Car Problem - Fuel Guage.

[stevew007 10+ year member]

go to a chevy/malibu forum I'm sure you will get an exact answer

 

[Louisiana_CRX 5,000+ posts]

The GM trucks have had this problem for years the sending unit is built into the pump and goes bad its about a $500 part and $500 labor at the dealership because tank has to be dropped to replace....It should be a recall but its not...hopefully yours won't be that bad....

 

[dragonrage 10+ year member]

The GM trucks have had this problem for years the sending unit is built into the pump and goes bad its about a $500 part and $500 labor at the dealership because tank has to be dropped to replace....It should be a recall but its not...hopefully yours won't be that bad....

Mechanics tell you it's built in but that's usually not true. Especially dealerships who don't give a *****... they'd just as soon drop in a whole new gas tank with the fuel pump and the sending unit if they thought the customer would let them and pay for it.

Anyway, it's DEFINITELY not true for the Malibu. As I said before, the part is separate and is $80-100. Why you ignored that comment, I do not know.

Quick notes on procedure: Pull fuel pump fuse from trunk, try to start car for a couple seconds to depressurize lines. Get the car on a lift or 4 jack stands (4 will be much better than 2 so you can have some room), disconnect the lines (they are quick disconnect type; the tools may help but you may not need them), undo the straps, and drop the tank. From there, the part (at least the one I bought) actually comes with instructions.

If you've got the 2.2, there's an exhaust pipe towards the side of the tank that you might be able to get around without disconnecting. I believe the V6 will definitely need some exhaust stuff disconnected. Suspension is not in the way.

 

[bubbagumper6 5,000+ posts]

go to a chevy/malibu forum I'm sure you will get an exact answer

This. A car audio forum is not the place to go for vehicle problems unless they're audio related...

 

[akheathen Premium Member]

the reason shops quote a new pump, is that they tend to officially come as a whole pump/sender/housing drop-in unit on most gm's since the late 90's. however, the pump, and sender can be purchased separately, just pick a good brand. the thing is, though is that the sender can have a wear life between 100-160k, depending on how constant the fuel level is, and about 120k is the expected typical life of a pump, so replacing both at once just makes sense, really. one other thing to look at- the earlier style connector was a lesser design than the newer style, and you should check for an update. in all honesty, it takes me about an hour, or 2 in worse case, to pull the units out, just be real careful with the plastic lines, as you can bust those off easy if you just drop the tank down and tug on them. once you look at your float sensor plate, you will see a fan of lines, and a little tang that rides on them. a bad unit will have worn those down, likely at the top if you like to keep a full tank, and even can wear the tang down significantly. also, i have seen poor contacts on the jumper wires that go from the ext plug to the units themselves. this would be fuel contact sensitive. i suggest running the fuel as low as possible, if you haven't thought of it already. if you have some clean buckets and the proper fittings, you can even pump most of the fuel out via the fuel rail, or return line. once again, pick a higher quality pump, or sender, if you want it to last. i've seen many go out in a few months of use.

 

[cbuts 10+ year member]

my car is a 06, 3.5 l, shop quoted 220 cash to drop tank and replace sending unit $90

thanks guys

 

[JDuhaime309 10+ year member]

Its a fuel sending unit that went out on the pump. Not that hard guys... Don't give the man asking for help bullsh*t about getting a different car. He obviously likes his car enough. Give the man a straight answer no bullsh*t, quit being ignorant as hell.

 

[audioatg 10+ year member]

Why not just say. Its a Fuel level sensor. It sits right on the side of the fuel pump. I am sure that the check engine light is on because of it. I am sure its a fuel level sensor erratic reading code.

When you say sending unit. Ppl might not understand what that means. Fuel level sensor is a better way of saying it. As it is what the sensor does. Tells you how much fuel you have. Its a common problem on all GM vehicles. As to fuel pumps going bad in fords.