This past weekend, I took my 7 out for its first "long" drive to a town about an hour away. My parents drove seperately, partly in case my car broke down, partly because they didn't want to smell like exhaust fumes. The car drove fine on the trip there (except the low oil light came on), but coming home was a different story.

About three miles from where I left, my car died. I got it started and got another mile and it died again. Blown fuse. So I swapped out a good fuse and tried driving again. After about another 5 miles, it died. Mind you, this is all happening on the shoulder of the interstate. So my dad hands me a gum wrapper to wrap around the fuse (I know, not safe...but I needed to get home). So I made my way home with my car dying about every 3-5 miles, I would coast to let the fuse cool down a bit, then try firing it up again.

The problem was that the fuel pump would shut off when that fuse got hot. If I gently tapped the fuse box with my foot, I could sometimes get the pump to kick back on. I have been planning on wiring up a fuel pump switch in my car anyway (for safety...I don't have a key and I have to hotwire the car to start it). What I want to do is run a seperate (fused) wire from right before the fuse box to a LED on the dash showing the pump is on, to a switch by my driver's seat, and back to the fuel pump. I am hoping this will help things out and I will be able to tell immediately if my fuel pump turns off because of the LED.

I am wondering if this will work and if so, which wire would be best to tap off of to power the pump?

Thanks

 

Sounds like a short, don't install a switch until you locate the problem and fix it, or you may start a fire... what amp fuse do you have installed? Should be a 20amp. Follow the fuel pump wires from the pump all the way to the fuse panel, check for melted wires/corrosion.

 

Yea, it is a 20 amp fuse. I want to replace the fuel pump wiring because it seems that is where the short is. The rest of the electronics from that fuse run fine, it is just the fuel pump that is glitchy.

 

The wiring problems tend to occur under the driver's side storage box, where the wires go through the body grommet. Check here for a wire grounding.

 

No storage box, I have a '79 SA. But I will check around where the wiring comes through the body and see if that is the problem.

 

Run a new power wire (maybe 10 or 12 ga.) to a relay, then use the old power wire to operate the relay. Then run another new power wire from the relay to the fuel pump.

On the other hand, maybe your pump is either dying of old age or having trouble sucking gas out of the tank. If the pump is overheating, it will draw more power and blow the fuse.