Engine/Transmission (1998.5 - 2002) Westech Fuel Pressure sender #3 bites the dust

[Texas Diesel]

3 Westech senders have started leaking in 100k miles. They are remote mounted and have a pressure snubber too. Not gonna waste any more money on that junk. Guess it's time for a mechanical gauge setup, any suggestions?

 

[darkhorse]

That's pretty depressing! I hope I don't have a repeat of your problems. Mine has been mounted on the throttle assembly & plumbed with a Geno's hose for about 20,000 miles & so far it's good.

 

[Oil Burner]

I went mechanical after my first westach sender failed. It was leaking badly before it failed. Now I run an isspro mechanical gauge with no isolator. just a needle valve under the hood to act as a snubber and a shut off if I have any problems. I sleeved the 1/8" fuel line running into the cab with thick, rubber vacuum hose I bought from the parts store. Some guys run braided stainless.



Jason

 

[RustyJC]

Texas Diesel,



Do you have braided stainless steel hose running to the sender, or did you use the grease gun hose method? I've had failures on my post-filter Westach senders (only one on the pre-filter sender), and they're both plumbed with AN-4 braided stainless hose - the post-filter sender has a gauge snubber. The folks who use the grease gun hose method don't seem to have these failures.



I've pretty well convinced myself that the high pressure spikes getting fed back from the VP-44's internal feed pump are knocking these senders out. The grease gun hose seems to have enough flexibility (unlike the braided hose) to dampen these spikes. Dunno why the gauge snubbers don't seem to catch them.



JM2CW



Rusty

 

[Texas Diesel]

Rusty, I have a braided satinless steel hose. You may be on to something, there has to be a reson they keep failing.

 

[Oil Burner]

FWIW, I was running a grease gun hose when mine failed. I agree about the pressure spikes killing the sending units. Without a needle valve or snubber, my mechanical gauge is very erratic. So, my old sending unit was seeing all of those pulsations for over a year. NO wonder the thing failed. I guess the sending units should be protected by a needle valve or snubber.



-Jason

 

[RustyJC]

I guess the question becomes:



How many people have failed a Westach sending unit that is:



1. Reading post-filter fuel pressure



2. Plumbed with the grease gun hose and



3. Uses a needle valve/gauge snubber



Rusty

 

[WestTN]

My sensors are mounted in a rubber isolated mount on the firewall behind the ABS unit. They are plumbed with grease gun hoses and I also have a standpipe on each sender made from a " long 1/8"diameter pipe nipple. No problems in almost 80,000 miles.

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

I've used this setup on mine for over 30,000 miles now with no problems...



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That hose is one formerly use for charging air conditioners with Freon - just screw the other end directly onto the Shrader valve at the input to the VP-44...