this happens as they start to wear out and the fuel comes out a weep hole. I find a semi-retired guy who says he'll repair it for a lot less, but when I pick it up he says it was just a leaking hose, he tightened a clamp and then did a bunch of other easy stuff I didn't want to pay for. Anyway, a week later it's leaking again and I can't get a hold of him, so I'm pissed and I don't do anything more about it except put some cardboard under it in my garage. For a year and a half it has only leaked maybe a tablespoon of fuel when I park it, but now it's starting to leak substantially. So, here are my questions;

1 - If it's lasted so long, is it safe to say that the fuel pump is ok? I would think a failing one wouldn't last a year and a half.
2 - The leak got worse as temperatures cooled, suggesting it is a leaking hose rather than the weep hole
3 - Where is the weep hole - can you see it? When I looked at the valley with a puddle of fuel in it a couple months ago, I couldn't see fuel coming out of any connections or any weep hole. Maybe I could see it now that it got worse.

I've read the post about how to change this pump, but my truck is a CA model and frankly the post scared me off trying to do this myself. I don't know what a tappet is but I know I don't want one in my crank case. But I lost my job a couple months ago, so paying a shop $1000 to do this repair isn't really an option either. But the puddles of fuel are getting too big, so I'm going to have to do some damn thing.

Whaddaya all think?

 

By the way, the truck is a 1995 with about 265k miles on it.

 

the 95 Cali trucks are just like a 49 state truck...


You will beable to undo the fuel bowl, the turbo y pipe, and take the fuel pump out and then put a new one in.... It takes some smaller hands and some patients, but you will beable to do it.


The tappet should stay with the pump, but to fix this, once the pump is loose, turn the engine over by hand til it starts to lift up, at that point the cam has lifted it up enough where you will be able to grab it by hand.

To put in the new one, put some grease on it where it goes in the fuel pump and you should be set.

 

I would think the hardest part is the banjo bolt at the rear with the turbo in place. 1 1/4" nut. You might want to clean the bowl up good and put new o rings on the fuel bowl and FPR since you'll have it out. NAS automotive has a great kit. On installation set the pump and crank the engine again so the pump can seat without putting to much pressure on the tappet and cam. Tighten the bolts down evenly so the pump doesn't break. The weep hole is pretty hard to see. Down low toward the front of the engine. You would need a mirror on a stick and a flashlight. If the pump is real dirty you may not be able to see it at all. It will only leak when the engine is running. The pressure bleeds off. Check the fuel restriction sensor on the FPR for leaks also.

 

I changed one on a 97 truck with Cali emissions not too long ago. It was definatetly more difficult than the 49 state trucks Id doe before but it is doable. The banjo bolt is not accessible from the front at all due to the flying saucer what I ended up doing was removing the motoe lifting eye fromthe passenger side rear bank and reaching under the turbo pedistal with a stubby 3/8" ratchet and adapters to use a 1/2" drive shallow impact socket and then very slowly was able to turn it out. getting ti back in wasnt quite as bad. The new fuel pump comes with grease holding the new tappet in place the old pump you have to be careful with to avoid losing the tappetas there will be no grease or anything to hold it in place. Prior to doing this one Id done several of them but never the cali version. I did the job in about 6-7 hrs giving lots of time for cussing and buying more small tools to reach the bolt. otherwise it probably took about 3-4 hrs of actual work. But Matt is right the 95 version is like the 49 state, so much simpler.

 

As matt said rotate the engine to push the pump up and out of the block but be aware the tappet is only about 1-1.5" on length so wouldnt nessasarily say you can grab it by hand, I can usually get one finger on the side of it to bind it inplace while I remove it or use some angled needle nose pliers to reach under it and grab the tappet so I dont drop it while pulling the pump the rest of the way out.

 

X2 on what Oversize said. If it is indeed a Cali you will need the right tools! You don't have to take off the turbo like many think. This is how I did mine https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/6...ml#post4782663
Goodluck and let us know how it goes!

 

To answer a couple of your direct questions:

1 - If it's lasted so long, is it safe to say that the fuel pump is ok? I would think a failing one wouldn't last a year and a half.

I drove mine for a year and a half with a leak until it got to the point I felt like I had to change it. As well as thinking about the probability that I might be leaking a greater amount of fuel while driving due to higher engine RPM. My bet is that it is gone.

2 - The leak got worse as temperatures cooled, suggesting it is a leaking hose rather than the weep hole...

Possible... But you probably want to be sure... Time to check it out.

3 - Where is the weep hole - can you see it? When I looked at the valley with a puddle of fuel in it a couple months ago, I couldn't see fuel coming out of any connections or any weep hole. Maybe I could see it now that it got worse.

You need a mirror on a rod to see it, its on the bottom of the pump, but in front of the hole in the block where you insert the pump rod/tappet (if I remember correctly). You may want to have someone there to rev up the engine, and a bright flashlight. If you don't see anything coming out of the hole while running, keep watching after you have it shut down.

I personally have not worked on the Cali engine, but there are lots of write-ups on here on how to do it.

I changed my non Cali in a couple hours taking my time.

And a safety reminder: Remember to be carefull of moving parts while under the hood while she is running.

 

I had a leak on my 97 that i searched for, for awhile. It was also worse when cold. turned out to be the vacuum switch" or "restricted fuel filter sensor, on the driver side where the fuel filter is. below are the p/n
(Ford) E8TZ-9S283-A $54.00
(International) 1809435C1 $14.00
this leak also dripped into the valley and i only noticed leaking when i pulled into the driveway since there is enough grade to let the fuel run out the back.
hopefully this is your issue and not the fp. its about a 1 min repair.

 

Good call...

I also had this leak (as well as my Fuel Pump Weeping)...