PDA

View Full Version : Fuel Gauge/Sender issues


Jeff Ninebar
05-10-2016, 20:59
The fuel gauge on my 5 barely raises up past the empty line after filling up the tank. The gauge works and does get a signal when the ignition is on but i think the sender fuel level bit is getting stuck somehow. Can I pull the sender out and fix it or do I need a new one?
Trevhib
06-10-2016, 10:52
Yes you can remove the sender with the tank in situ. I think a bad earth at the sender can result in odd/incorrect gauge readings. It could also be a resistance high spot on the sender contacts, which you can apparently clean up with a fibreglass pen. It will be worth having a butchers either way. I don't think replacement is a big deal.

Some great info here:
http://www.rtoc.org/boards/showthread.php?3216-Fuel-sender-removal
Jeff Ninebar
07-10-2016, 12:03
nice one will take the sender out and have a look at it.
Alex
11-10-2016, 08:08
I've also seen them gunked up with crud, so we'll worth removing the sending and having a look :agree:
Jeff Ninebar
28-10-2016, 09:32
took the sender unit out and had a look, the float part doesn't seem to be floating in the petrol, when I hold it in free air with the wires connected and move it upside down the fuel gauge on the dash goes up to full, and I can hear the float move and hit the top of the unit but when its back in the tank it doesn't seem to float up in the fuel, any ideas?
Alex
28-10-2016, 15:32
Without actually looking at it it's hard to know. Does the mechanism seem hard to move/partially seized?. Perhaps the float has a hole in it?. At least you've found the souce of the fault.
RussellT
30-10-2016, 21:50
Be careful messing around with petrol and electricity. I would sugest that you disconnect the battery when the sender is out of the tank.
Jeff Ninebar
31-10-2016, 15:01
Without actually looking at it it's hard to know. Does the mechanism seem hard to move/partially seized?. Perhaps the float has a hole in it?. At least you've found the souce of the fault.

I cant actually see the float as it is shrouded in a plastic cylinder with metal around it. may just buy a 2nd hand one and see if it sorts it out...


Russel, you are not wrong, staring at a full tank of fuel and wiggling the connector around on the sender did make me slightly worried, hence why I stopped and decided asking a question on here was a much safer method :eek: :D