Gas Tank Sloshing Noise + Hesitation

[sleek240]

I have a 1990 SE Hatchback with ~150,000 mi. Recently I have noticed an audible sloshing sound coming from the rear hatch area. It occurs whenever I come to a stop or take off from a stop abruptly.

I don't notice any smells or see any hanging support straps below the tank, so my uneducated guess is that the fuel pump may be loose in the tank and makes sounds as it gets pushed around.

The other reason I think this might be the case is that last night, as I neared the bottom of a tank while traveling on the freeway, I could feel the car hesitate as if fuel was not being fed to the engine properly.

I changed the fuel filter only 1 month ago, so I doubt that is an issue.

Any thoughts?

[sleek240]

Anybody? Bueler...Bueler...Bueler?

[sleek240]

Alright, since I haven't heard any advice I'm going to attempt to open up the tank from inside the hatch area. Maybe pulling the pump will show me a loose widget banging around.

Any thoughts? Cautions?

[corn322]

my car makes sloshing noises like that. my other 240 did it too. just normal I guess.

[Toahk]

Yeah mine does as well.

[NISTECH]

did you guys gut the interior? the interior of the car is the insulation for exterior noises. gas tank slosh is not all that abnormal. sleek your problem is likely unrelated

[sleek240]

I did a bit of checking and after taking out the gas pump, I could see a metal baffle that had slipped out of a zip-tie type connection and bumps around a bit. It doesn't seem to harm performance and is really only noticeable when the tank is getting low. I think I'll just live with it as taking out the whole tank to reattatch it seems like too much work.

The hesitation thing I mentioned must have been my imagination!

Thanks again guys