Fuel Pump Woes

[Beau99]

Hi All, Im new to this forum and was hoping on some generosity of spirit :))

Today I replaced the fuel filter housing on my 1999 Defender (Td5). The housing needed replacing because it had snapped across the bracket and was making it near impossible to change the fuel filter.
The housing came off a Disco 2, which I was assured was the same, by my mechanic. When I arrived to pick my Defender up I noticed a whining coming from the tank (pump). Previously it was as quiet as a church mouse. I thought, at the time, that there may have been air in the system so I took it for a drive but alas.... It's still whining.
I'm thinking that the problem must lie with the Housing itself. Since the whining wasn't there prior to it being replaced. Should I replace the housing with a NEW unit prior to replacing the pump?? Ps the car starts first time every time. There are no issues with power. She runs great!!! Except the new and annoying noise.
Your help is appreciated!!

[Jojo]

There can be several reasons for a pump whining, the worst case scenario is your pump being on its way out. I have had mine whining every now and then, especially when the truck has been stationary for a longer period. I suspect some growth clogging the pump. It then seems to disappear on its own after a while. Maybe you should put some Diesel treatment in the tank, just in case you have some algae growth?
Btw, I have noticed that the whine can change depending on where I filled up. Maybe some fuel retailers have different additives that make the pump having to work less?
In a nutshell, I don't think you will have to change your pump housing straight away. Good luck!
Cheers

[Beau99]

Ey Jojo, cheers for your comments. Unfortunately I hadn't fueled up directly before or after. I will try putting a fuel treatment through though. Seriously wish I hadn't touched it!! She was working perfectly and silently. :(

[cactus]

Ey Jojo, cheers for your comments. Unfortunately I hadn't fueled up directly before or after. I will try putting a fuel treatment through though. Seriously wish I hadn't touched it!! She was working perfectly and silently. :(
gooday beau99... ive got a 99 defender as well. bought it 6 months ago then devoured this forum for information regarding all things landrover. i decided to change my fuel filter for good measure. hadn't noticed any pump noise prior to change but directly after the whirring noise was pretty loud. i put it down to air in the system. purged the system a few times and no change. asked here for any advise and received many ideas on cause. i removed the pump and cleaned it. three times. still had the noise . i bought a new fuel pump to install should the noisy one fail somewhere inconvenient. what i did do upon the advise of one bloke here was take it for a 30 k run. got home and the pump was notably quieter but not as silent as i recalled. not to worry, i had a new fuel pump ready to put in. that was 5 months ago and maybe 15ooo ks. still havnt needed the new pump and the original one hasn't changed noise level either. runs as well as it always had.
moral of the story? don't panic to soon. there are so many noises that worry me in this vehicle and reading up on them just gives you more reason to not enjoy the drive. carry a spare if you can or fix it when it breaks. in the meantime turn the stereo up a little and enjoy what is arguably an eccentric vehicle.


noted you only changed the cover but the moral is the same :)


cheers cactus

[Beau99]

Cheers Cactus! Mate you've managed to put a smile on my face... Much appreciated. Funny I had the exact same experience after my 40km trip. Quieter but still noisy compared to how quiet it ran before.
Cactus since you've got a 99 also, when you purge... does your engine warning light (on the dash) flash? Because my doesn't?! I'm not all that sure it performing a purge cycle.
Anyways cheers once again dude!

[cactus]

Cheers Cactus! Mate you've managed to put a smile on my face... Much appreciated. Funny I had the exact same experience after my 40km trip. Quieter but still noisy compared to how quiet it ran before.
Cactus since you've got a 99 also, when you purge... does your engine warning light (on the dash) flash? Because my doesn't?! I'm not all that sure it performing a purge cycle.
Anyways cheers once again dude!
not that I recall,, just the pump goes through a series of on/ off cycles . it did purge because it started and ran fine. I think the later models 2000 onwards, may have the light flash but my memory isn't what it used to be. a search through the forums should find your answer as that's where I got my info. how long have you had your landy for

[Beau99]

I recall reading somewhere that the very early Td5's didn't have that purge feature .... Mine don't go through any kind of cycle at all. The pump simply works continuously?!
Had my LR for almost 3 months now. So fresh it's still got its cling rap on. I serviced it myself last week but thought I'd take it to a specialist to sort out the Fuel housing.

[Rurover]

Beau,

Yep, agree with the need to check the fuel pump for clogging with "algae"...or black slimy deposits.
Had the same problem in my old TD5 Defender. The fuel pump sounded like a demented mosquito.
Eventually removed the fuel pump (by cutting a hatch in the rear deck to gain access to the top of the fuel tank) and found the pump was well and truly clogged with this black slime.


After a clean and refit, all was well.

Alan

[noogie]

I suspect some growth clogging the pump. It then seems to disappear on its own after a while. Maybe you should put some Diesel treatment in the tank, just in case you have some algae growth?
Cheers

I did get pump whine also however, now that you mention the treatment additive, since using "Chemtech" additive the whine has gone away.

You might be onto something there.

[Beau99]

Cheers Guys.... Ill defo act on your advice and report back. I'm determined to sort this out.

[Beau99]

A lot has happened and much has been done and learnt....

For those of you that have an annoying mosquito like buzzing from your pump I have a tale to tell.
Many months ago I had my filter housing replaced. For Purely cosmetic reasons. The housing had snapped off where it bolts onto the chassis. Admittedly it made changing the filter a real ordeal... So I had it done by my mechanic.
Directly afterwords when I collected the car it was making a horrid whine. My fix went as follows....
1. I replaced the filter housing again (this time with one that came off the same year and model Defender)

Didn't Work... Noise still there.

