Ignored the warning, paying the price. FUEL PUMP

[qship96]

Recently I have been noticing my fuel pump is making noise, but usually only when tank is less than 1/2 full- Now I realize that this is the classic warning that the pump is aging and near the end of its lifespan {has 155,000 miles on pump} and have kept a spare FPCU and alligator clips/ wire leads just in case the inevitable happened.......well today it happened.Started car in cold driveway {35 degrees} and heard the initial 30 second much louder sound the pump makes upon start up when temps are near freezing- thought it was a little extra loud, but all was ok after the initial 30 second drill- drove about 3 miles and all of a sudden I thought, this is strange, the fuel pump went totally absolutely silent{ radio was off}- 1000 feet later as I merge onto expressway the engine dies- pull off to shoulder and upon trying to restart, the dead silence from pump told the story- thought I would just try swapping FPCU to see if the problem was the pump itself dead or the FPCU.......NO screwdriver to remove trunk panel to access FPCU......good god, what happened to that combo screwdriver I had always kept in the cargo net????/

Since it was freezing out with 30mph winds and no way to fix on the side of the road, called the flatbed to drop off the Q at local shop and returned home- what a day,the Q has its first breakdown requiring towing and stranding its owner {that maybe a simple stupid screwdriver could have prevented}

[OwnerCS]

Sorry to hear about the break down Qship. If you need another spare FPCU, I'll be glad to help as used ones seem to be available around here..

[qship96]

Thanks for the offer! I have 2 spares waiting to replace the original !!!!! Will be interesting to see if the pump died or the excess amp draw took out the fpcu- either way the pump needs replacing - anyone have any luck with aftermarket pumps if a OEM one is not available?

[BCC93QT]

Meh, reminds me of last winters break down. Pump quit of course in the middle of a snow storm. Wasn't that cold but i pulled and put the fuel pump in on the side of the friggin road. Not to smart probably coulda gotten killed. Doing the pump is easy its just trying to keep your hands warm and placing them little centimeter sized bolt screws back in.

[qship96]

Being stuck on the shoulder of a highway {within 200 feet of a exit/entrance ramp} was a major concern of mine also, especially during the holiday season with all the distracted drivers/shoppers in a rush to save 50 cents at the big box stores!

[paranoidjack]

Never leave home without it! Saved my a$$ many times with having these with me...

[Q451990]

Wow... and you didn't learn from my experience back in 2003?

post372142.html

Heath

[qship96]

Got the estimate today......$591 parts and labor........can be finished by tomorrow morning-about double what it would cost to order part from Joe and do it myself in the 33F weather we are having.....not sure it is worth the extra cost?????

[Q451990]

It's a pretty easy job... I'm cheap, so I'd do it myself, but that's just me. Depends on your garage situation and how much you're worried about opening up a fuel tank indoors.

Heath

[qship96]

Shop is fixing it today- too damn cold [low 30s as a high all week with 25-40 mph winds} to do outside, and no way I would risk working with fuel system in the attached garage! Oh well, hope some other nico member learns from my mistake. Shop said pump itself died as they hooked 12volts/ground directly to pump and it no worky.

[qship96]

Got Q back today- they installed a Bosch #69648 pump, made in Japan- the pump looks identical to the OEM wonder if Bosch is the original supplier to Nissan? For those that need a new pump , AMAZON has this pump listed for only $185 including FREE shipping, quite a deal if you shop this part # around the web, advance Auto and some others want $340+++ for the same part!

Anyways, spoke with tech, and they actually removed tank from trunk to access pump instead of removing deck/seats because he did not want fuel possibly spilling/smelling interior....never heard of that process discussed here- wonder if that is easier or harder?

So far so good after a long test drive


***** for those with pumps beginning to make noise, I suggest you jump on the $185 amazon deal and not wait too long like me and end up with a breakdown and $600 repair bill !!!!!!!! I thought I could wait a little longer since the pump had only recently began to make noise...I was wrong, 155,000 miles was all she had in her!!!

[Q451990]

Did it fry your FPCU as well?

Heath

[Lokim]

Even better!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayI ... 0295655655

Under $160 shipped...

[qship96]

Did it fry your FPCU as well?

Heath

No FPCU seems to be operating OK so far { it is the original one with 265K on it} I have 2 spares, one kept in trunk with SCREWDRIVER and jumper wire/alligator clips just in case it fails- I think the 30F weather may have kept it from overheating with the failing pump? Time will tell. The new Bosch pump is silent, moreso than the previous OEM pump was when first installed.

[SunnyTk]

dont mean to thread jack, but im having a very similar problem, except i hear my fuel pump priming....although it is really loud, and it has been getting louder these last couple of weeks... it started and ran fine for about 30secs, then died out.

whats the jumper wire trick for the fpcu?

[qship96]

dont mean to thread jack, but im having a very similar problem, except i hear my fuel pump priming....although it is really loud, and it has been getting louder these last couple of weeks... it started and ran fine for about 30secs, then died out.

whats the jumper wire trick for the fpcu?

My pump got extremely loud during the priming stage for the few weeks before it totally failed also- I would order a pump today if I were you as it is gonna fail soon, and leave you stranded as I was! You can jump the FPCU, but it wont be of much help at this stage as your pump has possibly only minutes to live,especially at full speed! Personally I would not trust driving the car AT ALL at this point-mine left me on the side of the road less than 3 miles from startup at my home! Search "fuel pump" on this forum and you will come across pictures of which wire to ground to bypass the fpcu, but again, you are playing russian roulette at this point!

[goody90q45]

........whats the jumper wire trick for the fpcu?

