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Six Signs My Car Needs a New Fuel Pump

The fuel pump in your car, truck, or utility vehicle should last about 100,000 miles. Once you’ve reached this mileage milestone, it will need to be replaced most likely sooner rather than later. Usually, the fuel pump will give you signs that it is dying. Advanced Automotive lists six symptoms of a dying fuel pump below.

1. Decrease in Fuel Economy

A reduction in your vehicle’s fuel economy is one sign that the fuel pump is malfunctioning. Sometimes, the pump will get stuck in the open position and release too much fuel into the engine. The engine will burn away the excess fuel and your gas mileage will tank if you’ll pardon the pun.

2. Overheating and Stalling

The fuel pump uses the fuel it draws out of the tank to keep its motor cool. If the pump is faulty and cannot draw enough “coolant” out of the fuel tank, it will overheat. When the fuel pump motor overheats your engine overheats. If the engine gets too hot, it will stall.

3. Power Loss When Stressed

Your vehicle needs more fuel when it is operating under stressful conditions. These stressful conditions include hauling a trailer behind the vehicle, overloading the vehicle itself, or driving up steep inclines. If the fuel pump cannot produce the extra fuel, your engine will lose power.

4. Reduction in Fuel Pressure

One way to gauge your fuel pump’s viability is to purchase a fuel pressure gauge and test your vehicle’s fuel pressure. If your automobile is not producing fuel pressure within the limits stated in your owner’s manual, your fuel pump is going bad and needs to be replaced.

5. Sputtering at High Speeds

Your automobile also needs more fuel when it is operating at higher speeds. The faster you go the more fuel the engine uses. Again, if the fuel pump is unable to push enough fuel through to the combustion chamber to support the higher speed, the engine will lose power and sputter.

6. Hard Starts or No Starts

Finally, eventually, it will get difficult to start your automobile. This is because the fuel pump is unable to draw fuel out of the tank and release it into the engine. If you continue to ignore the problem, you may reach a point where you will be unable to start your car, truck, or utility vehicle at all.

Advanced Automotive in Stanwood, WA, is here to help, so give us a call today. We can test your fuel pump and replace it if it has gone bad.

photo by blacklionder from Getty Images via Canva Pro
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