Has Anyone Had Their Fuel Pump/Cover Leak?

mtnbiker26

Bike Geek
So, my '03 has been smelling like gas the past few days, both in and outside the car. I did some poking around and I found fuel running down the front edge of the tank. At first I thought that it was the seam in the tank but the fuel was actually leaking out where the fuel pump body, gasket, and cover plate all come together on the top of the tank. There's an access under the rear seats which explains the smell inside the car. There were eight TINY phillips head screws holding the cover on and the whole thing was really corroded. I thought that I was effed but my dad used to be a diesel mechanic so he came over. We used a brand new (sharp and pointy) hand held (manual) impact tool to hammer the heads and clean them up so a phillips could grab the screws. It took about an hour but we got all eight screws out. Turns out that the plastic pump body got all eaten away somehow so the fuel was just going under the gasket, pooling up, and then running down the tank into the tank shield thing. The car only has 71,000 miles on it, this seems like an odd thing to have happen. Now I'm waiting until the Holiday weekend is over to call the dealer and try to get a fuel body.
 
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=====UPDATE 8/30/13=====

The bottom of the tank rotted and started leaking so I had to replace the tank. Using those stainless Allen heads with anti-seize was brilliant. They came right out 5 years later. I just posted a "how to" about replacing the tank and wanted to post it here so that folks replacing the fuel pump housing have the info to replace their tank if things get ugly.

http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showthread.php?123833387-How-to-Replace-Protege5-Fuel-Tank


=====UPDATE 10/01/08=====

Well, it took 3 1/2 weeks to get all the parts. They had everything except the ring plate in a week but then it took another 2 1/2 weeks for the ring plate to show up. I called a few dealers looking for the part while I was waiting and one guy told me that they just got one in and it also took forever. I was able to clean up the old parts and re-install them so I could drive the car while I was waiting. The funny part is that it didn't leak. The flange on the tank was quite rusty and I suspect that the rust lifted the gasket just enough to make it leak. I spent about an hour, starting with a gasket scraper and then progressively finer grades of sandpaper cleaning up the tank flange and getting it back down to shiny metal. I also found out that I was wrong on the hardware length. I thought that 10mm length would work but they bottom out before they're tight. It is 4mm diameter but the length needs to be 8mm which is impossible to find. I wound up spending $12 on stainless 4mm X 10mm cap head allen screws and a bunch of stainless washers. I used 3 washers on each screw to take up the 2mm. I also used anti-seize on the threads. Call me paranoid. Screws are NOT included with the ring plate which was fine in my case. The little green clips which hold the fuel lines onto the body aren't included with the new fuel body so be careful not to damage them. They suck to get off by the way. Also, the Washer FEH2-13-ZE4 isn't necessary since the actual pump and the intake filter don't need to be separated from each other.

=====ORIGINAL POST BELOW=======

Hey, I just wanted to post back on the solution to the leak. I poked around online for a while and found a few other folks with the same leak so I figure someone else may need the info. I went to the dealer this morning and ordered five parts totaling $115:

Fuel Body GY01-13-ZE0 {Shown as (2) Fuel Filter (high pressure) in diagram}
Gasket B25D-42-166
Plate BJ0E-42-16XE
O-ring ZL01-13-ZE5
Washer FEH2-13-ZE4 (may not be necessary)

The float, low pressure filter, and pump switch over to the new fuel body. The washer and O-ring seal the pump in the new body.

fuelbody.jpg
 
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Sweet.
I don't actually have this problem and was just reading this as I was browsing,

just wanted to say thanks for posting up the follow-up with the solution, I'm sure someone will need it eventually.

Yay for contribution
 
I need the screws that hold #1 into the tank. I'm going to have to destroy the current ones to get them out.
 
You are the second person to have this problem that I know of. Kansei, over on TMF, just had this happen to him.
 
I need the screws that hold #1 into the tank. I'm going to have to destroy the current ones to get them out.

