What would cause a fuel pump to overheat

On many vehicles with electronic fuel injection, the pump is located in the fueltank and the fuel actually cools it, chronic low fuel levels will cause issues here on an older pump BUT look elsewhere for thr PRIMARY cause... plugged fuel filters, bad pressure regulators and injectors. You havent mentione that it has affected engine performance so look to the fuelpath... filters and lines... suspect your source of fuel as the root cause for plugged lines and filters. You could also simply have a bad pump... it happens in any case the vehicle IS 9 years old and if the cause is found to be other than the pump itself, replace the pump. it is an electric motor driven high pressure pump. The Motor is what is overheating, and this causes the windings on electric motors to break down... which will result in premature failure. replace it while it is running and not when it dies with you in traffic or away from home and end up having to pay for a tow

Your fuel pump relay or pressure switch may be bad or you have a blockage somewhere.Check the fuel filter first, espsecially if its after the pump,and it may even be best to replace it,this will ensure its not clogged,but you can pull it off and inspect it,look for rust or any other sediment to come out the inlet side,or apply light pressure compressed air to the oulet side to blow out any sediments.Once its replaced you can check the relay ,turn the key on(don't start the motor)and listen for the hum of the fuel pump,it should shut off when the pressure is brought up to the system requirment,this should take just a second or two,if it keeps running than you have a bad relay or pressure switch.

Parked on a hill with your vehicle constantly running and because of the angle your gas is t able to cool the pump

Hello jmn081477,

Well, I have never heard of a fuel pump to "overheat" - however, I suppose anything is possible when it comes to a vehicle.

I would think that a bad connection (ground etc.) could play a role in that. I can't really think of anything else. Just out of curiosity, how are aware that the pump is overheating?

I would check the connections on the pump, and make sure the wiring isn't frayed or or bare, or touching eachother or anything like that. Also, are you talking about the pump in the tank, or are referring to a secondary (usually located on the driver side mounted to the chassi (frame) just behind the engine.

Well, I really wish I had an exact answer for you about this one...that mentioned above is all I could imagine would cause such a part to overheat.

Also check the fuse and fuel pump relay and fuel pump regulator. Have a diagnostics test done on the vehicle so ensure that no codes show up. If so, replace the parts/components for which they represent. (the codes represent)

I hope this information is useful to you, and helps you solve this issue. Thank you for choosing fixya.com. Please, let me know if I can be of any further assistance.


carsandcomps
Guru, fixya.com
Oregon