How Much Does It Cost To Repair A Fuel Pump

One of the things nosotros take for granted on our cars is our engine working without any issues. Despite information technology existence a complex automobile with multiple moving parts, nosotros expect information technology to only work.

Whether yous're driving to piece of work, the shop, or the gas station, at that place are a lot of things going on behind the scenes.

Ane of the most fundamental is fuel moving from the fuel tank, through the fuel lines, and into the engine where it's combusted in order to drive your car foreward.

To make that happen though, you need a working fuel pump.

The often forgot about fuel pump is a mainstay on almost all internal combustion engines, minus some older engines which are often found on motorcycles.

Your fuel pump either sits in your fuel tank directly, or just exterior the tank itself and is responsible for drawing the fuel from your tank, and then feeding it into the fuel line which takes the fuel itself to the engine.

Your fuel pump likewise filters out nasty impurities in your gas tank before sending the fuel itself to the engine. There's also a fuel judge that attaches to the fuel pump which is quite literally afloat. By floating around in your gas tank, information technology gives yous a fuel reading on your dashboard.

There are 2 types of fuel pumps, the electronic fuel pumps found on newer vehicles, and the mechanical ones plant on older models.

The first electronic fuel pumps came under development in the late 1920s, and started to be integrated into U.s.a. vehicles in the 1950s, with it condign commonplace by the late 1980s into the 1990s.

The electronic fuel pump uses an electromagnetic switch in conjunction with a diaphragm to provide suction in order to pull the fuel into the bedchamber.

A mechanical fuel pump uses a like diaphragm and valve as the electrical fuel pump, just it's driven by either the camshaft or by a special shaft that runs off of the crankshaft.

The good news is both fuel pump types are fairly reliable, and they ofttimes final over 100,000 miles.

The bad news is they do get out, and when they do, your car isn't going to be going anywhere fast.

To be honest, information technology won't exist going anywhere at all!

How Long Does A Fuel Pump Last?

The average fuel pump volition last for virtually 100,000 miles, although I've seen my fair share of cars that yet accept their original fuel pump working just fine fifty-fifty after 200,000 miles. And then why do some fuel pumps last longer than others?

There's a few reasons. Generally speaking, if you use higher quality gas and keep the tank at least a quarter total or more, you can await your fuel pump to last longer all things equal.

Here are my reccomendations to go along your fuel pump running for as long as possible:

Always keep your fuel tank at to the lowest degree a quarter of the fashion full. Your fuel pump can heat up, or dry out and crack if at that place'due south not enough gas on a consistent footing.
Gas acts as a coolant for the fuel pump, and if the tank runs dry then in that location is no liquid to cool the pump. Overheating shortens the life of the fuel pump.
The more than gas you have in the tank, the easier it is for the fuel pump to piece of work because of the increased weight putting pressure on the fuel pump. Without this pressure, the fuel pump has to work harder which can crusade it to article of clothing out faster.
Supercede your fuel filter often. Impurities and whatsoever debris from gasoline or from grit and dirt that has gotten into the tank volition sink to the bottom. When the fuel on the lesser of the tank is sucked into the fuel pump, the droppings could cause harm. The fuel filter can protect the injectors and engine from droppings but the pump is affected by the debris.
Make sure yous have a good seal with the gas cap. If the gas cap is open up, air and debris can get into your fuel tank, which can cause harm to your fuel pump.
Avoid gas pumps and gas stations that announced to be poorly maintained, or are otherwise rusty/muddy. If at that place is water in the gas or corrosion on the nozzles, this can cause damage to the fuel arrangement and shorten the life of the fuel pump. Cheap gas is merely fine, equally fuel quality is well regulated in the The states, but gas pumps in a country of disrepair are withal present on occasion. As recently equally 2022, in that location was an issue with BP gas stations in Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin, BP with over 8 million gallons of gas being contaminated.

Signs Your Fuel Pump Is On The Manner Out

Rust, dirt, or debris in the gas tank can kill a fuel pump very apace. Rust occurs on older steel tanks while after 8-ten years, plastic tanks start to break downwards.

Diagnosing a expressionless fuel pump is ordinarily fairly easy, which will save you on testing and diagnostic costs. What ordinarily happens is the car has problem starting and often will die. Finally, the automobile itself will reject to kickoff fifty-fifty though the engine is cranking itself and getting plenty of juice.

A bully way to check if your fuel pump is bad is to check your fuse box. See if any of the fuses are blown. If the metal in each fuse is good, movement on to the fuel pressure test port. You can become a pressure judge for about $20-$30 bucks on the spider web.

Find your automobile'south fuel force per unit area exam port and crank the engine. If it's non getting any pressure, congratulations, y'all accept a bad fuel pump.

Don't you experience handy now?

Now, there are other signs to expect out for prior to the automobile dying which may indicate you have a bad fuel pump. If you find any of these, just your car is all the same running, nosotros advise yous to accept your car to a mechanic before it decides to die on you.

