fuel gauge not working

[llcoolbus]

We are working on an 08 international and the fuel gauge is going way passed full we put in a new fuel sensor same problem got a whole new cluster still same problem

[o1marc]

Join the family, go to the UserCP and fill out your profile so we know where you are and what bus you're working on. Makes it easier to answer your questions.

[Brad_SwiftFur]

Originally Posted by llcoolbus

We are working on an 08 international and the fuel gauge is going way passed full we put in a new fuel sensor same problem got a whole new cluster still same problem

This is a case of throwing money at a problem and not really doing any diagnostic troubleshooting. My gauge is stuck on ~1/4 regardless of how much fuel is in it. I've observed rust inside the fuel tank so I suspect the sending unit is stuck in one position. For now, it's not been a priority to fix mostly because I want to swap the 30 gallon tank is has now for a larger one.


In your case, I would have tried some diagnostics before buying the first part. I would have removed the sending unit and cycled it by hand, see if the gauge readings changed (They should have, but in your case, probably wouldn't.) I'm suspecting you've got a short, one of the wires has made contact with the frame, fuel tank, it's mate wire, or something else (and the 'signal' doesn't even make it to the sending unit at that point). On some fuel systems, this could be the symptom of a loose, broken, or disconnected wire (also a poor ground connection).

[ted@campbycanoe.com]

My 2003 International had the same symptoms. I disconnected the ground wire from the sending unit (through the access hole in the floor), sanded the contacts to clean them up and reconnected: Voila! Normal fuel gauge readings.

Then I did a little dance. I'm rarely graced with simple solutions.