[TractorMan]

So dealer finally called. "Truck's done. Nothing wrong with it. seems to run fine now. We think it just gelled up on you, you must have put summer fuel in it." yeah no I dont think so. Fuel station sells winter fuel and alot of it. Not to mention i always put an anti-gel in my fuel. it was 30 degrees that day. I have run this same setup in -30 and not had an issue with gelling. This doesnt explain why the fuel pump has been louder than normal, it gets harder to start (long cranking) at 1/4 tank and lower. Talking with other techs and you guys here, I am convinced it is the fuel lift pump. Probably not totally out yet but getting weak and now starting to quit when running. So I basically have a couple options. Tell them to just replace the pump and wait another couple weeks. Take it to another dealer and wait a week and a half, or try to do it myself. but i have to go out of state for a few days so wont be able to do it for a couple weeks. Unfortunately i dont trust taking it out of state in its current condition. So looks like i am gonna have to keep borrowing a vehicle.

 

[TractorMan]

Any recommendations on replacing the fuel lift pump? Basically looks like i would either have to remove the bed and do it or drop the tank and do it. From what i hear, removing the bed is the better option. Truck has Ram Boxes and a spray in bed liner. does this change a guys thoughts on removing the bed?

What is your thoughts on a replacement fuel lift pump? I am leaning towards OEM, but there are aftermarket options too (looked at Rock Auto), some have also talked about going to a FASS fuel pump and filters or a similar brand.

 

[TractorMan]

Mine did the same exact thing, CEL came on but mine immediately started chugging and dropped from 40 mph to maybe 15, then stalled within 100-150ft from the CEL coming on. I tried starting a few times, but would just crank. After maybe 3 or 4 minutes it finally restarted. I luckily had made it to my drive way, but was right in front of the garage door so I had to move so we could have access to our other vehicle.
I've called the dealer and FCA, multiple times because they don't call back, about it and pretty much have been told there is no fix yet and anything done would be out of pocket. I bought the truck at the dealer I called but they won't offer a loaner unless FCA approves. I haven't pressed the issue as the truck is still collecting snow in my driveway.
I hope your dealer had bad info about the Q3 lead time. It's a day over 2 weeks and has been a major pain, and my wife and I both work from home, most of the time.

Did you ever get any progress on your truck Hinkle? Has it been diagnosed yet?

 

[Olypopper]

I vote oem pump.....if you can find one.

 

[TractorMan]

I vote oem pump.....if you can find one.

Are they hard to come by these days? Other dealer is supposed to be getting me a quote Monday, guess we will see what they say.

 

[Olypopper]

Are they hard to come by these days? Other dealer is supposed to be getting me a quote Monday, guess we will see what they say.

Everything I've tried to get lately....Dodge parts, Toyota Tundra parts.....Skidoo parts have all been a long wait.....except for my Sick-Oh Powerstroke, dealer had all that junk on the shelf surprisingly!

 

[biodiesel]

I vote oem pump.....

I would go with OEM, too.

if you can find one.

I heard there was a nationwide backorder on the pump. I'm sure there are a few in stock at some dealer networks, but who knows how many and which dealer networks have them.

Any recommendations on replacing the fuel lift pump? Basically looks like i would either have to remove the bed and do it or drop the tank and do it. From what i hear, removing the bed is the better option.

I would think dropping the tank would be the fastest and easiest.

 

[hinkle]

Did you ever get any progress on your truck Hinkle? Has it been diagnosed yet?

Using my Amazon OBDII reader I got P0087 and P016F codes.

I tried the phone game with the dealership and FCA but no luck. The most useful information I got was that I could submit a request for reimbursement for having to tow it to the dealer.
I'll hopefully get it towed to the dealer this week. I was delaying this while trying to get something out of FCA. I just tried to start it but it only cranks, it could be a dead battery from sitting for 4 weeks though.

 

[SlowRoller]

......................................
I heard there was a nationwide backorder on the pump. I'm sure there are a few in stock at some dealer networks, but who knows how many and which dealer networks have them.
...........................

When my '19 was misdiagnosed as needing an ABS module, the service guy checked on their system. There were around a dozen in stock nationwide, but some dealerships wouldn't let them go--either they already had a truck in need or they wanted to hoard them. There were two that could be had--one in FL and one on Long Island. As we were heading from PA to VT, the LI one was only about 100 miles out of the way. So then there was one available and a good used one on LI!

 

[TractorMan]

So the new dealer I called says the pumps are on backorder, so they would have to install something else unless I found a Mopar one somewhere. Shocker. I wonder if this is the real reason the original dealer said there was nothing wrong with it. hoping that by time it went fully out the stock would be available again. did a little shopping around one OEM parts site said a note to use something else that was available. but everything else was out of stock and no other site i searched yet had anything OEM. Gonna look more tonight when i have time and see what i come up with.

 

[TractorMan]

Found an OEM pump online. Ordered it in. Now as long as i dont get some kind of email saying out of stock we should be good. they claimed to have it. Probably gonna let dealer replace it when it arrives. mainly because I wont have a chance to do it before they do. And lifting a bed off a truck without damaging it or dropping the fuel tank does not sound like my idea of a good time. I will probably regret that decision but here we go.

 

[brianw0048]

My lift pump failed at 176k miles. No lights, no codes, just crank and no start. And I could not hear the pump prime.