1: Whining Noise From The Fuel Tank

Your fuel pump commonly will hum quietly when driving under normal weather condition. However, an crumbling fuel pump can make a noise. Of course, this can also be acquired by fuel weather condition such as not having enough fuel, or having bad fuel, merely in most cases, this is one of the first signs your fuel pump is on the way out.

This tin can be caused by debris in the fuel pump. Unfortunately the fuel filter doesn't filter out microscopic particles (particularly dirt and metal) that can cause impairment to your fuel pump.

The just protection comes from the inlet screen. The inlet screen only blocks large particles and cannot block the microscopic particles that wear a pump out over time. When a pump gets worn, it may get louder and spin at lower an RPM causing starting, driveability, and functioning bug. The start sign of this is a "wirrrrrrrr" noise that you can hear when turning on the car.

2: Trouble Starting

An crumbling fuel pump can have difficulty generating the required corporeality of pressure level to start your car. It tin all the same pump fuel, but information technology may require several cranks of the engine or multiple turns of the key. This symptom is far from definitive on information technology is own, as this could be a leaking fuel line or a bad starter. Ane way to tell is to use the pressure test described above.

3: Sputtering Engine

A sputtering engine can exist caused by an improper mixture of fuel and air where your engine is likely running lean or rich. If y'all notice your engine sputtering at loftier speeds earlier returning to normal operation, your fuel pump may be to arraign. Without the right pressure, your engine may not be getting the fuel information technology needs. This is a dead giveaway that your fuel pump needs to be replaced.

4: Problem Climbing Hills

When your engine is forced to work harder, information technology requires more fuel. A prime number instance of this is when climbing a steep loma. If yous've got a bad fuel pump, your car can feel similar it's severely underpowered while climbing, even if you're pressing the gas pedal. A weak fuel pump won't be able to regulate and accurately provide the correct amount of fuel to the engine in guild to generate the right corporeality of power.

five: Random Surges

An aging fuel pump may still work intermittently and send a surge of fuel into the engine which tin feel like y'all're pressing the gas pedal fifty-fifty though y'all're going at a consistent speed. When the fuel pump is working properly, it should evenly evangelize fuel to your engine.

half-dozen: Bad Gas Mileage

A bad fuel pump may exist causing your engine to run with a rich fuel mixture, which tin burn boosted fuel. However, this is far from definitive, equally this trouble tin be related to any number of things, including a bad O2 sensor, a cracked fuel line, or bug in the engine itself.

When Should Y'all Replace Your Fuel Pump?

Information technology is usually unnecessary to preemptively supercede the fuel pump, simply if there is some other service existence performed on the vehicle that involves removing the gas tank, and the electric current fuel pump has been running for over 100,000 miles, then replacing it could salvage money and fourth dimension in the long run.

The biggest expense (as we'll talk about later) when it comes to repairing the fuel pump is labor. If the tank is already off, you could salvage several hundred dollars having it replaced at the same time because the assembly is usually less than $150, while the unabridged chore can toll upwards to $600 when labor is included.

If the fuel pump seems to be surging then not delivering plenty fuel, get it inspected by a qualified mechanic correct abroad. The fuel system is necessary to keep the motorcar running and a poorly maintained fuel system is downright hazardous.

And so, Is It Hard To Replace a Fuel Pump?

Whenever I go asked this question, the answer is always "maybe". Replacing the fuel pump isn't difficult, per say. If you follow the right guide, or get the possessor'south manual, and follow information technology pace by stride, you'll exist able to exercise the repair.

It's completely possible to do with hand tools. If you're able to read these words and understand what I'chiliad saying, even if you've never done whatever work on your own car, you volition be able to replace your fuel pump on your own.

With that existence said, while it may not exist difficult, it certainly can be time consuming, especially if you've never worked on your car before.

Back when I was in my early 20s, earlier I became a mechanic, information technology took me about 6 hours of work to fix an external fuel pump on my minivan. The same job now takes me about 30-45 minutes, tops.

Merely don't be discouraged – y'all certainly can do information technology, if you lot take some gratis time and a few minor paw tools which you lot can get off Amazon or eBay.

How Much Does A New Fuel Pump Cost?

Unfortunately, there's no one sized fits all respond to this question. Replacement pumps are different based on make, model, yr, and sometimes engine size. Replacement pumps may look different considering manufacturers upgrade the designs occasionally.

There'due south also the issue of replacing but the fuel pump itself, versus the entire assembly itself, which is made up of the fuel pump, plus the fuel sending unit and a few periperhal systems. In some late model cars, the fuel pump cannot be replaced seperately and the entire unit must be replaced, while in tank electric pumps can exist replaced seperately.

To make this easier, I'll give yous a toll range on both.

What'south The Toll To Fix Your Fuel Pump If You Do Information technology Yourself?

Doing the repair yourself is an excellent choice. Replacing your fuel pump isn't every bit hard as you lot might imagine. As usual, I've got to shout out YouTuber ChrisFix, who's excellent video I've attatched to show you how easy it is to repair your fuel pump on your own.

