Fuel Tank Fill Rate Suddenly Slow

[TheKid7]

2018 RAM 1500 3.6L REG CAB 2WD 26 GALLON TANK

Purchased October 2018, Current Mileage: 26,000

Starting about a week ago when I try to do a routine fuel tank fill, the gas fill nozzle keeps clicking to off after very short fill intervals. This has been happening on three tank fills (I drive a lot.). When I filled the tank today I manually very slightly squeezed the filler handle such that the fill rate was slow enough so that it did not click off. My hand got sore doing that. I did a rough estimate of the fill rate while doing this (~1.0 to 1.2 gallons per minute).

What could be causing this problem and what should I do to fix it?

Would this be covered by the Bumper to Bumper Warranty? I would hate to take it to the Dealer with the assumption that it is covered by the Warranty and have them try to blame it on something else and stick me with a large bill.

Thanks in Advance.

 

[crash68]

Unless it's something physically damaged, your 3/36 should cover it. Guessing it's a problem with air vent that's internal to the gas tank

 

[Shiva]

That's what I was thinking as well. The small rubber vent tube that goes from the tank back up to the fill nozzle. A quick peak up from laying under there might show a kink in it.
No kink in the fill or vent linesI would think definitely something else under warranty.

 

[TheKid7]

I looked inside the fender and did not see any problems that stand out. No obvious defects. Both the fill hose and the vapor line look OK.

I guess that the other line which goes to what appears to be a filter (held closed by a single tie wrap) is a carbon canister vent line filter (?). This filter (?) is supported by a single clamp connection to the small vent line that attaches to the fill nozzle housing.

In an earlier forum post I mentioned that I have a 'spare' ram truck now. Both 2018's (one Regular Cab and one Quad Cab. Both 2WD V6's). I also looked inside the fender of the Quad Cab and used it for comparison, assuming that it is OK. The fuel line stuff looks exactly the same.

The problem of the fuel fill with the Regular Cab seems to have started all at once. However, thinking back, I think that the Quad Cab 'may' be developing a problem. It seems like the Quad Cab gas fill has to be set at the lowest setting in order to stay filling. It seems like it used to be able to handle the highest fill rate setting without clicking off before the fill is completed.

I misplaced my digital camera or I would have took a picture to show.

Does anyone know how low the fuel tank level needs to be in order to properly drop the tank, if necessary? The Regular Cab fuel tank currently has around 22 gallons in it. With normal weekday driving it should be down to around 12 to 14 gallons by Thursday Evening. I was thinking about seeing if I can get an appointment with the Dealer for Friday of this week.

Thanks in Advance.

 

[crash68]

The dealer mechanic can pull a full fuel tank if needed, they'll use a transmission jack. The other way they get to a fuel tank is lift the bed, a couple of bolts a few wiring harnesses and use a two post hoist to lift the bed.

 

[Mike Murphy]

Most of the repairs to fuel filling concerns was because the charcoal canister/vent valve was full of dirt or stuck closed. There is a line on top of the fuel tank that goes to the charcoal canister/vent valve. The vent valve stays open to allow air out of the tank when filling and allows air back into the tank when fuel is used. It keeps the tank from bulging when filling or imploding on itself from vacuum. The air/fuel goes by the charcoal canister first to remove the hydrocarbons per emissions. The vent valve closes to allow evaporator emissions testing by the ECM/PCM when commanded. The vent valve is also known as the Evaporative System Integrity Module, also known as an Evaporative System Integrity Monitor or ESIM and/or could be called a leak detection pump. I would be interested in what you find.

 

[TheKid7]

I took the Truck into the Dealer the day before yesterday (Tuesday). They said that the problem was the check valve at the end of the gasoline fill hose just before it goes to the gas tank. The Dealer said that they ordered a new gasoline fill hose and that the Truck will be ready today (Thursday).

Is that where the gasoline fill check valve is located? I thought that I read somewhere that the fill line check valve was part of the fuel tank at the inlet.

They said that my Truck should be ready today.

 

[TheKid7]

Today, I checked with the Dealer and they acknowledged that changing the fuel tank fill line did not fix the problem. They ordered a new fuel tank which is estimated to arrive next Tuesday.

 

[RamCares]

Today, I checked with the Dealer and they acknowledged that changing the fuel tank fill line did not fix the problem. They ordered a new fuel tank which is estimated to arrive next Tuesday.

Hi TheKid7,

Please keep us updated on your dealer experience. If we can be of any assistance, feel free to send us a direct message. We'd be glad to help.

Mark
Ram Social Care Specialist

 

[TheKid7]

On Tuesday (8/13/2019) the dealer said that the new fuel tank did not arrive on time and that they were trying to locate it.

On the afternoon of Thursday (8/15/2019) the dealer said that the new fuel tank had arrived today and that they were still working on installing it in the evening.

I went to the dealer at about 3 pm on Friday afternoon and I couldn't find my Service Representative (I was told that he was busy for a while with a test drive.). Another Service Representative told me that the Truck was showing that the repair work was still on going. My reason for going to the Dealer on Friday afternoon was to peal off, from the inside of the windshield, my State Tax/Inspection Sticker so that I could pickup replacement plates and a new matching State Tax/Inspection Sticker.

I received a call at about 6 pm. on Friday evening, stating that my Truck is ready and to come by and get it on Saturday Morning.

I just got the Truck. I filled the Tank at Maximum Rate with No Pump Nozzle click-off (until the tank was full). The approximate rate of fill was 9 gallons per minute to put in about 21 gallons of additional fuel in the tank.

 

[18ram18]

So a new fuel tank solved the issue......weird.

 

[TheKid7]

So a new fuel tank solved the issue......weird.

The Service Receipt that they gave me just showed two items: The new fill line and the new gas tank.

I just slid under the side of the truck which has the fill line and looked to see if anything is obviously wrong (I don't fully trust dealer work.). I couldn't see anything wrong. As a comparison, I looked at the stuff around the fill line on my other 2018 RAM Truck and they look the same.

I went for a drive in my other RAM Truck yesterday. I then went to exactly the same gas station and exactly the same pump/pump nozzle and filled up with gas using the maximum fill setting. I forgot to time the fill with my watch but the nozzle never clicked off during the fill operation until the tank had filled up. I conclude that the fuel system of both trucks are probably normal now since they behave the same.

 

[chrisbh17]

I thought the thread was on here but it might be on the z forum... A new filler neck part was released, I believe for 2018+ production, that solves the issue.

The tank itself was probably fine, I have a feeling the filler neck was the real fix.

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

 

[Bob Lilley]

Having the same exact problem with my '17 3500 DRW. Guess I'll see if I can snag that updated filler neck. THANKS for the info to all.