2. I removed the pump and inspected the filters. There was partial clogging (which I cleaned) although it wasn't critical I thought. Anyway I replaced it and....

Noise STILL there.

3. I removed the fuel tank.... Degreased it thoroughly. Returned it with a New VDO pump and rubber seal and New hoses. Result?.....

Noise Still there!!!!! 😡

4. I then revisited the filter housing... Since this is what seemed to be the catalyst for this sudden and irreversible calamity. After thinking about this and revisiting some literature on the configuration of the pipes leading in and out of the filter housing I though I'd check to see whether the hoses hadn't accidentally been placed on incorrectly....

WELL... Yes they had.... After all the expense and effort and worry I discovered that the noise was attributed to the pipes being Misaligned. Unfortunately when I replaced the filter housing I only re established the mistake by replacing the connectors back to where I took them off which was wrong to begin with. It turned out that the Red line (returning from the fuel cooler) had been mixed with the Black line returning back to the tank. Ie their positions on the filter housing had been swapped. This was causing all manner of conflict within the filter chamber which in-turn was the sole cause of the annoying noise!!

If you are suffering from this same annoyance PLEASE check to see that this isn't the cause. It ridiculously simple to fix.

Beau 😉

[cactus]

A lot has happened and much has been done and learnt....

For those of you that have an annoying mosquito like buzzing from your pump I have a tale to tell.
Many months ago I had my filter housing replaced. For Purely cosmetic reasons. The housing had snapped off where it bolts onto the chassis. Admittedly it made changing the filter a real ordeal... So I had it done by my mechanic.
Directly afterwords when I collected the car it was making a horrid whine. My fix went as follows....
1. I replaced the filter housing again (this time with one that came off the same year and model Defender)

Didn't Work... Noise still there.

2. I removed the pump and inspected the filters. There was partial clogging (which I cleaned) although it wasn't critical I thought. Anyway I replaced it and....

Noise STILL there.

3. I removed the fuel tank.... Degreased it thoroughly. Returned it with a New VDO pump and rubber seal and New hoses. Result?.....

Noise Still there!!!!! 😡

4. I then revisited the filter housing... Since this is what seemed to be the catalyst for this sudden and irreversible calamity. After thinking about this and revisiting some literature on the configuration of the pipes leading in and out of the filter housing I though I'd check to see whether the hoses hadn't accidentally been placed on incorrectly....

WELL... Yes they had.... After all the expense and effort and worry I discovered that the noise was attributed to the pipes being Misaligned. Unfortunately when I replaced the filter housing I only re established the mistake by replacing the connectors back to where I took them off which was wrong to begin with. It turned out that the Red line (returning from the fuel cooler) had been mixed with the Black line returning back to the tank. Ie their positions on the filter housing had been swapped. This was causing all manner of conflict within the filter chamber which in-turn was the sole cause of the annoying noise!!

If you are suffering from this same annoyance PLEASE check to see that this isn't the cause. It ridiculously simple to fix.

Beau 😉 excellent result beau . ty for the results of your persistent trial and error. lots of dollars to test theories I know. you may just save the next landrover addict a few dollars and a lot of stress. I do note that you didn't have any noise before changing the housing. ? if that's the case is it possible someone may have crossed them during the first case change over? im now going to check mine simply out of curiosity as I haven't ever removed the hoses from behind the filter. and just for your info, my old pump is still working away and the spare still awaits its failure.


as an aside but related to noises, yesterday I noticed an unusual sound while accelerating in first as second after sitting a few hours . thought maybe an idler pulley or viscous fan noise. noise stopped once moving along a little faster. tonight I took a look under the bonnet and while idling, there was a strange sound like a deep rumble but low volume around the engine rear side,,, turned out to be the air filter top not seated correctly AND the breather tube coming from the intake had totally fallen off the filter housing attachment point. it was sucking air from behind the engine and around the filter case ( my doing as I checked the filter a couple of weeks back and no doubt didn't replace the lid correctly. but it was the intake pipe that made the new noise. there ya go. 5 minutes to fix and a thousand dollar worry for 24 hours. bloody landrovers lol


cheers cactus

[Beau99]

Cactus it's good to hear that all is well with your pump.... Mate may it never fail and may you never need to replace it but if you do I've certainly got some pointers for you, if you need them.
I'm convinced that we're all gluttons for punishment. Perhaps we didn't get to play with our Lego for a sufficient enough period whilst developing? Don't know but one thing I do know is that we're hooked. Your right to call it an addiction.
Well dude... Thanks for your help... Thank you all!

Beau ;)

[Mudnut]

Cactus it's good to hear that all is well with your pump.... Mate may it never fail and may you never need to replace it but if you do I've certainly got some pointers for you, if you need them.
I'm convinced that we're all gluttons for punishment. Perhaps we didn't get to play with our Lego for a sufficient enough period whilst developing? Don't know but one thing I do know is that we're hooked. Your right to call it an addiction.
Well dude... Thanks for your help... Thank you all!

Beau ;)

Hey Beau,

Just a quick question. I have a demented mosquito sounding fuel pump at the moment. I plan on cutting a hatch over the sender unit to access without dropping the tank as I have an aux fuel tank also plumbed into the existing tank. You stated that you purchased a pump to replace the noisy one. Is it just the pump, or the whole housing including the filter. I am interested in just the pump size, and flow if you know.
I have read here that a 38mm high pressure unit will fit, and just wanted to verify.

Cheers,

Ken