I highly recommend you watch this video if y'all decide to do it yourself. Depending on the brand and model you take, this may be piece of cake, or information technology may be fourth dimension-consuming. For instance, on a Camero, fixing the fuel pump involves removing the exhaust, the driveshaft, and the lower subframe just to drop the gas tank.

Near gasoline passenger vehicles since 1996 have the fuel pump within the fuel tank. Yous generally supercede the entire module – fuel pump, force per unit area regulator, level sensor, since non much more parts toll and the plastic becomes brittle over time.

Also change the fuel filter and its hoses, which is usually above or abreast the fuel tank. For a common vehicle, parts cost ~$100. In well-nigh, yous must drop the fuel tank, and first drain most gas if needed. Some vehicles accept an access panel in the body to get to the top of the tank to remove the associates without dropping the tank. In many, the assembly is secured with a large steel collar, and that might crave a special tool to unscrew. If you utilise hammer & chisel to turn it, don't brand a spark.

Brand sure you avoid using power tools, considering the terminal affair you want is a spark. That's not what y'all want.

The total cost of replacing your fuel pump on your own will be somewhere betwixt $20-$150 dollars (for the office/assembly) and at least a few hours of your time (at the very least). Depending on how long it'll take for your make and model, it may end up being worth it to take it to the mechanic.

What'south The Cost To Fix Your Fuel Pump If You Take It To The Mechanic?

The cost of fixing our fuel pump at the mechanic will really depend on the number of labor hours it takes to replace the part.

The fuel pump itself is often no more than $150 dollars for even the well-nigh expensive assemblies. Labor rates however, vary across the state. I've gone dorsum through our database for the labor rates, and calculated the national average labor rate.

And guess what? It'due south almost $90 bucks an hour, although this tin vary betwixt $60-$140 dollars depending on what land you're located in.

And then now all we need to know is the total labor time. As a mechanic for over 20 years, I can tell yous that this will vary greatly. Whatever machine with an external fuel pump is going to be easier and sometimes will take less than an hour.

However, if you're replacing the entire fuel associates and demand to drop the fuel tank, things can become more complicated. On average, this will take somewhere between 2-3 hours.

We'll average it out to 2 hours of labor – fifty-fifty though this can sometimes be much more.

On average, y'all should expect to pay between $400-$600 dollars on average to accept your fuel pump repaired at the mechanic. Although this tin become as loftier as $1,000 or equally low as $200. It really depends on your car.

Then, What Do You Practice After Replacing Your Fuel Pump?

In my opinion, the most of import matter you tin do when you're replacing your fuel pump is to either replace your fuel tank if it'due south in poor repair or otherwise clean it out. As I mentioned before, a muddy or damaged fuel tank can impairment your fuel pump.

If y'all end up replacing your fuel pump, but yous don't clean your fuel tank out, the aforementioned effect tin repeat itself if the fuel pump was damaged past a dirty tank.

Now, regardless of whether you're taking your car to a technician or doing it yourself, I highly reccomend you follow this 10 step process to clean your gas tank properly to avoid damaging your fuel pump and having to get through this procedure once again.

The 10 step process:

Drain the fuel tank into a container that can concur fuel. It may be helpful to use a mechanical fuel siphon to exercise this.
Clean rust and debris from the fuel tank. Yous can use an abrasive cleaner, something chemical, or otherwise.
Remove the fuel pump.
Swirl gas tank, removing any residual gasoline. Pour out the remaining gas and debris into an approved container and dispose of information technology properly.
Brand sure the tank is in skillful repair. Expect for any leaks, holes, or otherwise. If the tank is damaged, replace it.
Clean the tank interior with a low-suds soap and water mixture.
Swirl cleaning solution inside the tank.
Drain tank and dry out with compressed air.
Wipe out the tank with a lint-costless towel.
Confirm the tank is completely dry. You should let it sit in a shaded surface area for a few hours to dry out.

Facing A Fuel Pump Repair? You Don't Have To Pay For It, If You Exercise This

While the fuel pump is covered with most extended warranty companies, Protect My Auto is far from "any" extended warranty company. Our everyman-cost program, the Driveline covers more than the basic coverage you lot'll go from other extended warranty companies, including your starter, and important $.25 similar your air workout, windshield washer pump, and alternator.

Best of all, we're able to do this at a lower price than our competitors because we're a direct warranty provider.

Every bit a proud direct warranty provider, you'll never be mistreated when you bring together the states. In that location'due south a reason our boilerplate review score (Consumer Advocate, Consumer Affairs, BBB) is a 4.3/five.0, and I want you to detect out why.

We know there are a number of other corking extended warranty companies out at that place, nosotros know we're the best and we want to prove it to you.

That's why, for a limited fourth dimension, all new policies come with gratis oil changes and tire rotations. There's no pressure. You can visit our online quote portal to see how affordable information technology tin be to fix your fuel pump.

Considering we're a direct warranty provider, you may find that our plans are significantly cheaper than what y'all're paying right now.