Fuel System FRUSTRATION

[scottytewshoes]

Hello there!
My name is Scott and I am the proud owner of a 1989 Dodge Ramcharger equipped with the 5.9L 360 V8. I've joined the forum because I am teaching myself vehicle maintenance and basic mechanics right now. It may be true that, "you cant teach an old dog new tricks", but Holy Shi* sometimes those old tricks save you $$$$!

Anyway, I've got a puzzle and I'm sure one of you knows how to solve it. I have what seems to be. combination an electrical & fuel problem. Currently i can't get the old girl running. I seem to be getting everything but fuel. There IS Power at the sending unit but the pump isn't turning on for more than a minute at a time. My cap, rotor, wires, and plugs were replaced two years ago & my battery is 9mo. old - i checked them all recently; no problems stood out. The engine turns over but there's no combustion. For a while there i had something draining the battery CRAZY fast. Multimeter measured -.01v per second! I've been cleaning wires and harnesses and something i touched stopped the weird battery drain apparently. Ive got a batt charger/booster/starter that I use to try to fire up the engine if its cold or early. I dont think its the batt cold cranking amps. My alternator has been inspected and tested at 2 diff shops (since im paranoid) and passed with normal results.i cut an access hole in the back of the ramcharger so that i could reolace those fittings and swap the fuel pump. Also changed the fuel filter. Treated the gas, oil, steering, radiator, atf and refreshed the coolant so all my fluids are good. Got a new air filter, fuel filter (translucent so i can see fuel flow through it at the sending unit, i kept the normal filter below seat as well), oil filter. Adjusted all my belts to proper tension. Cleaned out the air intake/parts of the tbi. I've been cleaning all the harnesses and putting grease on the connections and idk what else to do!!!!!

My Plan (for now):
Install universal pump in-line to bypass my normal fuel system haha. Please Help!


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[crazzywolfie]

installing an inline pump won't do you any good. i hate when people butcher stuff like cutting a hole it the floor. it is really not that hard to drop a fuel tank on these thinks. they even got a line on the sending unit to drain the tank. should be hanging off the passenger side frame rail. do you have spark?

 

[scottytewshoes]

installing an inline pump won't do you any good. i hate when people butcher stuff like cutting a hole it the floor. it is really not that hard to drop a fuel tank on these thinks. they even got a line on the sending unit to drain the tank. should be hanging off the passenger side frame rail. do you have spark?

Ya know i absolutely love the hole in the floor through which i can easily access the cap to the tank for inspection. Its not hard to drop the fuel tank, you got me there, but i prefer to work smarter - not harder. Tank access becomes important when your raising and lowering it frequently.
Anyway, i do have spark. The relay is putting out power but im losing power after the next harness.

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[crazzywolfie]

but the hole can also allow fumes into the vehicle. the tank nearly slides right out. i have had to replace a few fuel pumps. if you test the pump and things before you re-install them it should be good.

have you tried using quick start or anything flammable poured into the intake to see if it will fire?

 

[scottytewshoes]

but the hole can also allow fumes into the vehicle. the tank nearly slides right out. i have had to replace a few fuel pumps. if you test the pump and things before you re-install them it should be good.

have you tried using quick start or anything flammable poured into the intake to see if it will fire?

Ya i hear ya, i do metal fab tho so i made a clean ass cut and lined the cutoff with a specially designed gasket to allow me to plop it back in place and seal out any fumes.
The new pump seemed to work, and my truck started at first. I ran it for a half hour letting it warm up and cycle fuel. Starting driving down the street and didnt even make it a mile before the engine shutdown. At which point, i realized ive got a wiring issue elsewhere. The battery was being drained faster than the system could charge it. To date i have located and corrected the short, only to find out my new pump no longer worked. It appears my sending unit has failed or was blown out. I cannot buy a new one anytime soon, is it okay to hard wire the tank connections? Its that or an in line pump feeding straight from a gas can. I have to get this moved

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