Nissan Armada & Infiniti QX56 Forums banner

Fuel Pumps

8K views 20 replies 14 participants last post by  Roneyjesse 
#1 ·
I have a 2005 that I love, I pamper, & is paid off!!! :D I have always sworn by Nissan & Nissan's overall quality.......Until recently!!! Driving down the road and what do you know, it dies! Luckily, I was able to coast to a large median & call a tow. When my Mechanic called me the following day, he was as shocked as I was that it needed a fuel pump! He said he rarely finds a car (that's taken care of) that age that needs a new fuel pump. After doing research, I realized bad fuel pumps in Armadas are more common then uncommon!! My question, did I do something to cause this? What does it take foe Nissan to actually make something a recall? BTW....For some reason, my 2005 Armada was not included on the fuel gauge recall (which would have explained a fuel pump going bad!) I would love to hear the thoughts from other Armada owners!!!!:clueless
 
#3 ·
The most common cause of fuel pump failure is driving with very low fuel levels in the tank. The fuel cools the pump; when the fuel level is very low the pump doesn't get as much cooling.
 
#4 ·
Fuel pumps, like any fabricated part, do fail. I've had one fail at 32K in a GM product. My son's Integra with almost 200K still has original fuel pump. Essentially no cars have a replaceable fuel filter anymore. They're all integrated into the FP assembly. Not much you can do to prevent problems but don't run out of fuel and try to avoid dirty fuel. Ethanol does yield dirtier fuel due to the water in it. Hate that crap, but it's almost all that is available.
 
#5 ·
#8 ·
#14 ·
Be Prepared

After Fuel pump replacement, be prepared for to replace ALL your catalytic converters within the year! Within 4-6 months one side went bad and app. 3 months later the other side went bad! From the research I did the two repairs often go hand in hand. Of course, there are A LOT more mechanically educated posters in here that can give you a more "professional" opinion! Good Luck!:x
 
#15 · (Edited)
That kinda makes sense... I'm guessing either the fuel lean ratio may have affected the burn temp of the cats OR they all failed from years of burning bad gas which there would be no way for a consumer to know for sure the quality of fuel being put in.
 
#18 ·
I have a 2005 that I love, I pamper, & is paid off!!! :D I have always sworn by Nissan & Nissan's overall quality.......Until recently!!! Driving down the road and what do you know, it dies! Luckily, I was able to coast to a large median & call a tow. When my Mechanic called me the following day, he was as shocked as I was that it needed a fuel pump! He said he rarely finds a car (that's taken care of) that age that needs a new fuel pump.
Hearing your mechanic say that fuel pumps rarely fail has been the most troubling thing I've seen in this thread. I hope he's been doing good work for you. Your Armada is 12-13 years old? I know (from experience) that Ford fuel pumps seldom ever make it that far.

From what I seee, the replacement is a lot easier than most. On the 2005, there's an access hatch in the floor under there 3rd row seat above the fuel pump. Should be no need to drop the fuel tank, as is the case with a whole lot of other vehicles. I haven't done it myself, but I read about the process in the Chilton manual. I haven't checked my 2014, but since they were so similar from 2004 until 2015, I'm hoping that it is.
 
#19 ·
On the 2005, there's an access hatch in the floor under there 3rd row seat above the fuel pump.
Access hatch is below the 2nd row seat, not the 3rd row seat. Driver's side. You can go the hard way and remove the seats and carpet to get to the hatch. Or you can do it the easy way and flip the seat bottom forward, then cut the carpet where the hatch is (you can feel it with your hands). When you're done, glue the carpet back in place to keep it from getting snagged or ripped. Once you're done you can hardly see the repair.
 
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