Zenobia K'ael

hi guys, i just started having issues with my car dying out from lack of fuel and im not sure why, this started after i accident ran the car completly out of gas courtesy of "not the worlds most accurate fuel gauge" owell.so once the car dying from lack of gas popped up. i at first thought it was another dirty fuel filter courtesy of a rusty *** tank. so i switched it out, sure enough there was crap in the filter. put a new one in, and it seemed to work fine... until it died out about 1/3 of a mile from my house and i got to push it back... fun

so i went under the car and noticed it wasnt getting much gas from the tank into the fuel filter. (the fuel filter is transparent) and it wasnt filling up up the filter like it usually does. strange, now i started to think that maybe my fuel tank got clogged with rust that filled the outlet nozzle and it wasnt letting fuel get to the fuel filter. so i took the check valve out an used an air compressor to blow air the other way through the fuel line to the tank, i could hear it bubbling inside the tank no problem, put it all back together and it helped! i put all it back together... and it dies again. lovely. luckily i got it to my driveway before it completly died out. and i was able to push it back easily from there. i put it back on the jackstand, and the rear and front fuel filter and pretty much bone dry, wth!?!?!

at this point i get ready to drop the tank, i go under the car, tank the line that feeds the fuel filter off directly from the tank off, and no gas comes out -_- lovely. so i put the fuel filter on, bypass the check valve for a quick test, have someone else turn the key to on and i can see that the fuel is starting to come out, i quickly detached the line going to the pump. have it turned off, and put the line into a portable gas can so i can start to drain the tank and it starts to flow VERY fast, so i can rule out "rust clogging my tank".

i test the check valve, no problem

next i take the line intake for the front fuel pump off and the line in front of the fuel pump off and blow compressed air through it, this made the biggest difference and it ran longer. it could sit on level ground and idle without stalling out, which is something the previous fuel pump couldnt do.

it worked for a bit again, and then dies out... again. i bring it back and run the same test i did before except this from i put a paper tower in front of the line to see if there is anytthing in it, some fuel was blown out with comressed air along with a VERY small ammount of what looks like super fine rust. (the front fuel filter has pretty much nothing in it after being there for months) thinking maybe there is a clog in the line, i have someone watch after i put all back together and have someone watch what kind of fuel flow i have at the carb. VERY good.

at this point im stump, ive done everything i can and all i can think is that its the fuel pump that is having issues.

GSLSEforme

From reading your post,there is no doubt that the fuel tank has rust issues. You will only know how much when you get it out of the car. It sounds like there's a lot of junk floating around that builds up around fuel delivery tube.

You don't mention if stock pump or not,if stock there are test specs in fsm. It is likely the fine rust silt? has made its way thru the filters and further up fuel system,pump,hard lines to front of car and likely into carb.

Whatever you have to do to the tank,clean,tank liner,replace if beyond help...you will next need to make your way forward from tank. Replace rubber lines,purge all steel lines til they blow clean,new filter(s),new pump? and address contamination in carburetor.....

Unless you deal all at once with it,you'll never be rid of the problem(s).

theDevilX

Sound like you're on the right track, the thing with these dirty fuel issues is you have to be methodical and thorough, start at the back & work your way through.
I've been through this before on my FC and on my boat, its not fun.

Starting with the tank, drop it, inspect it, flush & do whatever's necessary to get it so that it will no longer contaminate your fuel, I'm not familiar with the pipe layout of an FB, but assuming there are rubber hoses between the tank & pump then replace those. Make sure you check the breather pipe isn't clogged as well as that can cause engine cutouts if the tank can't replace the fuel you take out with air.

After this its the hard lines, flush, backflush, rinse repeat, once you know you have good flow move onto the the next part.

Basically start at the rear and make your way to the engine. Its a royal PITA but its the only way to be sure.

Zenobia K'ael

well, i have an aftermarket fuel pump which has been working perfect for the past 5 weeks, and lord knows what the previous owner had in there before that. luckily the one has a lifetime warranty and im getting it replaced tomorrow.

i forgot to mention that before this happened one of my battery terminals came loose mid drive, voltages were haywire, going between 8-16v, im guessing that fried the pump.... hopefully thats it, its just weird how it drives fine for a bit, and then nope, its like its pump slow now or something, i guess i'll have results tomorrow, hopefully most of my hair stays attached to my head. lol

i plan on flushing as much crap out as i can for now and doubling up fuel filters. i dont have the time to complete clean that tank out right now. and i might go with a custom tank in the future anywy, but that is another project and another time.

GSLSEforme

The condition of the fuel tank and what’s in it is the source of your problem.
What you’re proposing to do is essentially a waste of time and money,your efforts are best spent addressing the fuel tank problems.
No number of filters,fuel pumps and blowing air back in tank and blowing out fuel lines will matter.

You are fortunate your car is home at this point,take advantage of that and set about fixing the problem(s).
You are not going to be able to continue to drive the car in this condition.