Question need help with a superduty gas truck issue, please.

resq229

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i have a 2004 4x4 f250 superduty, it is a 5.4 gas truck with automatic. today my low fuel light came on so i pulled in a gas station, i left it running and put 20 gallons in it, i went in the station to pay for the gas and when i returned to the truck it had died, i tried to crank the truck but it would not start, as the engine turned over cranking it coughed and sputtered a few times but would not start up. im assuming the fuel pump went bad but do you folks have any other suggestions of things i should check?

i know this is a diesel site, but i figured some of you die hard ford folks may have had a 5.4 truck and may be able to point me in the right direction.

Thanks in advance for any advice you can offer.
 

Zookie400

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ok, to check for fuel pressure you want to look for a schrader valve on one of the fuel rails, BE CAREFUL, dont get any in your face but with the key on it will pump up to pressure then kill the pump. you can poke the valve open and fuel should shoot out a little. it should recharge every time you cycle the key.

also, it sounds like you could have a BIG intake leak somewhere after the mass airflow sensor. i had taken a ccv hose off the intake tube on the mustang once, and forgot to put it back on before i started it......it spit and sputtered and would not run unless i held the throttle down. not sure how you could magically develope a leak like that while fueling up though.....?

DID YOU PUT DIESEL IN IT??? or perhaps did the fuel truck cross drop into the stations tanks...??? maybe something to check, it really fits your scenario/symptoms perfectly.
 
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desert50eagle

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My neighbor had an 03 SD with the 5.4. Coming home from wisconsin he ran the truck on fumes till he found a gas station in Il:dunno(not sure why). He left it running filled it up and it quit on him:eek. Turns out he burnt up the fuel pump:eek:. He had it fixed by a ford dealer and they told him it was because the pump ran too hot(no fuel in tank too cool it) and then he put cold fuel into it. They also told him never to run below 1/4 of a tank to avoid this problem again. Not sure if this helps you but good luck with the truck...
 

resq229

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Thanks a ton to you guys for the ideas and advice.

I had 2 of my kids with me and it was around 95 degrees out in the station lot so i just called a friend with a rollback, he took it to his shop but he only does minor repairs, so i figured id post and see what you guys thought. he is going to look at the minor stuff in the morning, if he don't figure it out then i have to.

i had plenty of fuel when i got started off but had alot of driving around to do and when i noticed it was getting low i was a pretty good distance from a gas station, i went straight there but by the time i was there the truck was sitting on E pretty much. the gas pump was reg fuel for sure because a few other cars fueled after i pushed my truck out of the way, they dident seem to have any problems. i don't think the intake is the problem but hey it's plastic so who knows on that, guess it's possible.

im praying it's the fuel pump or crank sensor (something easy), im leaning towards the fuel pump myself but appreciate all ideas in case thats not it, i will keep this post updated until my 5.4 is running again and any other thoughts or ideas are greatly appreciated.

Thanks
 

Dogman

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The fastest way to find out if the pump is bad is to use your ear. Have someone turn the key on and listen for the pump. You should here it come on then shut off. But I think your pump is gone south there. I have done 6 fuel pump jobs on the side for cash the last 3 weeks now.

I little note here running low in fuel is not the biggest killer of fuel pumps. It’s water. It’s the amount of water in the fuel. I been reading this book from carter pumps on fuel pump problems and what the biggest killer of pumps.
 

resq229

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Issue has been resolved now.

I got 20 gallons of fuel, so i thought, turns out about 8 gallons of the 20 was water. don't ask me how. The gas station is paying the $200 repair bill and refunding what i paid for the fuel.

What a mess. Thanks for you guys ideas and comments, any further comments feel free to post.

Thanks
 

JLDickmon

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the fact the gas station chipped in to cover it means some of those cars you saw fuel up DID have problems...
 

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