Thread: Td5 fuel gauge problem

Originally Posted by JawKnee

Hi guys so i just got back from a 460 km trip in the 40 degree heat, on the way back my fuel gauge was depleting quite fast from 3/4 full to empty in about 20 mins of highway driving. Pulled into service station, nothing leaking, only mange to fill in 15 lts or so of diesel in the tank so still pently fuel in it. Its due for a service in a week so would like your guys opinion on the matter, cheers

Easy Have you had a fuel pump replaced or removed recently ?
If not im guessing your fuel pump has unclipped it self .
You will have to remove the pump to either replace it or clip it back together
I wonder what brand pump it is if it has been replaced recently

Thanks rangie, its hasn't been replaced since ive owned it 10 months now, must of unclipped it self will check it after. Restarted it after it cooled down abit, fuel gauge went back to half a tank which it should be atm then shoots to full....weird

Any dangers of driving around with an unclipped or faulty fuel pump for a week before I'll bring it in?

Basically if a pump goes wrong on a TD5 it is bad news.

Usually the issue is not the gauge, it is whether the pump delivers diesel correctly or not. While it does ( easy to check, no weird noise with ignition key on from the pump... all fine) enjoy and don't worry about the gauge.
But the connection to the fuel gauge might just be faulty, so when you have time, either make a hole in the back to access the pump easily or drain the diesel with a hand pump into a jerry can or two and drop the tank.
this is a good time to clean out all the bull dust from the bottom of the tank, remove dead flies and general gunge.
Also clean out the inside of the plastic bottom and of the pump.

if I could upload some pics of what I usually find in there I would but it only takes URLs that is a bit beyond me.

NEVER EVER buy a cheap chinese pump. Unless you love taking out the tank.

Cant you pull the fuel pump in a Defender without dropping the tank?

Originally Posted by Slunnie

Cant you pull the fuel pump in a Defender without dropping the tank?

Like Anita said, you can you just have to cut an access hole in the floor.

It's worth doing it if you plan on having it for a while. Makes access to the tank so much easier!

Originally Posted by Anita

Basically if a pump goes wrong on a TD5 it is bad news.

Usually the issue is not the gauge, it is whether the pump delivers diesel correctly or not. While it does ( easy to check, no weird noise with ignition key on from the pump... all fine) enjoy and don't worry about the gauge.
But the connection to the fuel gauge might just be faulty, so when you have time, either make a hole in the back to access the pump easily or drain the diesel with a hand pump into a jerry can or two and drop the tank.
this is a good time to clean out all the bull dust from the bottom of the tank, remove dead flies and general gunge.
Also clean out the inside of the plastic bottom and of the pump.

if I could upload some pics of what I usually find in there I would but it only takes URLs that is a bit beyond me.

NEVER EVER buy a cheap chinese pump. Unless you love taking out the tank.

Thanks anita for the reply, no strange noise from ignition, pump sounds the same as before. Hopefully it isn't the pump as that would be quite costly. Anyone know if the pumps at davis prefromance are good? TD5 Defender Fuel Pump VDO
Will look into making a hole for easy access to the pump, seen a few post and videos on it sounds like a smart thing to do. Cheers guys