If you have a crew cab and 5’7” bed, drop the tank. The pump is under the cab.

If you have a 6’4” bed, it’s under the bed.

 

[TractorMan]

My lift pump failed at 176k miles. No lights, no codes, just crank and no start. And I could not hear the pump prime.

If you have a crew cab and 5’7” bed, drop the tank. The pump is under the cab.

If you have a 6’4” bed, it’s under the bed.

Interesting. Good info to know. Thanks.

 

[Captainmal]

Noticed early on you talked of a sound change when the tank is at 1/4 tank of fuel or less. Makes me wonder if running the tank low is a common practice.

Many have cited low fuel in the tank as causing excess heating of the pump and premature failure. With all your mileage I would not call a pump failure premature. Just something to think about and I reason I have an extra bed fuel tank. That way I run a long time and when the main tank gets to say 1/2 - I fill both tanks back up.

 

[TractorMan]

Noticed early on you talked of a sound change when the tank is at 1/4 tank of fuel or less. Makes me wonder if running the tank low is a common practice.

Many have cited low fuel in the tank as causing excess heating of the pump and premature failure. With all your mileage I would not call a pump failure premature. Just something to think about and I reason I have an extra bed fuel tank. That way I run a long time and when the main tank gets to say 1/2 - I fill both tanks back up.

I have noticed the fuel pump has been louder since December. Started getting concerned but it seemed at the time to be ok.

I usually fill up when the gauge reaches 1/4. Tank however it does occasionally go lower if there is not a trustworthy station nearby. The couple tanks before my truck quit on the interstate did reach 1/8 tank before filling up and they cranked a really long time after I stopped and filled back up. Hindsight being 20/20 I should have been putting 2 and 2 together but I have been a bit distracted with health issues lately.

I have thought of a fuel tank in the bed before but honestly I don’t really have the room. My bed is often full of something I need to haul around with me, hence the reason I got a truck to begin with.

I am not overly disappointed in the life span of the fuel pump. It happens, but I still do not consider that a preventative maintenance part. They just randomly fail sometimes. I am sure a service center may see enough of them to see a pattern of ideal replacement window but the average person will not know that. Yeah I should have paid more attention to the signs and figured it out ahead and replaced it before but I was too distracted.

 

[biodiesel]

I still do not consider that a preventative maintenance part. They just randomly fail sometimes. I am sure a service center may see enough of them to see a pattern of ideal replacement window but the average person will not know that.

If the lift pump isn't treated as preventative maintenance, then it's a run-to-failure protocol.

I've been keeping track of lift pump failures for a few years on the forum. The owners with early failures (under 100,000 miles) is very rare, however, in all circumstances, the owner/operator said they often run their tanks low on fuel. All the other failures seem to occur after 150,000 miles.

The best way to monitor the lift pump is by installing a fuel pressure gauge. Some people may be driving around on a lift pump that hasn't failed, but the pump is weak. The lift pump is no different than any other electric pump. Even though it's a highly reliable and long-lasting pump, eventually the motor wears out and can't generate enough fuel pressure to work properly.

In my opinion, the lift pump will most likely show warning signs before it completely fails, however, unless a fuel pressure gauge is installed with a low fuel pressure warning (alarm), the owner/operator may not know.

 

[spikeanut]

Same thing happened to me. It's either the lift pump or the fuel pump. Either way, car should run fine as long as you keep it fairly fueled. Well above 1/4 tank to be safe and your car should run just fine until you're able to find parts. Be extra cautious when going up/down an extreme incline.

 

[Crosshairs]

A fuel additive isn't going to help the lift pump. The purpose of a fuel additive is to add lubricity to the fuel, which would improve the life of your CP4 pump. The lift pump just needs to stay cool by keeping the fuel level above the 1/4 mark.

The lift pump, similar to the water pump, is a wear item. The idea behind preventative maintenance is to replace these parts before they are known to fail. This isn't easy to do without taking lots of data. I made my 150,000 - 175,000-mile preventive maintenance recommendation based off a reliability-shaped curve. At 150,000 miles, we begin to see lift pump failures on the EcoDiesel. This tells me that the lift pump has reached full-service life at 150,000 miles and the reliability will decrease as more miles are accrued.

The lift pump in my 2016 GC started whining about a week ago...it will be getting replaced this week, as I have no intention of running it until I need a tow truck.
The vehicle has 91000 miles on it so I am somewhat baffled by the early demise, but at the same time, not all that surprised .

 

[biodiesel]

The lift pump in my 2016 GC started whining about a week ago...it will be getting replaced this week, as I have no intention of running it until I need a tow truck.
The vehicle has 91000 miles on it so I am somewhat baffled by the early demise, but at the same time, not all that surprised .

Yup, that would be an early failure. Do you oftentimes run your fuel down below 1/4 tank?

 

[Crosshairs]

Yup, that would be an early failure. Do you oftentimes run your fuel down below 1/4 tank?

I personally do not, but I bought it used about a year ago, and although I know the original owner, I don’t know his habits .

I also have a 2016 grand Cherokee with a 3.6 in it and oddly enough that pump went out at 60,000 miles.
I did not hear any pump noise with that one so it came as a surprise
I was lucky as it literally stalled as I was pulling into work so I did not need a tow .