hey,
just bought a 95 sunfire 2.2L for my winter beater, it's got quite a few miles (136K) but runs great.
However, the fuel gauge apparently doesn't work properly because I ran out of gas last night with 1/8th tank left (according to the gauge). The "check gauges" light came on, and the car stalled as I rounded a corner. Luckily, I coasted into a parking space. I tried restarting it twice and decided that it was out of gas.
I put about 3 gallons in with a gas can, sure enough, car fired right back up. Everything was fine until after about a half hour of driving home, I started hearing this high pitched whine at idle (goes away under acceleration). Seems to be coming from the rear of the car, so I'm assuming it's the fuel pump. The car choked out on me right as i was getting home (wouldn't accelerate, only wanted to idle). I tried starting it again this morning, and it's back to running properly, but the whine is still there.
Any idea why it would be whining like that?
I'm hoping that the fuel filter is clogged, and that's what's making the pump whine, but I don't know. I really hope it isn't the fuel pump. how much would a shop charge for filter replacement? (i've done it before on my 98 Z24 and it was AWFUL - stupid plastic tabs - and i KNOW i don't even want to attempt it on a 14 yr old car).
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98 Z24 5-speed
anyone? I'm going to try changing the fuel filter myself (ugh) tonight...
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98 Z24 5-speed
It sounds like a dead / dying fuel pump. It probably burned up when you ran it out of gas.
2.2 97 Cavalier......the "Crapalier"
The fuel filter is indeed a bastard in my previous experiences but I got myself the tool to remove the plastic clip easily and PB Blaster is my new friend
I would imagine if you sucked the tank dry it would have picked up the crud at the bottom of the tank, so the fuel filter could indeed be jammed up now. I can't recall if there was a screen filter on the fuel pump assembly itself though?
J
your pump is dying. its a good idea to change the filter too, but it wont fix it.
