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Gas Gauge not working at all
Topic Started: Dec 8 2013, 11:31 AM (2,086 Views)
static_engineer
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I hope this is the right place within the forums.

Our 1994 XFI fuel gauge doesn't work at all. I've read through several other posts and what I could find all deal with accuracy. My gauge shows empty at all times. We can fill all the time to ensure we don't run out, but I'd like to look into getting it to function so I have an idea of how much gas I have. Since we just bought the car I don't know how far I can go on a fill up for sure, and since it's winter in MN and I commute between towns where there isn't any traffic or people, I really don't want to run out.

With my very limited knowledge of the Geo, I believe I might need to replace or clean the sensor. I found that it's in the tank. How hard is it to drop the tank and replace this sensor?
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t3ragtop
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Turbo3 and Twincam Tweaker

it's more likely to be a corroded ground connection.

find the wires for the fuel tank harness under the rear seat on the pasenger's side. look for a pink wire, which is the hot side of the fuel pump. that will be on the fuel tank harness. unplug all 3 wires from their mating connectors and check for green slime. clean them up and see if that helps.
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static_engineer
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t3ragtop
Dec 8 2013, 11:42 AM
it's more likely to be a corroded ground connection.

find the wires for the fuel tank harness under the rear seat on the pasenger's side. look for a pink wire, which is the hot side of the fuel pump. that will be on the fuel tank harness. unplug all 3 wires from their mating connectors and check for green slime. clean them up and see if that helps.
Forgive my ignorance, but are the wires under the seat inside the car, or outside the car, under the seat?
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Good bye


Under the seat inside the car. I remove the seat back from the hinges first. Then you can access the screws at the back of the bottom cushion. Then lift the cushion from the rear no screws in the front.
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Old Man


In the meantime-----you should be able to go at least 350 miles on a tank of gas, and that is bare minimum.
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rmcelwee
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Old Man
Dec 8 2013, 12:53 PM
In the meantime-----you should be able to go at least 350 miles on a tank of gas, and that is bare minimum.
I never look at my gauge (especially since my replacement fuel pump doesn't suck out the last 1/4 tank). I just drive 300-330 miles and refill. If I were unsure of how to fix the problem Old Man's suggestion might be the way to go.

FWIW, I pulled the seat and dropped my fuel tank in the past to determine what the problem was. I put everything back and it just isn't worth my time to pull everything again to fix it.
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Old Man


BTW If you want to find out FOR SURE how far a tank will go -- fill up, record your odometer reading, at 300 miles go buy a gallon gas can. Fill up the can and keep running till you are out of gas. Now you know how far to go on a tank
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t3ragtop
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Turbo3 and Twincam Tweaker

as helpful as running the car out of gas for determining it's range, i wouldn't do that.

the fuel pump uses the gas it's submerged in as a lubricant and to wick heat away from the pump. fuel pumps most often pick up sludge and contaminants when there's little fuel in the tank and are most likely to go tits up when there's not enough gas in the tank to keep them covered.

as a general rule, i maintain the fuel level above 1/2 tank. when i'm traveling i try to refuel by 1/4 tank. the rust in the original fuel tank of my 91 vert was horrible and i replaced it with a new one in 2012 along with a new suzuki swift gt fuel pump. as part of a restoration and engine swap i replaced the entire fuel system except the hard lines. i had bench prepped a fuel sending unit and cleaned up all the brass stud and nut wiring connectors on the fuel pump door.

if you are going to go to the effort of dropping the tank be prepared to do complete job including a new fuel pump, new pump door gasket and screws, tank cleaning and painting, etc. if you are a denizen of the rust belt, line up some rust free southern steel line assemblies (the ones attached to the top of the fuel tank.) get some new rubber hose together, too. there are 2 diameters so get both sizes.
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Car Nut
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Working on a 91 XFI with same problem. Checked the connections mentioned, cleaned & sprayed with contact cleaner, still no luck. Any more suggestions?
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Memphis metro


