Fuel pump question...

[Rick L]

This might be a dim-witted question… :p The fuel pump should be on and making that hissing sound when the ignition is “ON” position, right? Or does the fuel pump make the hissing sound ONLY when the engine is running? My car won't start. It looks like my car is not getting gas to the engine. I put the key to “ON” position and listen for the hissing sound from the fuel pump but NO SOUND. Is my fuel pump bad?

[Rick L]

Looks like no response or help from anybody from this forum… :( Nobody knew my question??? Anyway, my fuel pump was the culprit. I was told by BMW service that hissing sound from the fuel pump is not normal. Something is causing the fuel pump to hiss. In my case, it was the clogged strainer. I replaced the fuel pump, strainer, and fuel filter. Now my car doesn’t make the hissing sound anymore. :)

[ryan roopnarine]

sorry rick....i saw when you posted yer initial question at 1 something in the morning, at 3 am that morning. was gonna go to the post office then to drop some stuff off for the 11 am pickup, and was gonna take my microcassette out to the car to record the sounds that a normal fuel pump would make to make wavs out of it, except that i didn't have any batteries for it. i fell asleep after i got back from the post office, and forgot all about it :( i'm sure nobody ignored you intentionally, and that if you posted a "bump" to your message, somebody (or me even) would have seen it again and remembered and posted. sorry. did you end up changing that stuff yourself, or did the dealer do it (your wording suggests that you did, that's why i ask).

[Rick L]

Hey, Ryan.

Thanks for your attempted effort. ;) With many gear-heads from this forum, I figured a quick reply to my question. Yes, I replaced the stuff myself. I had to purchase the parts at the dealer since I couldn’t find any auto parts store that stocked the fuel pump. Yes, I paid dealer price ($326 for fuel pump). I guess I could have ordered the parts from BMA or other online stores and waited but my car was on a parking-shoulder off of four-lane street. I didn’t like the idea in living the car sit there for 4 days or more (unable to find anyone to ship overnight do to weekend). And YES, I changed the fuel pump on the parking-shoulder of a four-lane street. I was lucky that I didn’t run into any speed bump(s) with the pump replacement and finished in 15 minutes. Not all my repairs go this easily. :) I finished up the fuel filter at home. I have one more question if anyone could help out. I didn’t change the fuel sender gasket because nobody had one in stock. Do I really need to replace the fuel sender gasket or is it O.K. to use the old one? Also, I heard from few people from this forum that the hissing sound is normal but the BMW service told me that it isn’t. New fuel pump doesn’t make any noise (no buzz, no hiss, nothing…). My old fuel pump used to make the buzz and hiss sound but not the new pump. New pump will make slight buzz for 1 second when you turn the ignition "ON" but no noise after that. I talk to BMW service and they said the hissing sound from the fuel pump is not normal and they shouldn’t make any buzzing/hissing sound. If you here buzzing/hissing, something is causing the fuel pump to hiss. In my case, it was the clogged strainer. I replaced the fuel pump, strainer, and fuel filter. Now my car doesn’t make the hissing sound anymore. Any comment(s)... Picture below shows the clog (sorry for the bad picture).

Thanks,
Rick

http://home.comcast.net/~jungerishere/Clogged.JPG



sorry rick....i saw when you posted yer initial question at 1 something in the morning, at 3 am that morning. was gonna go to the post office then to drop some stuff off for the 11 am pickup, and was gonna take my microcassette out to the car to record the sounds that a normal fuel pump would make to make wavs out of it, except that i didn't have any batteries for it. i fell asleep after i got back from the post office, and forgot all about it :( i'm sure nobody ignored you intentionally, and that if you posted a "bump" to your message, somebody (or me even) would have seen it again and remembered and posted. sorry. did you end up changing that stuff yourself, or did the dealer do it (your wording suggests that you did, that's why i ask).