Solved 1990 3.0L Aerostar. Sluggish fuel system.

[gjonesiii]

My problem is that my aerostar dies after prolonged stops at the intersection.I replaced the fuel pump and the fuel relay recently because I wasn't getting any fuel. The pump was not needed, but was replaced because the relay was installed in the incorrect socket, only to be corrected after the pump had been replaced. The fuel filter was also replaced. It was after this "repair" that the stalling started. Also worth noting is that I can hear the fuel pump starting to run at a loud whine after sitting at an intersection for a prolonged period of time. The fuel filter was again replaced on the chance that a lot of loose material was stirred up off of the bottom of the tank . There was visible black specks pouring out of it. The problem continues, though it seems to be reduced when the tank is over a quarter full. It does occur to me that reinstalling the original fuel pump may resolve this issue, or the fuel pressure regulator.
Thanks in advance for any insights that may be offered.

 

[BrooklynBay]

Welcome to this forum! It sounds like the internal sock style sump filter in the tank might have fallen off or is clogged.

 

[gjonesiii]

The resolution....The problem continued to get worse, the fuel pump got louder,more often. When I dropped the tank the sock filter was in place with little, if any discoloration. Because of the loud noise the pump was making, and I had the tank down, I installed a new pump. The van runs much better than at any time with the previous pump. I tend to believe pump was bad out of the box. The tip about the filter did point me in the right direction and I appreciate the time taken to do so.

 

[JohnAerostarXLT]

Glad you got it fixed! Where did you buy the bad pump? Did they accept it back?

 

[BrooklynBay]

Thanks for the update!

 

[gjonesiii]

I purchased the pump at Auto Zone. The brand was Airtex, part #E2107S. Auto Zone had the replacement part in my hand 4-5 hours after returning the defective part.

 

[BrooklynBay]

I saw other people on this site complain about Airtex fuel pumps & sending units in the past. Personally, I've never used them so I can't give an opinion. How long is the warranty on the part? Autozone has a lifetime warranty on a lot of their products.

 

[gjonesiii]

Clarification...the replacement part was in an Airtek box. The first pump was in a blue box with a graytone photo of the part,and the text was in a foreign language. The part numbers with identical. I assume same part, different packaging. The warranty was for 1 year. So far, so good this time around.