Dies at 1/4 tank

[nullset]

For the last few fillups, my car has decided that it does not want to run with less than ~1/4 of a tank of gas at all. It has almost left me stranded!

Prior to that, I've never experienced any failures until well after that point. I can usually get 9-10 gallons in the tank when this happens, whereas before, it was closer to 12 gallons on a fillup and still no sputtering.

Any ideas what could cause that?

--buddy

[sean]

Running a stock baffle setup or the tuna can setup?

[Bitsyncmaster]

Your pickup hose has torn.

[sean]

Your pickup hose has torn.

+1 if you have a stock setup.

[nullset]

I think it's stock, but I'm not certain. It's been updated before I bought the car, and I've never opened the tank.

Is it a bit of hose I can buy locally, or something special?

--buddy

[sean]

I think it's stock, but I'm not certain. It's been updated before I bought the car, and I've never opened the tank.

Is it a bit of hose I can buy locally, or something special?

--buddy

Stock setup will require a call to your favorite DMC vendor. The pickup hose takes some crazy turns :8ball:

[DMCMW Dave]

Stock setup will require a call to your favorite DMC vendor. The pickup hose takes some crazy turns :8ball:

And is made of some crazy rubber. I've seen a few cars with normal hose inside the tank. It' s not pretty.

[nullset]

Update!

It's the stock setup, but the baffle has cracked and is no longer attached to the bottom of the tank. The hoses are fine, though.

Unfortunately the tank is full of gas right now, and I don't want to mess with it. I guess I could transfer all the gas into my other car's tank……

Current plan: Drive until around 1/4 tank is left. Pull the baffle, epoxy it back together, and reinstall it.

Also, the inside of the tank looks greenish. Is this normal, or should I go ahead and drain and clean it while I'm in there? If I clean it, what should I clean it with? I used acetone on the other car, but I had the tank out to slosh it around. I don't want to take the tank all the way out unless I have to.

Other options? Is DMCH's new fuel pump setup available yet?

--buddy

[sean]

Update!

It's the stock setup, but the baffle has cracked and is no longer attached to the bottom of the tank. The hoses are fine, though.

--buddy

good news. Is the stud the baffle attaches to still there?

Greenish you say, you sure it's just not an illusion of the light reflecting off the gas or is there some green sludge going on?

[stevedmc]

Current plan: Drive until around 1/4 tank is left. Pull the baffle, epoxy it back together, and reinstall it.

Maybe I am wrong, or just excited about you having tuna for dinner, but I don't think epoxy is going to last very long in a tank of gas.

Do yourself a favor and have tuna casserole tonight. Your fuel tank will thank you for it.

[nullset]

good news. Is the stud the baffle attaches to still there?

Greenish you say, you sure it's just not an illusion of the light reflecting off the gas or is there some green sludge going on?

Yeah, the stud is still there. It could just be a reflection of the gas. It didn't look sludgey.

--buddy

[Ron]

Maybe I am wrong, or just excited about you having tuna for dinner, but I don't think epoxy is going to last very long in a tank of gas.FYI- Epoxy (polyepoxide) has an "Excellent" resistance rate for gasoline.

[David T]

Suck all of the fuel out and wipe the inside of the tank and the parts with Acetone. The stock set-up is fine as long as you install good parts and do it correctly. The right type of epoxy can be used to repair the baffle but you may have to replace the filter pick-up at the end of the pick-up hose if the screen is damaged, missing, very dirty. You may want to install a spring in the pick-up hose to prevent it from collapsing. It is VERY important that when you install the fuel pump you do NOT twist it. That will tend to kink the pick-up hose. If the inner or cover boots are deteriorated or shrunk you should replace them. If the pump is corroded, it should be replaced.
David Teitelbaum

[ccurzio]

So I've noticed something similar to Buddy's issue with my car. It won't outright die at 1/4 tank, but I've noticed that I'll occasionally get acceleration hesitation - but only after it gets down to a quarter tank of fuel. Is this possibly the same or a similar cause?

[sean]

So I've noticed something similar to Buddy's issue with my car. It won't outright die at 1/4 tank, but I've noticed that I'll occasionally get acceleration hesitation - but only after it gets down to a quarter tank of fuel. Is this possibly the same or a similar cause?

Could be or your pickup hose could be collapsing. If it is original its probably getting soft and collapsing.