1997 Savana Van has my mechanic STUMPED!

recently purchased a 1997 Savana van (5r.8 L Vortec) that seemed in
very good condition. The previous owner told me that the only problem
they had was that about a year ago, the battery kept draining and the
fuel pump 'went'. They had both changed and didn't have any more
problems.

Last week, I arrived home and shut the van off, later went to restart
and it would crank but not start. My friend (who is a certified Ford
mechanic) came over and determined that the fuel pump was not
working.
I had the van towed to his shop where he changed the fuel pump and
filter (he removed an AutoZone pump and replaced it with a GM one.
All
seemed OK for two days, and the pump stopped again!


He took the vehicle back, stated that it may be the pump relay and
changed both. He also checked the wiring harness for any problems but
said it looked great.


The van seemed to work fine, drove it for about a week. It started to
'miss' at times (usually when letting off the throttle), and wanted
to
stall. It did stall a few times but would restart after a few
minutes.
Now, the fuel pump is gone again, and it is dead in the water.


My mechanic friend is at wits end and is ready to throw in the towel.
Is it time for a real GM mechanic?


Does anyone have any directions to point my mechanic (since it is
back
at his garage)?


Thanks!


Bill

billpocz wrote:
> recently purchased a 1997 Savana van (5r.8 L Vortec) that seemed in
> very good condition. The previous owner told me that the only problem
> they had was that about a year ago, the battery kept draining and the
> fuel pump 'went'. They had both changed and didn't have any more
> problems.
>
> Last week, I arrived home and shut the van off, later went to restart
> and it would crank but not start. My friend (who is a certified Ford
> mechanic) came over and determined that the fuel pump was not
> working.
> I had the van towed to his shop where he changed the fuel pump and
> filter (he removed an AutoZone pump and replaced it with a GM one.
> All
> seemed OK for two days, and the pump stopped again!
>
>
> He took the vehicle back, stated that it may be the pump relay and
> changed both. He also checked the wiring harness for any problems but
> said it looked great.
>
>
> The van seemed to work fine, drove it for about a week. It started to
> 'miss' at times (usually when letting off the throttle), and wanted
> to
> stall. It did stall a few times but would restart after a few
> minutes.
> Now, the fuel pump is gone again, and it is dead in the water.
>
>
> My mechanic friend is at wits end and is ready to throw in the towel.
> Is it time for a real GM mechanic?
>
>
> Does anyone have any directions to point my mechanic (since it is
> back
> at his garage)?
>
>
> Thanks!
>
>
> Bill
>
I have a 1997 GMC Safari (V6 engine but basically the same). When I bought it a
year ago I new it would soon need a fuel pump (pressure was a little low and it
was noisy).

One thing that was recommended when I replaced it was to check and run a new
ground wire directly from the pump wiring to a good ground. If the tech hasn't
done it already, it would be a good idea to check the pump current draw. If it's
high, it may be the ground and could cause the pump to fail.

Good luck
Larry

"Larry W" > wrote in message
...

> One thing that was recommended when I replaced it was to check and run a
new
> ground wire directly from the pump wiring to a good ground. If the tech
hasn't
> done it already, it would be a good idea to check the pump current draw.
If it's
> high, it may be the ground and could cause the pump to fail.
>
> Good luck
> Larry

If the ground were bad, wouldn't you expect the current to be low, on the
average,
rather than high?

billpocz > wrote:
>
>My mechanic friend is at wits end and is ready to throw in the towel.
>Is it time for a real GM mechanic?
>
>Does anyone have any directions to point my mechanic (since it is
>back at his garage)?

Pull the fuel pump. Take it to a rebuilder, or take it apart, and find out
why it failed.

It may have failed because it was originally defective. Even an original
GM one can be bad out of the box sometimes.

It may have failed because it is clogged up with gunk that is stuck at the
bottom of the tank and getting past the filter. I would definitely check
the filter anyway, too.

