Fuel pump failure?

[jangell]

Most of my trunk is filled with a tool kit, a box of assorted small parts, fluids, a small floor jack, spare belts, multimeter, and a few other odds and ends. And there's about a 1 foot square area where I can put something that isn't a tool. I have been wondering if I should just get rid of the spare and use that space for storage too. It might be neat to make a kind of repair kit case designed to fit in the spare tire cavity.

-- Joe

[David T]

Even if you leave the spare tire there, if you turn it over you can fill the center of it with small stuff. I keep a large plastic bag and a bungee cord in there just in case I ever need to use it to put the flat tire in (the flat won't fit in the well) and the bungee cord is if I put the flat on the engine cover, I can hold the sunshade down with it. If you have a passenger you can't put the flat on the passenger seat. Try not to overfill the trunk. Very easy to exceed the weight capacity of the car. If you look at the label in the driver's door jamb for weights, figure gas, passengers and stuff, you can quickly exceed the weight.

[jangell]

I have my spare tire in place with the cavity down, mostly because I don't have that piece of wood under the carpet, so it flattens out the carpet a little.

I've heard before that the rear wheel won't fit in the truck, but I haven't had to worry about that problem yet.

I've been curious about the weight capacity. What happens if you exceed it? Does it damage the fiberglass or the body, or overload the suspension, or reduce the handling and braking characteristics? I'm not going to fill the trunk with lead, but the tools, fluids and and a jack do add up.

-- Joe

[Ron]

My D didn't have enough clearance for the new style pump no mater which way it was turned. I didn't want vibration to wear a hole in either one. I wound up laying a 1/2" x 6" disk of wood on top of it, installed some of the fasteners then pressed the cover down while using a heat gun on it. I pitched the disk and it left ~1/4" gap.

[David T]

I have noticed many Deloreans overloaded, especially if you are going on a trip like to a club event or overnight. Really haven't seen any bad effects except that it will increase your gas consumption and probably affects the braking and handling. It might also show up in decreased life of the suspension and tires. A flat tire won't fit anywhere well. 3 choices, leave it on the side of the road, put it on the passenger seat (and leave the passenger on the side of the road) or on top of the engine cover under the sunshade. If you put it in the trunk there usually isn't any room for any of the other stuff in the trunk and the trunk won't close.

[CFI]

3 choices, leave it on the side of the road, put it on the passenger seat (and leave the passenger on the side of the road) or on top of the engine cover under the sunshade. If you put it in the trunk there usually isn't any room for any of the other stuff in the trunk and the trunk won't close.

This is why I ditched the spare. It needed new rubber and I have no jack kit. So instead it’s a jump/power box, air compressor, tire plug kit. Plan B is AAA.

[David T]

This is why I ditched the spare. It needed new rubber and I have no jack kit. So instead it’s a jump/power box, air compressor, tire plug kit. Plan B is AAA.

This is exactly the "plan" on many new cars. They save a lot of money by eliminating the spare and give you a compressor with sealant and call it a Mobility Kit! Just a factoid FYI, that spare is part of the crashworthiness testing and by not having it the car may not pass the test. Let us know.

[CFI]

Just a factoid FYI, that spare is part of the crashworthiness testing and by not having it the car may not pass the test. Let us know.

Lol, ok. I’ll let you know the results of my next crashworthiness test.