did my fuel pump go out???
 

Im thinking (hoping) my fuel pump just quit.
It started acting funny a few months ago....making funny noises. And im guessing that the pump mounted to the frame under the drivers side is the only one?
Anyways....it started a few months ago sort of making a whining noise, cutting in and out when you turned the key on to start it. But it always started and ran just fine. Until tonight.
Were on our way to the store and i thought it seemed the motor was "clattering" a bit more than normal. Not much at all, but i thought i DID notice it. And then it just acted like it was slowly running out of fuel, til it just quit.
And when we stopped on the side of the road, i dont hear that cutting in and out whining of the fuel pump anymore.
Do you guys think thats what it is? the fuel pump?
I guess in the morning i was gonna pull the line off the front side of the pump and turn on the key to see if it comes out. Will that work to test it? Or do you guys have another idea of what it might be, or somewhere else to check?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Mike

Sounds like a fuel pump possibly.

You could simply open the drain valve with the key on, to see if you have pressure behind it as well.

where is the drain valve? On the filter bowl?

Much easier to just drain the fuel bowl and then turn the key and see if the fuel bowl is refilled with fuel. If the fuel bowl does not fill then the issue is between the fuel pump and the bowl. Do you have any leaks anywhere that you might have overlooked? Trace the line back to the pump and make sure it is OK. I have not seen a line get plugged but it could happen. If all seems Ok then concentrate on the pump itself.


Dang: BigAl beat me to it....

Yes, the yellow "drain" lever. It will drain down the front passenger's side of the block if you would like to catch it.

Attachment 53287

Ok. Thanks for the pic and the info.
I will drain the bowl first thing in the morning.

Just out of curiosity, how long have you owned the truck and when was the last time you drained the water out of the fuel bowl?

I have had the truck a little over a year. I just changed the fuel filter a few months ago.

When it messed up earlier tonight, it just happened so suddenly. Like maybe the pump finally quit, and the fuel that was in the bowl is what got me the next half mile before it just died. But I don't know.

I drain my fuel bowl about once a month or so. Some owners have disconnected their fuel bowl heater and failed to hook it back up properly so they now have also disabled their water in fuel indicator. The fuel out here in SOCAL is not the greatest and I could never make it that long without my indicator light coming on. If you rotate the drain lever and nothing drains out that will give us a good starting point. I will check back in tomorrow and see what you found out..

If I rotate the drain lever and nothing comes out, what does that mean? Or did you mean after I drain it and turn the key and nothing comes out?

Key on for getting fuel out, but watch out - it really shoots out if it's there.

Is your fuel gauge below 1/4?

I'm going to go out and look at it once it's daylight but, if it acted like it ran completely out of fuel when it died, will there be any in the bowl to drain?

I would open the drain and see if anything comes out, then cycle the key 10-20 seconds which would normally be long enought to fill an empty bowl and open the valve again and see what you get.
It may be difficult to hear the fuel pump over the noisy vaccuum pump (at least on my truck) but if you have another set of hands avail I would put a hand on the fuel pump itself when you turn the key to feel/hear it come on/grind/do nothing etc.
Good luck, a fuel pump isn't real difficult to change if thats the problem.

I've got about 3/4 tank.
Where is the vacuum pump?