[Special K]

Hi, there's a serious problem with my lude (88 2.0S) and I was wondering if anyone could help me out. It started last spring; the car would randomly lose power around corners or off the line. It didn't happen very much but about 6 months ago it would start losing power and eventually stall when the fuel got below 1/2 a tank. The car would always start again after about 5 min of cranking and waiting. I thought I'd live with it as I didn’t have much money (student). Now the car is almost un-drivable because it stalls when the fuel gets close to the 3/4 full mark. I just barely made it home from college today; my lude stalled 4 TIMES IN RUSH HOUR TRAFFICmg:

The problem is getting worse; my mechanic thinks air is being sucked into the gas line somewhere in or close to the fuel tank. Please post if you think you know what the problem could be. I don’t want to pay my mechanic 4 hours of shop time looking for something easily diagnosed. My fuel pump/filter was replaced at 231k, car currently at 256k.


Thanks for any help,
See my garage for most of the cars history and specs

 

[motoxxxman]

i dont care what the mileage is on your car and when the pump was replaced, cuz it sure as hell sounds to me like the pump is failing or the trap screen on the pump is clogged.

air wouldnt be able to get into the fuel line because the entire fuel line is under pressure. if anything, it would spew gas OUT of the line, not suck air IN. a lot of older mechanics think at first thought that the fuel line may have a leak and be sucking air into the line, but that only happens when there is a leak in a fuel line before the pump. ie: engine mounted mechanical pumps, or frame mounted in-line pumps. when a car has an in-tank pump, the pressure line cannot suck air in.

 

[alanoneil]

Isn't the fuel filter a 24k mile common maintenance thing anyway? Just get a new filter and see how that does ya. Cheap and easy to replace (look in the FAQ for the online manual, it's indispensable)

 

[Special K]

Thanks, ya I'll check out the fuel filters first, there's two right? One near the bottom rear of the car and the other under the hood?

Just a thought but does anyone know of a good Honda repair guy in Calgary? My current mechanic is a great guy and he treats me fair but he's more of a domestic/truck specialist and seemed wary of taking the fuel tank off and swapping the fuel pump. He estimated about $4-500 CAN for the part and labor.

I'm also trying to sell the car but I don't think I could get much for it if this isn't fixed.:|

Isn't the fuel filter a 24k mile common maintenance thing anyway? Just get a new filter and see how that does ya. Cheap and easy to replace (look in the FAQ for the online manual, it's indispensable)

 

[rudeludenotmeanthough]

the fuel line would bleed itself free of air, if air was in it.