ZPOD

in my 1995 Dodge Ram Diesel Pickup the fuel gauge doesn't work. It tries really hard sometimes but always falls back to E.
I suspect the fuel sending unit inside the fuel tank is bad. I read that this is a common problem and even if replaced the new ones fail. What's up with that? All the other auto manufacturers seem to make fuel sending units that work for many decades, why does Dodge have such a problem with this? I swear they have the night janitor designing some of these things on paper towels instead of a qulified engineer.

Why do these fail? does it have anything to do with a plastic fuel tank that buckles under the holding brackets then bows with the weight of the fuel in the center? I am really surprised that the tank doesn't just slip right out of there.
I'm not going to spend $100 to $200 for a poorly designed fuel sending unit, I would rather rig up a fuel dipstick.

Does anybody have a good solution to fix this problem?

BarryG

zpod:
A couple different things happen. One scenario is the float disintegrates and second the wiper arm pivot gets loose and loses contact. Obviously there are fixes for both of those scenarios. A new float or a new assembly, Also there is a fix for the arm pivot problem. A search should yeild results on both of those. As far as an aftermarket fix there are a couple. I have heard that isspro has a fuel sending unit. I personally used a capacitance type sender from Centroid. While I have had zero problems with mine and others have had the same good experience some others have not had quite the same experience.

https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...ce+type+sender

infidel

A dealer mechanic I trust a lot told me the glue on the sender circuit board isn't comparable with diesel fuel and eventually the connections fail.
He said Chrysler finally figured this out in 2002 and fixed the problem. You just have to make sure any sender you buy was made after 2002. I'm sure there are older senders floating around in dealer parts stockrooms all over the country.

The sender was on nationwide back order about a year ago and folks had to wait a couple months for a new one.
Hopefully that cleared a lot of the old ones out.
New improved sending unit is about $60 from the dealer

ZPOD

Thanks. I decided that the truck bed needs an access panel cut out of the bed in order to conveniently access the top of the tank. The fuel tank is inconveniently located right at a bed support frame. When I cut that I can easily add a support bar attached to the nearby bed support frames, then I will have easy access for the initial install, I will not have to drain the fuel tank, nor will I have to drop the tank, and then if I have problems with my new assembly I can easily access it again.

infidel

The way I access the tank top is to tilt the bed.
Remove the four driver's side bolts, just loosen the pass side.
Remove fill hose, unplug some electrical and one fairly strong person can tilt the bed up 18" or so while a wimp props it with a 2x4.
Easier than cutting a hole plus you won't have a hole in your bed.
Dealer mechanics who get paid piecework tilt the bed only. They'll even tell you they can't work on the tank if they have to drop it due to a camper, 5th wheel, etc preventing tilting.

ZPOD

I was thinking I would have to slide the bed back but tilting in the manner you describe is smart. Now I just need to find a wimp... Oh wait !, if I can't lift that bed then then I am the wimp.

ZPOD

I raised the bed of the truck as suggested in these posts. I did have the strength to lift it but I did require a second person to slide the wood under the bed resting the wood on the tire. I happened to have a few wide boards then used 2X4s. if it were all 2X4s this would be very dangerous but this setup was very stable with the emergency brake applied and as long as nobody comes by and pulls the emergency brake then throws it in neutral then that this is very safe. The bed has to be raised as high as it was in order for the fuel sending canister (or whatever that thing is called) to be removed



I only had to remove the gas cap and 3 Philips screws from the fuel inlet spout or whatever that is called. Then I had to remove the wiring harness from the bottom of the wheel well, very easy. Then I removed the spare tire and the tire roll down bar or whatever that is called.
The bed only has 4 bolts per side so I removed all 4 bolts from the left side then loosened the 4 on the right side. I ran them out as far as possible without the bolts falling to the ground.

This is the canister I removed:


Look at this fuel sending unit. The electronics are fully exposed to the fuel while in the tank. I was in awe when I saw that. Notice the electronics are coated with a black film, what is that and how did it get that way? The fuel in the tank is not black:


This is the new fuel sending unit:


Look at this, The screws came loose and wore a larger hole into the metal bracket so I added washers. This bracket adjusts for different tank sizes.


When I first accessed the top of the tank I could not get the plastic quick connect attachments off (gas lines), so I broke them off with the intent on replacing them with rubber lines but since the tank was next to the frame I could not access the metal lines where the plastic lines attached so I pulled the plastic line until the metal lines became accessible. Careful not to bend the lines so much that they kink.

At this point I wondered if I should have dropped the tank instead. If I did then I would have had to buy a pump and a 55gal drum to extract the fuel and if I had dropped the tank to the ground then the plastic lines would break anyway and pull the metal lines down so raising the bed seems to be the better method... I still think there should be an access door in the bed just above the fuel tank.

