2003suburban

First off, great forum and thanks for the help in advance.

I've got a 2003 suburban with 125k on the clock. I went to start it today and it was dead. Little bit of sputtering but overall a textbook no fuel situation.

I put a FP gauge on it and sure enough, no fuel.

The thing is, I could hear the pump cycling. I went under the truck and banged on the tank with my fist. I was actually trying to verify that it still had 1/4 tank of fuel in it.

Sure enough after banging on it, the truck started up. The question I am not sure about is if I need to drop the tank or not. I obviously don't want to The good news is it died in my garage, so I couldn't have been luckier there.

So do you think I was just dealing with a clogged pickup? Or bad pump? The pump has never been replaced to my knowledge in this truck. My dad is the original owner, I've had it for a year now.

I suppose there's no real way of getting around dropping the tank whether it's sediment or a bad pump....

Thanks everybody.

- Evan

intheburbs

I'd say you're either incredibly lucky, or have a bad/clogged pickup.

Does the fuel pump whine? Mine whined for about a year before it died, and I actually was lucky - it died about a thousand feet from my house. I seem to recall mine died around 110k or 115k.

2003suburban

Probabally both Sounds like I am right on schedule to have it fail. I'm not sure why the truck started after I banged on the tank but my gut says clogged fuel pickup sock. At this point though it makes sense to me just to drop in the new pump and go on with life. 300 bucks for a pump isn't bad when you consider the cost of a tow home from god knows where!

I've about got the tank out. The connector on that evap tank is a ****! I didn't know I'd need fuel line release tools to get the one fuel line off. Odd that one uses clips and the other uses the tool. I'm at a standstill for the night.

Besides that stupid evap hose clip, it's been pretty easy so far.

oldchevy

Only buy a Delco or Delphi pump. They cost a little more but are worth it. The other off brands do not last. After doing all that work, it is worth the extra money to buy the best. When I did mine, I got it off with a little screwdriver. I did not have the tool either.

2003suburban

I'll have to see if anyone has a delco in stock, I had thought about that last night as well. I ended up with an Airtex.

2003suburban

I'm about to rip my hair out. I can't get one of the quick disconnects apart for the fuel lines. One had the clips where I could squeeze with fingers, the other kind is black plastic and I can see what looks to be a blue insert holding it on.

I am trying to use a plastic quick disconnect tool. I can rotate the line a bit but I can't get this thing apart. I've been under the truck for more than an hour and I am not sure if I am even attacking it right. I can't seem to find a photo of it online either.

Themadangler

I had a 2001 suburban Ls that experienced the same issue. I got stuck a few miles from home when my issue occurred. Tow truck driver came, heard the symptoms and banged on the tank. Was able to get it started and home. Started my research and settled on an ac delco mu 1618 pump. Took me a while and a few beers to get the tank off. You tube video I watched didn't mention the connectors on the evap container so I broke one of them. No special tools were used to get the connectors off. Just used a small mirror and plenty of life get to see the connector and how to release it. The black plastic must be squeezed on the correct two side to release it. Also there are two connectors on the drivers side near the front end of the tank that are difficult to reach and disconnect.. Good luck

2003suburban

Alright guys, I got this problem all sorted out yesterday. Truck starts up great, doesn't crank as long and the FP at idle is more stable.

As for the connector I couldn't get apart, it was not the "squeeze the two tabs" type. I ended up dropping the tank down 8" or so and reaching up over the tank to undo the clips on the fuel pump itself. I then unclipped the lines from the top of the tank and lowered it down. I figured I could get that fitting apart after I dropped the tank out but I couldn't. I wish I had taken a picture of it. It was black and blue.

That said, except for that pesky fuel line situation this job was a piece of cake with a low tank of fuel. Hopefully I won't have to do it anytime soon though.