Unplug the connector from the FPCU. With the connector's clip up, jumper from the lower left pin to a ground. The frame in front of the gas tank works good. As Qship stated this is only a test of the FPCU and not the fuel pump and could accelerate the pump's demise driving too long while bypassed.

[SunnyTk]

Ok thanks guys. I just want to find a way how to test the fpcu because i am almost certain that my fuel pump isnt my only fuel issue...


ALSO, one more thing. I heard that the z32 300zx TT fuel pump is the exact same as my q's fuel pump... is this true? cause it will save me about $300 for me to get a Walbro 255lph fuel pump for a 300zx than a OEM q45 fuel pump.

thanks for your help

[qship96]

Today I took apart the old Genuine Infiniti fuel pump to learn why it failed- seems that it died of old age {155,000 miles} as the only fault I could find were the brushes so worn down they made intermittent at best contact with the commutator.Interesting that the fuel actually passes through the entire motor assembly and brushes- now I know why the fuel comes out black from the fuel filter when one changes it- the black is the carbon dust from the brushes wearing during use, NOT bits of disintegrating rubber fuel line as some had assumed. Even with its entire life spent seeing ethanol fuel, all metal looked shiny brand new and hoses that connect to the sock were in brand new condition.

The pump is made by JECS unisia, a joint venture of Nissan and Bosch {since sold to Hitachi in 2001-2002 according to Wikipedia- no wonder my Bosch replacement pump looks identical to the OEM!!! Learning that fuel bathes{and cools} the entire internals of the pump to help keep it cool and the fact that the entire external body of the pump is tightly wrapped in a THICK rubber blanket,I now question how important it really is to keep tank level high enough to immerse the pump as some on here have preached.

[qship96]

Ok thanks guys. I just want to find a way how to test the fpcu because i am almost certain that my fuel pump isnt my only fuel issue...


ALSO, one more thing. I heard that the z32 300zx TT fuel pump is the exact same as my q's fuel pump... is this true? cause it will save me about $300 for me to get a Walbro 255lph fuel pump for a 300zx than a OEM q45 fuel pump.

thanks for your help

Cant see HOW you could "save $300" When
IOS sells the correct factory pump for your Q for $255 plus shipping, Amazon sells the Bosch #69648 pump{same thing} for $185 shipped- seems like a no brainer decision to me- plus I hear the walbro is loud?

[SunnyTk]

i went shopping yesterday for local (canadian) prices for fuel pumps. i dont buy anything over the Internet. walbro i can get for $120 any day. and the oem was $300+ and the bosch was around the same price

as for the walbro pump.... ive heard it being really loud and really quiet.... it was really quiet in my s13 and s14 240sx, and even my brothers integra. but it was really loud in my friends rx7.... doesnt make a difference to me as long as it works lol

[qship96]

Walbro sounds like a gamble to get a quiet one! The new Bosch is dead quiet in my Q, quieter than the previous oem one was when first installed. Internet shopping is the wave of the future, get used to it as many brick and mortar stores are quickly disappearing!!!!!

[elwesso]

How did you find the pump on amazon? I would have never thought to look there.

[qship96]

Once I learned the part number for the pump {Bosch 69648} I just went to Amazon and typed it in the search box and it popped up! Most places want over $300 for the exact same Bosch pump, including Advance auto and other well known stores!

here it is http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-69648-Origi ... 124&sr=8-1


Earlier this year, I found Amazon to have the best price on a pair of front sway bar endlinks with bushings also, paid $41 shipped for those!!!! Worth checking before spending!!!

[elwesso]

Once I learned the part number for the pump {Bosch 69648} I just went to Amazon and typed it in the search box and it popped up! Most places want over $300 for the exact same Bosch pump, including Advance auto and other well known stores!

here it is http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-69648-Origi ... 124&sr=8-1


Earlier this year, I found Amazon to have the best price on a pair of front sway bar endlinks with bushings also, paid $41 shipped for those!!!! Worth checking before spending!!!

I guess maybe what I should have asked is where did you find the part number to begin with? I imagine for other parts like the sway bar end links you could just type in the part number.

[qship96]

Wes, all I did was google "1996 q45 fuel pump" and got a page worth of different places listing brands and model numbers of pumps with prices, took the Bosch part number and entered it on amazon and it popped up. You can also just go to amazon and type "1996 q45" and all parts they sell for your car show up!

[elwesso]

Hmm interesting.. They also sell idler pullies for about $20, definitely better than $60 for OEM and about the same price as buying new bearings and pressing them in.

[qship96]

play around on there, they even have tokiko blues and upper links!!!!!! Sometimes without any notice,stuff goes on unbelievable sales too!!!! Once for about 3-4 days, they had Redline SI-1 injector cleaner for only $60/case of 12 DELIVERED price!!

[aces805]

Hey qship96 I want to give you props and say "THANK YOU!". This thread has come at teh right time. My 94 Q45t has 139k miles and the fuel pump is original. The buzzing/humming is gradually getting louder as teh months roll on. I ordered the very same Bosch pump from amazon.com (because of qship96's post) a week ago and it arrived 3 days later! I have the pump sitting in my trunk. Do you guys recommend that I replace it right away or try to get teh most out of the original unit? Also, how easy or difficult is it to DIY?

[qship96]

You are welcome! Replace the pump NOW before it leaves you stranded like I was - I would have saved time and money replacing it when I first heard the noise!!!! In many cases, waiting too long also destroys the uber expensive pump control module......DO NOT WAIT !!!!!!! Learn from my mistake, please!

There are plenty of threads with great pictures on DIY replacement, you just need a few hand tools and a warm place to work.


P.S. did your pump come with the white "sock" filter attached to the hose on the pump?