gizmo

I recently inherited a 1996 chevy astro. The van has been taken very good care of (lived in a garage, regular maintenance, etc.) It has 136,000 miles and the fuel pump was replaced in November 2010. Here is my scenario. We drove it about 4 hours away for a vacation and when we got there we made a stop after getting off the interstate. Came back to the van, started it and it died a few seconds later. Started it again and no problems. Drove it to the hotel and turned it off while checking in. Came back and the engine would start and run for about 2 or 3 seconds and die or not start at all. I turned the key to the ON position and sometimes I would hear a squeeling sound at the back of the van for about 2 seconds. I swapped the fuel pump relay with the A/C relay which yielded no change. After twenty minutes, the van finally started. On the way home, I did not turn the engine off for fear it wouldn't start again. Once the van was running, I never heard the squeeling sound again. This was about a month ago. Since I have been home, I haven't had a single problem with it starting. Last week, I had to drive about 3 hours away. I reached my destination and turned the van off for approximately 10 minutes. I then tryed to start the van and again the engine would run for 2 or 3 seconds and die. I heard the same squeeling sound, but much louder and pronounced than before. After about an hour of letting it sit and messing with it here and there, it finally started and I made it home with no incident. The pattern seems to be that I only have problems after the engine has run for a considerable amount of time. Maybe the fuel pump is getting hot or it was bad when they put the new one in. Also on both incidences, I had at least a half tank of fuel, 3/4 on the most recent. Is there anything other than a fuel pump that could yield these results? I appreciate any help that you can offer.

ihatemybike

That is sounding very much like an aftermarket fuel pump. Anything other than the ACDelco/Delphi pumps have a long history of not lasting in these vans. I've had to replaced the fuel pump in everyone of my high mileage vans. If you are handy and have tools it's not that hard of a job.

Here's my webpage about Astro/Safari fuel pumps.
https://sites.google.com/site/astros...el-pumps-tanks

You're lucky, your van is old enough to not have to replace the much more expensive entire fuel pump assembly.

Also, we recommend changing the fuel filter every 20k miles.

PM if you want my number for phone support.

gizmo

You're the third person to conform my suspicions, so I think I'll go ahead and change the pump. I have a question. I was looking at Rockauto for the parts and they have a Delphi pump but not a Delphi strainer. Would the AC Delco strainer work? I would assume that they would all be compatible, but I thought I'd ask before I bought them. I will probably also do the filter. Is there anything else that I need? Thanks alot.

ihatemybike

ACDelco/Delphi both related to GM, as long as either brand is used the pumps last 100k+.

gizmo

I replaced the pump with a Delphi pump and an AC Delco Strainer back in July. So far I have had no issues. Everything seems to be fixed. Thanks for all your help.

ihatemybike

Glad to hear you were able to fix it.