2003 330 EX Fuel Issues?

[etwman]

Before I begin, thanks everyone for the great information on this site. I’ve read through a lot and hoping to find the problem.

I have a 2003 Air 216 Team. It has a 330 EX in it with about 479 hours. I took it out for its first run last Saturday. It ran fine for about an hour, then when we were towing a boarder it lost some power, regained it, then stalled out. It hissed pretty loud on the port side of the engine. I sat there for about 5 minutes, then it started again, went on plain, then died. Fortunately we were close enough to the dock and was able to limp back. When I got it home I hooked up water, fired up right away in the driveway, idled for about 3 minutes then stalled out again.

Here’s what I’ve done: To my knowledge the fuel filter has never been replaced, so I have one coming from White Lake. I took the old one out and it didn’t look real bad, nor did it look like there was any water in the bowl

I turned the ignition on and can hear the fuel pump cycle for about 5 seconds and can feel the vibration on the fuel cell.

Questions: Is there more than one fuel filter or screen on this year’s boat?

Should I pitch the fuel pump and get another one for $130? There seems to be talk on this site that they don’t last forever. Can these things be intermittent?

Is there a relay that could go bad?

My initial thoughts are it’s a fuel issue, I’m pretty sure it’s not electrical.

Thoughts everyone?

[core-rider]

I would think that the electrical issue I had would have given you problems many years ago, but just in case...

PCM had a problem with the fuel pump relay wiring harness plugs in 2003. They would hate up, expand, and not make a good electrical connection after a while running. I had to remove the pins from the back of the plug, pry them apart just a bit, then stick them back in the plug. I haven't had an issue since. Like I said, I doubt this is your problem but it may be worth looking at.

There is a low pressure fuel pump that pulls fuel from the tank before it goes to the FCC. Maybe that pump has gone bad.

[etwman]

Yeah I found that bulletin on the relay and checked that per the instructions, hoping to find a bent contact. It all looked good. I wonder how much fun it will be to get to that fuel pump at the tank.

Thanks.

[core-rider]

I don't think the low pressure pump is at the tank. I think it is mounted to the engine just below the FCC.

[hourglass]

i've been trying to figure things out how things work and where everything is located lately, and the PCM manuals are a great help. they show every part, diagrams, and more.

[etwman]

Well it wasn't the fuel filter, rule that one out. I did find the low pressure fuel pump right where core-rider said it was. It still cranks over and fires, just hisses like crazy up near the spark arrestor, then stalls out. I'm guessing its lack of fuel. Probably will order another secondary fuel pump tomorrow.

[core-rider]

Why don't you get a fuel pressure tester and do a little diagnostic work before ordering anymore parts. You could replace a bunch of stuff and waste lots of money going that route. I'm not sure if there is a way to test the low pressure pump side, but you can definitely do the high pressure side. The hissing sound you hear at the TB is just air rushing in past he throttle blade.

[bmh2208]

Pull the rotor cap for the plugs and look at it. About two years ago, I had similar symptoms. I tried everything and ended up taking it to the dealer. Within 30 mins they knew what was wrong. After the years, the cap and rotor had become dirty and corroded and was not providing enough spark.

goodluck

[etwman]

update

Okay, put a pressure tester on the FCC (thanks core-rider). Thing tested at 52 psi. Ran like a champ in the driveway for about 10 minutes at idle, then the pressure bombed to 12 psi. It still ran, but rough.

At this point I'm pretty sure its the primary pump that's down under the FCC. There's enough guys on this site that indicate that these things can go. If it were both pumps the think wouldn't run. I guessing the secondary inside the FCC can generate about the 12 psi to keep the thing barely running.

Thoughts?

[etwman]

Conclusion

I wanted to take a moment to post the results of this issue so that people in the future, with similar issues, can use threads a dianostic refernces. Its tough when you read through a thread and there's no conclusion on whatever the solution was to a particular problem.

After purchasing a $120 primary fuel pump from skidim the problem is solved. I ran the boat in the driveway for about 30 minutes and it ran fine. When taking the fuel primary fuel pump off it'll work best to remove the water pump and the bracket behind it. Access is tight to get to the nuts on the fuel pump. Have a solid bolt close by to stick in the rubber fuel line after you disconnect it from the fuel pump. Use the same hose clamp and tighten it as tight as you can. The fuel tank will gravity flow and there's no shut off valve. If you are not prepared you'll have a hull full of gas pretty quick.

While you have everything apart you might as well replace the impeller in the water pump.

Figure on about 2 hours from start to finish, its not that hard to do.