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Question about Car Bucking

C

Coutes

CEG'er
Joined
Jun 3, 2006
Messages
113
I have noticed that when has about a quarter tank of gas and i punch it it bucks like crazy and as of recent i've noticed that if i take a corner and accelerate it starts to buck..Now i've read over other posts regarding the issue and a lot of people say the fuel pump in these cars either work right or they don't..Now i'm curious if any of you have this same exact problem, what you have done to fix it, and if it is just the fuel pump, how much does that cost to replace...I'd really appreciate any help..

thanks
mike
 
There are two outlets in the tank, a high and a low. Due to the perils of gravity, it's the lower outlet that gets gummed up by sand, leaves, bear feces, etc. This becomes noticeable when the fuel level drops. You can get at the tank by cutting a hole in the floor under the back seat, or by dropping the tank. Though its more work, the conventional wisdom goes with dropping the tank. Besides, you can actualy clean the crap out of the tank once its out of the car.

Bear in mind, some cars will never see this problem. Those that are routinely exposed to dirt roads and dusty conditions are at the greatest risk. You'll find quite a bit on this when searching.
 
there is already an openning in the floor under the back seat, some just need to open it up more to be able to get the pump out
 
If you're comfortable dropping the gas tank, I've read of people cleaning a lot of crap out of it when they change their fuel pumps. I've read of cases here where people don't clean out the gas tank and continue to have fuel pump issues after a backseat swap.
 
Start by pulling the pump module out through the back seat and throwing away the inlet screen on the bottom of the module. You don't need it. There is another conventional sock filter inside the module prior to the pump.

The @#$%^&* filter screen is too small and too fine. It has been a source of trouble since that style of pump was introduced part way through the 99 model season.

It is highly likely that you need to do nothing more and is easy enough to do that you should do it for drill before further evaluation and concern.

Do check the inside of the tank for cleanliness while the pump is out.

There is a how to about pulling the pump here somewhere. If you find the last photo in the how to you can see the filter screen I'm talking about.
 
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That one that bill has was horrible. Sock was black had peices of plastic in it and stuff. Had dirt in the tank. Not tons but there was some there
 
todras said:
Out of all the pumps I've done I've never seen dirt in a tank.
Click to expand...

Nor I. But I've never done it. :) I'm conveying what I've read on the CEG over the years. I recall a few stories of contaminated tanks and a lot of recurring fuel pump issues.

I believe that I may have to clean the filter/check the pump sooner than later and haven't decided how I'll do it. I've read a lot of differing opinions on the subject. There are drawbacks to working with gas in the interior, cutting metal to enlarge the hole, etc..
 
i didn't like the idea of cutting up the floor so my personal preference was to drop the tank. it wasn't hard and i think it was easier to work on. my tank did have lots of grime and sand type material in it. the tanks that are having these problems were messed up from the factory i think, because of the filler tube not installed right. mine was not installed right causing the filler neck to push the rubber grommet from it's seat and letting in dirt and debris into the tank. now you can take it out the back seat method, and clean the tank, but you won't keep more debris from contaiminating the tank again. if you drop the tank you can fix the filler neck if it is messed up. i do agree though to ditch the bottom screen, i did and if the tank is clean it isn't needed because of the sock filter. i now have never had the problem again.
 
In addition to the FSVT pump, there is an updated contour pump that is similar to the Focus setup. It still uses the 155lph pump instead of the FSVT 255 though. I've got the 255lph FSVT pump in my car only because it was cheaper and have the screen removed and so far so good.

I do believe the newer setup is better, as instead of a little screen, there is a big filter out of the side of the pump housing. The downside to going to the newer Contour setup is that you need the special dealer tool to remove the lockring that the old pump housing locks into. The new setup is spring loaded and gets locked down by the ring at the top of the fuel tank. It is more expensive to go this way and if you do not have access to the lock-ring cutter, it may not be do-able, but I believe it to be a better setup.
 
I would definitely start by just pulling the pump out through the hole. Then, if you see lots of dirt in there, take it further and drop the tank. There's no reason to start out by doing that. Cutting up the metal really isnt that big a deal, just make sure when you're done that you seal it up good, thats all. My pump went on me last summer, I swapped in a Focus SVT one (My car is a 2000 and has the returnless rail) and cleaned the sock, and I haven't had any problems since. Cost me $100 and maybe two hours of my time. Easy fix.

Save yourself the trouble and just do that before you take any drastic measures. Dropping the tank is a pain, especially when there's still some gas in there.
 
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