strange fuel problem

My guess......

That this vehicle sat unused for an extended period of time before you got it, allowing some of the fuel to turn into sludge/varnish and/or there's rust in the tank that might be combining with the sludge varnish into the black compound.

The return line shouldn't have anything to do with the stuff that's in the fuel filter. Its purpose is to return fuel vapor to the tank rather than vent them into the atmosphere.

The blackness of the oil is likely an indication that the detergents in the oil are doing their job and that the maintenance of the van might not have been a high priority for previous owners. Otherwise, there's some blow-by past the rings that is causing oil contamination.

Ken

Hi,

Thanks for the ideas. However I should have described this black stuff better because it's not a sludge. It's like a very thin liquid soot, but completely blocks the fuel filter. I took the filter apart and you don't see any substance except it's completely black and if you hold it to the light you can't see through it.

When I first disconnected the fuel filter this black gas ran onto my hands and was very hard to wash off. It took about a week before it all washed off.

As I have filled the gas tank about 6 times now and used it to the bottom without any change in symptoms I believe it's not the gas or the tank. And as the oil level stays right on the mark and the spark plugs stay clean I believe it isn't oil blow-by.

However I will take the gas tank off and have a look in to be sure.

Linton

If that gas tank sat with Petro Can gas in it, the black stuff is what's left of the gas pump seals.

Petro Can used some additive that ate up Chrysler fuel pumps and filled the tank with black junk.

They did end up paying for a lot of repairs I believe I saw on the news.

Folks were having to replace the gas tanks even because the junk wouldn't seem to flush out. They get a new fuel pump and a flushed tank and a couple weeks later, same deal all over again. Some were even told the dealer thought it was some kind of bacteria growing in the tanks like can happen to diesels.

Mike

86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's

L>

Hi Mike,

Well so I did some searching on this and what did I find? First it was Shell not PetroCan, so you PetroCan patrons can rest easy. Also the offending additive was removed March 02. Also the main problem was that the fuel GAUGES didn't work because they were weighted down with this heavy gunk. However it's not what I have, mine is very thin and will run right into the pores of your skin, also my gas gauge works perfectly. Here's quote:

Sunday, May 26 '02 - Online Edition, Posted at 9:47 PM EST

Edmonton - Shell Canada has been quietly compensating gasoline customers for months after acknowledging that one of its additives seems to have damaged fuel gauges in thousands of vehicles across the country.

"We've heard about this issue," said Shell Canada spokesman Jeff Mann. "It seems that one of the common denominators is the use of Shell gasoline."

The problem is most common on Dodge Chrysler vehicles.

Drivers experience it when their fuel lights begin to blink empty even though the tank is full. The needles on gas gauges swing back and forth seemingly randomly.

The problem, said Edmonton mechanic Dave Guse, is a layer of sludge that forms over the sensor in the gas tank that reads the fuel level.

"It's black, goopy crap and we scrape it off with a razor blade," said Mr. Guse, who works at a Dodge Chrysler dealership.

See rest of article...

-------------------------------------end quote, Linton

detergents

Otherwise,

contamination.

I definitely dropped the ball there didn't I.

The folks I am remembering had black gooey buildup inside their pumps and clogging the intank filters.

They would get a new pump and filter and a flushed tank only to have the same thing happen within a month.

I have no clue what that black junk was or what it turns like as the new clean gas is trying to flush it away.

I do know they even changed tanks in some cases.

Mike

L>

I know this is old, but it just came up in the local newspaper again and it was what I thought, 'black gunk' clogging up the fuel pumps as well as the gauges.

You are correct it was Shell gas though.

They are now paying for the fuel pump replacements for that year(s) of the bad gas if folks put in a claim and have proof they bought $100.00 or more Shell gas and had to replace their pump according to an article in The Toronto Star.

Mike

L>