Those plastic lines and quick connect clips are not sold by themselves. You have to buy the metal fuel lines and that was so stupid that I wasn't going to play that game so I asked the parts person and a mechanic if I can safely use rubber fuel line. They both said that it will work just fine with no problems so I bought some rubber fuel lines from the Dodge dealer. At O'Reileys auto parts I used their loaner flange tool and made the metal ends on the line input to the tank with a flange. The other metal lines were already flanged. I added hose clamps to ensure the line stays on.

When placing the large cylinder in the fuel you have to put the large rubber gaskets on first. Both together, then slide the cylinder in. Coat the large plastic nut, or whatever it's called with grease then screw it on.

My fuel gauge is now working. What a relief. Not knowing what my fuel level was is like driving blind folded. Now I just hope this is not one of those defective senders, but if it is then the second time around should only take half the time it did the first time.

1-2-3

I think the idea of a 2X4 was to use a longer one as a leg, not a stack that can fall. The fuel line clips is actually easy to remove once you learn the secret. A draw straw kit might fix your fuel line connection issue.

ZPOD

I tried the long 2X4 first and that was way too dangerous because of the slant. The tire and wheel forced the 2X4 out like this \
There are so many things that can go wrong with that situation,
It could slip on the ground.
It could slip inside the fender well.
The fender well might collapse from the weight.
The 2X4 might snap.

That method is way too risky. If any one of those things should occur your brain will not react fast enough to get out of there either smashing or severing your limbs or breaking your neck.
I never take risks like that or trust a jack alone without a jack stand. It only takes one time and I have seen enough stories on tv to know that I never want to lose limbs or be crushed to death like that.

The specific pieces of wood I used I give a 100% safety rating as long as the truck is in park and the emergency break is set there is nothing that could have gone wrong but I warned people that only using a stack of 2X4s would be dangerous, the wide pieces on the bottom are more than secure enough. They rested on the frame and the tire, they weren't going anywhere so I highly recommend my method over the single 2X4 prop. Only people who are still alive can recommend the single 2X4 prop, the ones that are dead cannot and the ones with severed limbs can't even type on a keyboard in this post to tell people not to use the single 2X4 prop.

ZPOD

I should not have had the problems I had because it should have released with needle nose pliers but it just wouldn't release and I am very pleased with my rubber fuel line and hose clamps, it should hold up for 30 years or so, a lot longer than that brittle plastic line that was showing signs of chafing and would have ruptured or cracked eventually.

infidel

The trick to removing the quick fuel connects is to squeeze the tabs, push forward then pull back.
To replace just push on.

Whenever I work on a rig where the tank needs to be accessed I abandon the entire stock fuel feed and return lines from tank to engine and replace with hose w/ clamps.
The stock fuel supply lines are nothing but future problems, even the steel lines crack. High quality hose will easily last the life of the truck.

ZPOD

Sounds simple enough, I might not have pushed forward after squeezing the tabs but after 20 minutes I was so frustrated I began prying. I hope these posts assist others which is why I posted my experience. I had assumed the quick connects were to speed up assembly line production only, because try and get that windshield washer bottle off. It slides in super easy and latches with no bolts but removing it was a huge pain until I pried... (There I go again with the prying, just call me crow bar Pete)... I pried the top tabs out of the slot after struggling with it for 20 minutes.

infidel

One more trick:
No need to pry the washer or coolant bottle, just slide a butter knife or long thin screwdriver inbetween the holder and bottle.
What you are trying to do move the part of the holder outward where the quarter sized hole is that the bottle protrudes from.

ZPOD

I used a long flat head screw driver, the antifreeze bottle was not a problem as it has only one of those locking nodules or whatever it's called. The windshield washer bottle has two, one I could not see and it would not release. Now that I can actually look at them I realize how a butter knife could work... But seriously, is this what the designer intended? Does every Diesel mechanic have a butter knife in his tool drawer? would this be obvious to the average back yard mechanic?

My first car was when I was 15. It was a 1969 Ford LTD, I have owned various cars and vans from 1969 to 1990, Always used and older, Screws and bolts held things together, working on all of them was easy and everything made sense or followed a standard pattern of construction. I am struggling with some of these newer things, even though supposedly simpler I am unfamiliar with the design or function. (95 is the latest vehicle I have ever owned) I suppose now I need to add a butter knife to my tool box and label that as Windshield Washer Bottle Removing Tool and doubles as a device to spread jelly on bread.

infidel

Of course it was.
Modern vehicles are designed to be quickly and easily put together, not taken apart.