Forester XT Fuel Pump Gurgling

[Husker]

I have an 2005 Forester XT that has a developed a gurgle in the fuel pump.  It sounds like the check valve has gone out to me.  However I did some Googling and some folks seem to think the sound is normal.  It seems to only do it when the car is warm but I haven't completely verified that yet.  I've attached a short video of the noise.  You may need to use headphones. 

 

Any suggestions on fuel pumps for replacement if it is needed?  I've seen Walbro 255 thrown around around a lot but it seems to have mixed reviews with some people complaining about it whining or dying quickly.  Thanks!

 

EDIT: file attachement apparently didn't work so here's a public link to it on Dropbox:

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/694999/fxt_gurgle.mp4

Edited May 31, 2015 by Husker

[Fairtax4me]

It just sounds to me like you're hearing the fuel spray back into the tank from the return hose.

The pressure builds until the regulator opens then some fuel will return to the tank.

Pinch the return hose under the hood with some hose clamp pliers and see if it still makes the noise.

 

Don't bother putting a pump in unless you check the pressure with a guage and determine the pressure is low or there is a fast drop in pressure after the pump turns off.

[Husker]

It just sounds to me like you're hearing the fuel spray back into the tank from the return hose.

The pressure builds until the regulator opens then some fuel will return to the tank.

Pinch the return hose under the hood with some hose clamp pliers and see if it still makes the noise.

 

Don't bother putting a pump in unless you check the pressure with a guage and determine the pressure is low or there is a fast drop in pressure after the pump turns off.

 

OK, I may let it ride a while and see if it gets worse.  I've never heard it draining before this week.  But I thought there was a check valve in the return to prevent fuel from from draining?  That way the pump wouldn't have to purge the whole line of air with each start up. 

 

If it keeps doing it or the pump gets louder I may just replace it out of preventative maintenance. I drive this car out to remote areas and I don't want it dying on me in the middle of no where.  Thanks for the info!

[1 Lucky Texan]

doesn't the 05 Forry have an 'intermediate' design pump? Like, it has that long-ish cap with a strainer inside?

 

I suppose it's possible it could have a ruptured o-ring and/or cracked cap just like the 2nd gen Leg/Outbacks get sometimes.

 

 

That said, the wife and I both heard gurgling once in our 03 Outback. I think it is possible for it to be 'normal' but not 'common'.

Edited June 2, 2015 by 1 Lucky Texan

[Husker]

doesn't the 05 Forry have an 'intermediate' design pump? Like, it has that long-ish cap with a strainer inside?

 

I suppose it's possible it could have a ruptured o-ring and/or cracked cap just like the 2nd gen Leg/Outbacks get sometimes.

 

 

That said, the wife and I both heard gurgling once in our 03 Outback. I think it is possible for it to be 'normal' but not 'common'.

 

Yeah it's the long all-in-one unit with the in tank filter and pump at the bottom of the with the strainer. The XT's fueling system is mostly swappable with a WRX and STI as it shares the platform with the Impreza. 

 

Hipster Forester.  The Impreza with a lift kit before the Crosstrek was cool.

 

The other reason why I'm suspicious of the the fueling system is I recently got a P2096 (post catalyst too lean) code.  I did some logging in RomRaider and it looked like the rear O2 sensor was toast (flat-lined at under 0.1V, didn't see any change in voltage basically) so I changed it out for an OEM Denso.  The new O2 sensor behaves as it should and fluctuates around 0.4-0.5V at 2000-3000RPM.  The car is stock outside of a catless STI up pipe. I did that about six months ago to get rid of the chance that the aging catalyst material would get pulled into the turbine.  At the time I noticed the rear O2 senor's bung had mostly broken off so I had a new one welded on and reused the old sensor.  The exhaust shop I took my pipe to had to abuse the rear O2 sensor pretty badly to get it out of the old bung so it was kind of suspect from the get-go.  I also replaced all of the exhaust gaskets with fresh OEMs and torqued everything to spec when I swapped the pipe.  I've rechecked for exhaust leaks between and haven't found any.  But with that code cropping up and the pump starting to sound like me after Taco Tuesday I figured it might be worth looking into.  The car is fine on power and the AFRs seem to be pretty spot on so it doesn't look like it's starving for gas.

 

I haven't driven it for a couple of days since I have the back torn apart to get to the fuel bulkhead.  I'll put it back together and see if anything gets worse.  The pump isn't squealing, howling or otherwise being loud as I've heard bad fuel pumps in the past so it must not be in too bad of shape if it's going bad.  I might just order a Walbro 255 with my next paycheck and slap it in as a piece of mind thing.  Probably should replace the filter anyhow. Thanks for the input!

[Fairtax4me]

I don't think 05 has a replaceable filter. Somewhere around 05-06 they built the filter into the unit and the whole assembly has to be replaced.

 

I wouldn't bother with it unless you start to have running problems or hard starting.

[Husker]

I don't think 05 has a replaceable filter. Somewhere around 05-06 they built the filter into the unit and the whole assembly has to be replaced.

 

I wouldn't bother with it unless you start to have running problems or hard starting.

 

You are correct 05 (well mid-05 technically, there are some early 05s running around with the under hood filter) is when they went to the in tank filter/pump/sock.  You can disassemble it and just replace the worn components/upgrade the pump or you can purchase the whole assembly together.   Lots of folks jump over to the Walbro if they plan on trying to stick on a bigger turbo or they're trying to save cash as disassembling and replacing the pump/sock/filter is a good bit cheaper than replacing the whole assembly.  I think SOA only sells the whole assembly.