Mine were in really tough shape...very rusty, and I couldn't even distinguish the heads from the ring plate. A wire brush revealed the 8 screws but the phillips heads were super corroded. I thought was boned so I called my dad who used to be a diesel mechanic. I had a brand new impact driver ($25 at Sears) so the head was nice and pointy and my dad set it to neutral so it wouldn't spin. He put the tool in the screw head and gave each one about 10 good whacks with a framing hammer. It cleaned and reformed the phillips heads really well and also shocked the threads to help loosen up the oxidation. After that we used a brand new (again, sharp and pointy) #2 phillips to remove the screws. The screws are 4mm so I picked up some new cap head allen key style. They should be easier to remove if this happens again. I'm considering applying some soft bathtub style caulking around the heads of the new screws once it's reassembled to ward off rust. I can pick it off if I need to remove the screws in the future.

Be careful "destroying" the screws to get them out. Any debris is going to fall right into your tank. You also can't risk doing any drilling, grinding, filing, etc over an open tank. Sparks would not be cool. To use an Easy-Out you'd have to drill and the drill motor/brushes usually arc.
 
Mine were in really tough shape...very rusty, and I couldn't even distinguish the heads from the ring plate. A wire brush revealed the 8 screws but the phillips heads were super corroded. I thought was boned so I called my dad who used to be a diesel mechanic. I had a brand new impact driver ($25 at Sears) so the head was nice and pointy and my dad set it to neutral so it wouldn't spin. He put the tool in the screw head and gave each one about 10 good whacks with a framing hammer. It cleaned and reformed the phillips heads really well and also shocked the threads to help loosen up the oxidation. After that we used a brand new (again, sharp and pointy) #2 phillips to remove the screws. The screws are 4mm so I picked up some new cap head allen key style. They should be easier to remove if this happens again. I'm considering applying some soft bathtub style caulking around the heads of the new screws once it's reassembled to ward off rust. I can pick it off if I need to remove the screws in the future.

Be careful "destroying" the screws to get them out. Any debris is going to fall right into your tank. You also can't risk doing any drilling, grinding, filing, etc over an open tank. Sparks would not be cool. To use an Easy-Out you'd have to drill and the drill motor/brushes usually arc.

I might be totally screwed though. A few of them were half stripped before I even touched them. I did read something online about possibly using a square bit if they're stripped enough to fit one in. I'll definitely try that first. Do you remember which screws you bought as replacement? Thread size, etc. Sounds like you're on to something. And it's probably cheaper than buying replacement screws at the dealer.
 
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You can Dremel a slot into the heads and make the phillips into slotted. You'd be running into the issue with sparks, though. I've heard that you can fill a tank with water to purge the fumes and make it safe to drill, weld, etc. It'd be quite a job to drop the tank, drain the fuel, fill it with water, do your thing, drain the water, and mount it back up.

The hardware is 4mm X 8mm. (UPDATE 10/01/08: 8mm length is hard to find so I wound up using 10mm length with a few washers on each screw to take up the length). I got them at Home Depot. They had phillips, hex and allen cap head. I went with the cap head because I think an allen will be easier to grab than a phillips if I have to do this a second time but I'm having second thoughts about them being plain steel. I want to check a real HARDWARE store and see if I can find stainless in case I ever have to remove them again. The stainless will corrode less and should be stronger to reduce the chance of snapping them while trying to loosen them.

Edit: Oh, here's the Home Depot barcode: 0 30699 82558 5
 
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I always like a good thread resurrection. Makes me feel like i am contributing to the site, haha.

I am having the exact same issue and have tried the manual impact driver route, only to have the screws bend and reshape into perfect circles when I try to unscrew them. This so far looks like it is a no-go. I am trying to think of another method of making this work, but I am still unsuccessful. The screws are one solid piece with the plate. I was thinking if pulling off the heads by either popping them off with a chisel or something, while flushing a stream of water over them to keep it from sparking. This would still leave the rest of the screws, but with enough of the screw sticking out to perhaps use pliers or vice grips to pull them. Really don't want to have to take it in to get it done (unemployed student in a city without public transit), but it is looking that way. Any other thoughts?
 
Go to Sears and get a set of screw outs. If you pop the tops of the screws out you won't be able to turn the threaded area to remove the rest of the screw.

