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1992 Ford Explorr Gas Gauge Problem

Hello All, I am hoping someone out in cyberspace can help with this minor problem, here goes. About two weeks ago my 92 Explorer's gas guage started acting wacky, at first it stayed stuck at the 1/4 line and sinc then it wavers all over the place. I went to an electrical shop and they said it is a ground problem to which I asked "is it a simple fix?". He stated "Well I'm not sure it could probably take a couple hours to find" and at $75.00 an hour I didn't leave it. I went over to a local Ford dealer and the service manager said it was a common problem with that year and I would have to leave it, with a minimum charge of $220.00, giving me no further information either. So now the dilema is that I am hearing this is a simple fix but no one is willing to give up the info how to do it. I'm hoping there is someone out there that can help. Also note I replaced the sending unit in the tank and also the amplifier under the dash but not the gauge as of yet, another $180 Ford part.

Again any help would be appreciated.

Thanks

Ron

Reply to
Ron Serling
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I can only speculate that the Ford dealer was talking about the fuel sender brass float, which often cracks and leaks.

The $220 probably involves replacing the fuel sender assembly, which includes the fuel pump, sender, and float.

Since you've already replaced it, that wouldn't appear to do any good unless the new unit you put in also has a leak.

But, from the way you describe your fuel gage anomaly, it doesn't appear to be the leaking fuel float.

There are some pretty simple ways to check the gage "system". Pull the connector to the fuel sender at the tank and check for a good ground. The sender has an impedance range of somthing like 7 to 75 ohms (full to empty). You can put a dummy resistor substitution for the sender and see how the gage reads. Troubleshoot from there based on what you find.

You'll need to get a manual to know which wires to hook up to and exactly what resistance values to use.

I had the leaking float problem. Replacing the fuel sender assembly fixed my problem, but it came back a year later, and believe it or not, the float was leaking again.

Reply to
Tommy Wood

There was a recently problem that showed up in Florida that affected gas gauges. There was an influx of gasoline with high sulphur content. The gas gauge uses a silver resistive element in the tank to sense the gas level. The sulphur corrodes silver and caused lots of problems with gas gauges. If you have been traveling around here, that might be the problem. The gas companies were paying for the repairs. Try Google and search for "sulphur gas gauge"

Charlie

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Reply to
Charlie Bress

The gas gauge in my 94 had problems (it read empty all the time) a couple of years ago. It was the gauge. I think it cost $400 for the shop (not the dealer) to find/fix the problem.

Reply to
Mike Iglesias

If memory serves there is a connector just behind the gas tank, with one side of it running on top of the gas tank. This wire has the fuel pump power and fuel gauge wires in it. If you short the two fuel pump wires together, iirc, the fuel gauge will read full (and then some)

If it continues to act jittery, its either a ground, wiring or gauge. You may find corrosion inside this connector, as it does get hit with road spray. If its the actual sensor, you're stuck buying the whole thing with the pump (aftermarket for like $90 or so) - if its just the float, they are available aftermarket. While you're in there be sure to replace the rubber fuel hose as they are known to fail (I've had two fail, in both cases I've stupidly bought new fuel pumps. The last time I ended up having to do the job twice because the fuel pump I purchased was garbage within 5 minutes of installation. That SUCKED! If I would have just replaced the hose it would have "just worked".

JS

R> Hello All,

Reply to
Jacob Suter

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