Fuel Sn95 Mustangs Sitting And Fuel Pump Death ?

I have a '99 Mustang GT that I've owned since new (124K on the clock). I have it sitting in a garage now, with 1/4 tank of "fuel". If you can call the "fuel" sold nowadays as fuel rather than "corn likker". But I digress.

While researching several DTC codes (mostly my fault), I noticed many, many, many threads regarding sitting Mustangs and no-start, fuel pump failures.

So, what do I need to do to avoid fuel pump death in the future (I am getting voltage at the connector to the fuel pump down by the rear bumper center proving "upstream" electric goodness) ?

I am really pissed off at having to drop the tank and replace the fuel pump, so please forgive my snarling,snarky displeasure.
 
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Is this the original pump? If so, I'd say you don't need to do anything else different, as a life of 14 years and 124k miles isn't bad at all.

Just a comment on "corn fuel"... I ran lots of E30 and E85 through the tank on the GT over the years. The original pump in my 97 lasted 14 years and 191k miles, so I don't think the ethanol was hurting it.

And yes, the pump tends to die while the vehicle is parked. In my case, I drove 120+miles the previous day, parked it, and no start the next morning. I am VERY happy it quit when safely parked, rather than on interstate, for safety and convenience.

And to put things in perspective about the job, I had to change my pump at an apartment complex, 3 hours from home, in 108* heat (not exaggerating, it was the summer of 2011!), with only a cheap 3/8" ratchet set I bought from the store (see note about 3hrs from home) and the pressure of getting to work the next day. The job wasn't that bad, but you should have it much easier! Just putting things into perspective for ya. ;)
 
Is this the original pump? If so, I'd say you don't need to do anything else different, as a life of 14 years and 124k miles isn't bad at all.

Just a comment on "corn fuel"... I ran lots of E30 and E85 through the tank on the GT over the years. The original pump in my 97 lasted 14 years and 191k miles, so I don't think the ethanol was hurting it.

And yes, the pump tends to die while the vehicle is parked. In my case, I drove 120+miles the previous day, parked it, and no start the next morning. I am VERY happy it quit when safely parked, rather than on interstate, for safety and convenience.

And to put things in perspective about the job, I had to change my pump at an apartment complex, 3 hours from home, in 108* heat (not exaggerating, it was the summer of 2011!), with only a cheap 3/8" ratchet set I bought from the store (see note about 3hrs from home) and the pressure of getting to work the next day. The job wasn't that bad, but you should have it much easier! Just putting things into perspective for ya. ;)
Is this the original pump? If so, I'd say you don't need to do anything else different, as a life of 14 years and 124k miles isn't bad at all.

Just a comment on "corn fuel"... I ran lots of E30 and E85 through the tank on the GT over the years. The original pump in my 97 lasted 14 years and 191k miles, so I don't think the ethanol was hurting it.

And yes, the pump tends to die while the vehicle is parked. In my case, I drove 120+miles the previous day, parked it, and no start the next morning. I am VERY happy it quit when safely parked, rather than on interstate, for safety and convenience.

And to put things in perspective about the job, I had to change my pump at an apartment complex, 3 hours from home, in 108* heat (not exaggerating, it was the summer of 2011!), with only a cheap 3/8" ratchet set I bought from the store (see note about 3hrs from home) and the pressure of getting to work the next day. The job wasn't that bad, but you should have it much easier! Just putting things into perspective for ya. ;)
 
Is this the original pump? If so, I'd say you don't need to do anything else different, as a life of 14 years and 124k miles isn't bad at all.

Just a comment on "corn fuel"... I ran lots of E30 and E85 through the tank on the GT over the years. The original pump in my 97 lasted 14 years and 191k miles, so I don't think the ethanol was hurting it.

And yes, the pump tends to die while the vehicle is parked. In my case, I drove 120+miles the previous day, parked it, and no start the next morning. I am VERY happy it quit when safely parked, rather than on interstate, for safety and convenience.

And to put things in perspective about the job, I had to change my pump at an apartment complex, 3 hours from home, in 108* heat (not exaggerating, it was the summer of 2011!), with only a cheap 3/8" ratchet set I bought from the store (see note about 3hrs from home) and the pressure of getting to work the next day. The job wasn't that bad, but you should have it much easier! Just putting things into perspective for ya. ;)


OOK, while I liked your post, I still don't like the "whiskey" they are contaminating fuel with. I have an older , non-Ford muscle car, and I have gone through 3 mechanical fuel pumps due to the ethanol destroying the diaphragms.And now, the destruction of a fuel-injected Mustang/ Enough ! Pay me, you rotten corn farmers !!

The ethanol in the fuel tends to produce water in the fuel tank which screws up everything. I am tired of paying the "poor little farmer subsidies". BS, I say. Today's fuel is horrible.
 
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OOK, while I liked your post, I still don't like the "whiskey" they are contaminating fuel with. I have an older , non-Ford muscle car, and I have gone through 3 mechanical fuel pumps due to the ethanol destroying the diaphragms.And now, the destruction of a fuel-injected Mustang/ Enough ! Pay me, you rotten corn farmers !!

The ethanol in the fuel tends to produce water in the fuel tank which screws up everything. I am tired of paying the "poor little farmer subsidies". BS, I say. Today's fuel is horrible.
Finally got around to taking a "post mortem" pic of the old fuel pump. Here is what it looked like after 14 years and 124K miles. I was really pro-active into replacing fuel filters, BTW. The tank's insides were "pristine". New filler neck grommet installed as well. Now I understand what "wmburns" was saying about the fragility of the check valve.
 

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