VW electric fuel pump

VW electric fuel pump 

VW electric fuel pumps are troublesome and VW, Audi, Seat and Skoda cars are notorious for fuel pump problems. Fuel pump problems commonly affect the Volkswagen Polo Classic 6n, the VW Polo 9N, the VW Bora, the VW Passat, the VW Sharan, the VW Caddy, the VW Golf, the Volkswagen Touareg  and the  VW Beetle, among several other. Its effects can range from intermittent no starting to stalling whilst driving, though most clients would complaint that the car jerks and stall and then just shuts off. However it's not always the fuel pump that's to blame. 

VW fuel pump relay

The VW fuel pump relay is another culprit that goes faulty or rather its external contact terminals tend to burn. So if your car wont start, give the Fuel Pump Relay #409 (1J0 906 383 C) or #410 (6N0 906 383A) a knock or two with a screwdriver handle and should the car start, then it's most likely a bad contact on one of its 7 spade terminal. Remove the relay and see if any of its terminal pins have burnt brown. If not, the relay's internal contacts are probably faulty and needs to be replaced. One consolation is that the relay is fairly cheap and it can be bought on-line at ebay.com for as little as $15. However, a VW fuel pump price on the other hand, is ridiculously priced especially  considering I've had a clients who had to have two fuel pumps replaced in under 9000 km. I don't think they are quality pumps.

When our VW Caddy's fuel pump started to give-in, it presented itself as an occasional engine misfire when pulling away from a stop street or traffic lights. The engine misfire became progressively worse over time, so it was booked-in for a service, for spark plug replacement, oil drain and oil  filter replacement, etc.  At this time we didn't know that the engine misfire was caused by the fuel pump. The day the Caddy was returned, it drove fine for the first two hours then started to misfire as it did before, but thereafter the fuel pump started sounding like a hoover vacuum cleaner. 

I knew it was the fuel pump because I've heard this sound before on both a Polo 1.4 Trendline and a Jetta 1.8 which at the time turned out to be the fuel pump. Anyway, the noise from the fuel pump was really high pitched and annoying, After several hours of driving it became unbearable so the Caddy went back to the mechanic who then diagnosed the fuel pump as faulty. After the fuel pump was replaced the noise disappeared and the miss was gone as well. My friend also  encountered the "hoover vacuum cleaner" with his Caddy but after a few days it just disappeared, so now he occasionally experiences starting problems.

VW  Fuel Pump Relay 409 / 410

VW  Fuel Pump Relay Part # 1J0906383B (409) is a 12V 40A relay with 7 spade terminal connectors, 2 Wide, 2 Standard and 3 mini. The same relay is  installed in VW Polo Mk3, VW Jetta, VW Golf Mk4, VW bora,VW beetle, Audi A3, Audi  TT, Seat Leon,  Skoda Octavia,  VW Sharan and VW Passat, etc.


VW  Fuel Pump Relay Part # 6N0906383A (410) is installed in VW Polo 6N, VW Golf Mk4, VW Lupo 6X, Skoda Fabia 6Y, VW Sharan 7M, AUDI A2, SEAT Arosa, SEAT Alhambra, VW Golf GTI, VW Passat and VW Polo Mk3, etc.

Replacing a fuel pump

Remember that the VW electric fuel pump relies on fuel passing through it for both cooling and lubrication. If or when running the fuel pump dry, fuel starvation can accelerate  internal component wear and may cause  the fuel pump motor to overheat and burn out. Electric fuel pumps run from the moment the ignition is switched on, so its fairly obvious that after a few years of operation their armature bushings, gears, commutator and brushes will suffer wear and tear, causing a gradual loss of pressure. Loss of fuel pump pressure commonly causes the "EPC" light to come on. A fuel leak or an Evaporative Emission System (EVAP) leak would also turn on the "EPC" light as well as the "Check Engine" light because the low inlet manifold pressure would upset the engine's air-fuel ratio and degrade engine performance and reduce fuel efficiency.  It would also diminish  power and acceleration, and possibly even cause stalling.  So if you need to replace your VW electric fuel pump, make absolutely sure you depressurize the fuel system before disconnecting the fuel lines. The easiest way to do this is to remove the fuel cap, remove the electric fuel pump fuse or relay and crank the engine a few times. 

Faulty Fuel Pump Flanges

There is currently a VW / Audi fuel pump recall, though its not necessarily the pump that's defective but rather faulty flanges manufactured by German supplier Continental Automotive GmbH. Apparently they've been supplying VW, Audi and Porsche with flanges that seem to crack and cause fuel leaks and potential fires. Apparently Continental sold the potentially faulty flanges to eleven automobile manufacturers and five OEM parts supply companies. Audi, Ford,  Fiat Chrysler, General Motors,  Jaguar-Land Rover, Lamborghini, Mercedes-Benz, McLaren, Porsche, Volvo and VW are just some of the automakers who used these industry-standard polymer flanges but other automakers may possibly also be at risk. 

Meanwhile Volkswagen, Porsche and Audi already recalled nearly a half-million vehicles because of leaky flanges, that cover fuel tank openings and is used for the fuel pump and other items. U.S. safety regulators are currently trying to track down gas tank flanges that may crack and cause fuel leaks on what could be millions of cars of all makes and models.

Continental Automotive GmbH supplied millions of fuel pump flanges to 11 car makers that can cause a potential fire. Is you car one of them?

— Faried (@Syba_seca) July 10, 2017