But taking it apart will let you know what happened.
--scott

--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

billpocz wrote:
> recently purchased a 1997 Savana van (5r.8 L Vortec) that seemed in
> very good condition. The previous owner told me that the only problem
> they had was that about a year ago, the battery kept draining and the
> fuel pump 'went'. They had both changed and didn't have any more
> problems.
>
> Last week, I arrived home and shut the van off, later went to restart
> and it would crank but not start. My friend (who is a certified Ford
> mechanic) came over and determined that the fuel pump was not
> working.
> I had the van towed to his shop where he changed the fuel pump and
> filter (he removed an AutoZone pump and replaced it with a GM one.
> All
> seemed OK for two days, and the pump stopped again!
>
>
> He took the vehicle back, stated that it may be the pump relay and
> changed both. He also checked the wiring harness for any problems but
> said it looked great.
>
>
> The van seemed to work fine, drove it for about a week. It started to
> 'miss' at times (usually when letting off the throttle), and wanted
> to
> stall. It did stall a few times but would restart after a few
> minutes.
> Now, the fuel pump is gone again, and it is dead in the water.
>
>
> My mechanic friend is at wits end and is ready to throw in the towel.
> Is it time for a real GM mechanic?
>
>
> Does anyone have any directions to point my mechanic (since it is
> back
> at his garage)?
>
>
> Thanks!
>
>
> Bill
>
The connector for these pumps is the same as for an oxygen sensor. They
are way overloaded and tend to slightly melt. That's what I'd be
looking at first.

Back in the late 1960s I drove a parts truck for an auto parts
store.There were quite a few new defective parts.
cuhulin

> If the ground were bad, wouldn't you expect the current to be low, on the
> average,
> rather than high?

A high resistance circuit will draw more amps than normal.

Noozer wrote:
>
> A high resistance circuit will draw more amps than normal.
>
>


How so?

By Ohm's law, current (amps) = voltage / resistance (I = E / R). With a
more or less constant voltage as you'd have in a car, as R increases, I
decreases.

In article >,
"M.M." > wrote:

> Noozer wrote:
> >
> > A high resistance circuit will draw more amps than normal.
> >
> >
>
>
> How so?
>
> By Ohm's law, current (amps) = voltage / resistance (I = E / R). With a
> more or less constant voltage as you'd have in a car, as R increases, I
> decreases.



M.M.'s right...

When these pumps 'fail', are you guys checking to be sure power is
actually being delivered to the pump, and that a good reliable ground is
provided?

As another poster mentioned, are the connector/s in good shape.

I have a feeling this one is going to be something simple along those
lines...

Erik

On Jun 4, 5:59 pm, Larry W > wrote:
> billpocz wrote:
> > recently purchased a 1997 Savana van (5r.8 L Vortec) that seemed in
> > very good condition. The previous owner told me that the only problem
> > they had was that about a year ago, the battery kept draining and the
> > fuel pump 'went'. They had both changed and didn't have any more
> > problems.
>
> > Last week, I arrived home and shut the van off, later went to restart
> > and it would crank but not start. My friend (who is a certified Ford
> > mechanic) came over and determined that the fuel pump was not
> > working.
> > I had the van towed to his shop where he changed the fuel pump and
> > filter (he removed an AutoZone pump and replaced it with a GM one.
> > All
> > seemed OK for two days, and the pump stopped again!
>
> > He took the vehicle back, stated that it may be the pump relay and
> > changed both. He also checked the wiring harness for any problems but
> > said it looked great.
>
> > The van seemed to work fine, drove it for about a week. It started to
> > 'miss' at times (usually when letting off the throttle), and wanted
> > to
> > stall. It did stall a few times but would restart after a few
> > minutes.
> > Now, the fuel pump is gone again, and it is dead in the water.
>
> > My mechanic friend is at wits end and is ready to throw in the towel.
> > Is it time for a real GM mechanic?
>
> > Does anyone have any directions to point my mechanic (since it is
> > back
> > at his garage)?
>
> > Thanks!
>
> > Bill
>
> I have a 1997 GMC Safari (V6 engine but basically the same). When I bought it a
> year ago I new it would soon need a fuel pump (pressure was a little low and it
> was noisy).
>
> One thing that was recommended when I replaced it was to check and run a new
> ground wire directly from the pump wiring to a good ground. If the tech hasn't
> done it already, it would be a good idea to check the pump current draw. If it's
> high, it may be the ground and could cause the pump to fail.
>
> Good luck
> Larry- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

Larry, thanks for the tip, I will defintely pass it on!!

Bill