Car Nut
Jul 1 2014, 01:21 PM
Working on a 91 XFI with same problem. Checked the connections mentioned, cleaned & sprayed with contact cleaner, still no luck. Any more suggestions?
Pull the tank, remove the fuel sender from the tank and operate it by hand and see if it moves the gauge. If not, sender replacement is likely. Clean fuel tank, replace fuel filter and fuel lines at the same time. Before you do any of that though do this http://geometroforum.com/single/?p=881109&t=4464045 Ground the gauge wire under the seat and turn the switch on. The fuel gauge should go to full hot with the wire grounded. If it does, suspect the gauge sender in the tank to be defective. If the guage does not move then you know the problem is from that disconnected wire to the gauge somewhere and not in the tank.
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Car Nut
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Thank you sir. Will try that this evening. I pulled the cluster. Cleaned all the connections & put it back. No luck. Whoever designed the dash setup should have his butt kicked up around his ears. That was a stupid design. Two seperate seat belt lights with wires feeding through the dash to impossible to get to disconnects under the dash. Lowered the steering column & still couldn't get my skinny hands in there. Could have used a little slack in the other wires & speedo cable too. Nothings ever thought out for the poor sap that has to work on stuff down the road. And that comes from a guy that used to turn wrenches for a living.
Update at 11
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Car Nut
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Did exactly what Big Rhino suggested & the gauge started moving from E towards full. Looks like I'm pulling the tank next. Thanks Big Rhino! You the man! :thumb
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truckjohn


Yep...
It's almost never the cluster...
#1 is the sending unit itself stuck/rusted..
#2 is the wiring connections nasty/corroded

Turns out that the sending unit is fairly straight forward to disassemble, clean, and unstick...

Before you go buying an Expensive Unobtanium sending unit - take yours apart and carefully clean the whole thing....

Test it out with an Ohm-meter... If it swings cleanly and predictably as you move the floaty thing - your car will read it just fine....

Mine was completely encased in a big lump of rust and brown gunk and seized solid.... I cleaned it all off with a stiff nylon brush... Disassembled.. got it un-stuck... Carefully re-bent the pointy thing till it would read right on an ohm-meter.... Cleaned ALL the connections about 9x till it finally all worked right... and Sha-Zam...


Thanks
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Car Nut
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You ever feel like you should have let that sleeping dog lie?
Pulled the tank this morning. Popped the pump out along with sending unit (they are one assembly on the 91). Peeked inside & saw what looked like river mud inside the tank. Dumped out the gas & couldn't believe the crap inside. Pulled out at least a pound of rust. Looked like some kid had been dropping random pieces of metal down the filler pipe. Un frickin believable! Sending unit almost rusted away, fuel pump metal rusted. Cleaned everything as best I could & put it back together until I can maybe find a good complete tank. Installed a new see through fuel filter under the hood Dumped about 4 gals of gas back in & cycled the pump. Heard it running & shut off. Tried that several times, plus just left the key on for awhile, nothing. Fuel never pumped up to the TB. Crawled back under to start pulling hoses & see if pump was pumping back there when I saw a steady stream of gas dripping off the tank. Looked closer & found I now have a hole in the tank about 1/8 in dia. Put a bucket underneath & drained it all. Going to hunt up some Marine-Tex tomorrow & try to fix it, then try & figure out why no gas is getting to the front. They say Marine-Tex is the bomb for repairs like this. Never had much luck with JB Weld or tank repair putty. Update at 11

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[img][URL=http://s1213.photobucket.com/user/infoman3/media/91%20METRO%20RUSTY%20GAS%20TANK/GASTANKRUST034.jpg.html]Posted Image[/URL][img]
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Edited by Car Nut, Jul 2 2014, 05:35 PM.
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Memphis metro


Just about all these metros need to have their tanks removed and flushed out. Few get it. If the car is in real good shape, you should just spring for a new tank if that one is in real bad shape.

http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/moreinfo.php?pk=17491&cc=1430188
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