I used screw outs and then went to the hard ware store for new screws. Ended up using some small metric threaded bolts. That way I could use an 8mm socket to remove the pump at another time if need be. I forget the measurements on the threads but they are metric.
 
Well it's happened to my 02 P5 now. Same deal, all corroded and wet with gas. So I'm trying to clarify things before I tear into it, I'm trying to understand each of these that MTNBIKER listed:

Fuel Body GY01-13-ZE0 {Shown as (2) Fuel Filter (high pressure) in diagram}... I see this in the pic, but what happens to it? Does plastic break and fuel spurts out the side? Is gas leaking because of sloshing or is it pump-driven gas that spurting out?

Gasket B25D-42-166 ........Is this R in the picture?

Plate BJ0E-42-16XE ......Is this Fuel pump unit cover (#1) in the picture?

O-ring ZL01-13-ZE5..... Where's this?

Washer FEH2-13-ZE4 (may not be necessary)....Where's this?

It's like I wanna wash it down to work on it, but don't wanna get water in the tank. What a mess!
 
Easier to remove the tank?

I just bought a P5, and the cover over the tank is leaking, so I guess I'll be doing this job. As the car is from NY, and there's a lot of rust underneath, I'm guessing everything will be rusted.

Better to remove the tank entirely? Anyone done this?

Also, anyone have a link to an EGR thread? Mine stumbles a bit when downshifting, and I wonder if that might be related. thanks.
 
There are 8 phillips screws that hold down the metal plate over the plastic housing. I was able to get them out over about an hour or two. One technique is to hammer on a phillips screwdriver in the screw, which can shock it loose plus renew the screw head. Soak it in PB Blaster for a day before. Push hard when you turn and don't turn so hard that you deform the head. Pound on it some more with the screwdriver. Also pound on the ring just outside the screw head to help ensure any rust bind between the screw and plate is broken. I opted to do it this way instead of trying an impact driver - gave me more control. Remember - clean away any gas - you can getly hose it down - it shouldn't go into the tank - no sparks!
I'd say pull the tank only if this fails - you'd have to do it after pulling anyway.
Also, the reason for the leak seems to be that the thin coating on the plastic housing lid gets removed by rust on the bottom of the plate - the main plastic then fails from the outside in! So you must either replace the plate or clean up and paint the old one. I ended up making a "gasket" from a coffee can lid plastic that keeps the metal from ever touching the plastic.
The housing has a fuel filter in it and is only like 45 bucks discount - cool. The little rubber seal for the pump is like 18 bucks - uncool. I decided not to try and reuse it.
 
Not leaking around the flange, but is leaking somewhere

I pulled the access cover under the back seats, and vacuumed away a bunch of dirt and leaves. Well, there are some itty bitty screws there, but there's no signs of fuel leaking from the flange. (I was smelling fuel outside the car, and there's fuel coming from the tank cover, but no smell inside the car)

This car was from upstate New York, and has a bunch of surface rust on the undercarriage, and a bit on the passenger door bottom, so I have to wonder whether the tank seam itself has rusted.

So...assuming I have to acquire a new tank, is the p5 tank unique?

regards,

Sean
 
For the tank cover problem, it will only really leak while the car is running. The plastic becomes slightly porous and the pressure penetrates it. You can wipe away the gas on the plastic and will see it leaking more. The tank gasket is really not involved.
 
m4 x 8 screw source

Stainless steel m4 x 8 socket head cap screws at McMaster.com, part number 92290A140, $6.40 pack of 25
 
Finding other post with pics

Well, I'd never have believed it, but using an impact driver with #2 phillips head got the screws out.

I've acquired the necessary parts from the dealer and the stainless socket-head screws from McMaster-Carr, and I'm ready to get this done.

However, I found a post that had some really nice pics showing transferring the pump etc to the new housing, and had a few tips. Now I can't find it, and the search engine doesnt' find it (this forum really needs a "how to" section).

Can anyone find or proivide that post? thanks, Sean
 
Changing out the pump is the easy part. I seem to remember springy plastic clips that you need to release to remove the pump, float and the other thing. I just changed over the parts one at a time so I wouldn't get mixed up.
 
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