Fuel tank pickup filter

mike07 · Jun 22, 2008

Hi first time poster here. I have an 84 b2 with 36k miles on it with all original electronics. It seems to be starving for fuel when it gets hot. It will sit and idle all day but afterdriving it for a while it will die. Once cooled down it is fine. Ive replaced dist, coil, computor & tfi module & even done the remote tfi mounting as per tech page so am pretty sure its fuel. Had the carb apart & float level is right on the money. Fuel filters(stock & inline) come back as clean but when i blew lines out & back into tank it ran better than it has in a year, smooth idle no hesitation at all. Drove into town & back, 20 miles each way & ran perfect until a mile from home where it coughed & died. An hr later it started with some gas poured in carb & ran rough but got me home. My question is does the fuel pickup in the gas tank have a strainer or filter on it which could be clogging up while driving & releasing (plastic film?)when sitting.any thoughts appreciated. Mike

enginepaul · Jun 23, 2008

The fuel pickup filter is probably not the cause; a blocked fuel filter (going from the pump to the carb) would be more likely.
The float on the carb sometimes hangs up on the sides of the bowl if it is bent. I had an intermittent problem and while putting the top back on I noticed there was a very slight rubbing of the float; a little gentle bending and everything was fine.

A general repair note: Repair by replacing parts is expensive, time consuming and just not worth it. Get a shop manual and a factory trouble shooting manual and use the trouble codes as a guide.

good luck - you're going to like your BII when it's running right.

Earl43P · Jun 23, 2008

The answer to your question is Yes, there is a fuel pickup strainer, it's called a sock. Dirt cheap part.

You sound like you know what you're doing and the symptoms do point to a fuel delivery issue. May be worthwhile to replace the fuel filter and do a fuel pressure test before you go all out and drop that tank.

If I recall correctly, you've got two fuel pumps, one on the DS frame rail and one in the tank, called the transfer pump. Regardless, there will be a sock. May want to take the connector off the framerail pump and listen for the transfer pump in the tank, when you turn the key to run without cranking the starter. Should be able to hear it.

mike07 · Jun 23, 2008

Thank's enginepaul for reply. i've got the manuals & downloaded the codes & it comes back clean. Replacement parts didnt cost me as i have a donor vehicle & access to more for free. Float level & operation are at spec's & both filters come back clean. Mechanical fuel pump was replaced 6 mos ago as old one was leaking but has passed a flow test(Not a pressure test, don't have the guage) so keep coming back to fuel tank. And your right about loving it, ive put 12,000 miles on it, relativly trouble free, 1 tfi module last year & this problem arrived almost right after the coil went last week, leading me to first suspect electronics. As a further note today i pulled the filters & both were clean. Blew the lines back into tank & runs perfect but for how long. Earl, pulling the tank is last thing i want to do but it's looking like something in the tank is gradually plugging the fuel pickup. if it does it on a longer test run tomorrow it's tank time. Thank's guys for your responses. Mike

Yank · Aug 10, 2008

There is a fistful of things to try that won't cost much money... just a little time. Look to see if the gas line might be to close to a heat source (engine, manifold, exhaust system, erc...) If nothing was there causing a problem, look for fusible links that might be rendered useless from "green death" or corrosion(green). I have even heard of guys, and I have done it too, putting a wooden clothes pin on the fuel line. This is supposed to do the Heat transferrence" thing to slow or stop the gas from boiling in the line to cause vapor lock. Something like that... lol Good luck.

Fuel tank pickup filter

mike07

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enginepaul

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Earl43P

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