Chevy Express/GMC Savana Fuel & Oil Questions

fantazyland

I have a 2000 GMC Savana conversion passanger van, and the sending unit for the gas tank sticks at 3/4 tank. I didn't know this until the 1st time I ran out of gas. The fuel pump works fine, but I still want to get fixed. The dealer part is about $200 + Labor. Does this unit cross to any other vehicle that I can get? Other than the GMC dealer, I can't find the part, Is there another vehicle that uses the same part? thanks for anyones help.

tlbyers

I have a 2003 Savana 3500, 15 passenger. It has the 6.o engine. The oil filter is about the size of a small cup and the manual states use only 5w30 oil. This sounds very thin for such a large engine. Also the oil filter does not seem large enough to handle the job. Have there been any problems from this?

savanna

I have the 03 1500 with a 4.3 engine. My owner's manual specifies a PF47 oil filter which is very small, but the service manual specifies a PF52 which is the same diameter as the PF47 but taller, and of course has substantially more filter surface area. I use a Purolator Pureone PL24011 filter which is equivalent but has more filter surface area than the PF52 plus an anti drain-back valve made of silicone instead of rubber. From the Delco parts website it looks like you would use the PF46 Delco filter.

I see on the Purolator box that the filter business was sold to ArvinMeritor. Great. Then, in searching for a website that might tell me which Purolator filter would replace a Delco PF46, I find a note that ArvinMeritor has sold the filter business to Bosch and MANN+HUMMEL. So I guess next week it'll all be in China or just disappear. Anyway, if you go to Autozone or Advance, they should be able to tell you and show you bigger filters that will fit your engine. Purolator's cheaper filters are called "Premium Plus" and their better filters are called "PureOne".

I use the Purolator instead of the Delco because I've cut open both brands and found that the Purolator had quite a bit more filter media than the Delco. This was due to the way Purolator arranged the pleats compared to the Delco. You really need to cut them open and spread out the filter media to see this.

basmussen

I know the fuel pump located in the 1997 Chevy Express is through the TOP side of the gas tank. We have had ours replaced last August 2005 and now have a sending unit problem. It doesn't register properly and we can get a free replacement since there is a YEAR warranty on the fuel pump. We were warned about the fact that chevy fuel pumps are basically garbage. Whether dealer or after market type fuel pumps, they will go out again anytime.

I asked the people who put in our last fuel pump to drill a large hole through my floor board right above where the fuel pump would be placed into the fuel tank in order for me to cut a trap door so if it goes out again I don't have to have the gas tank dropped to get to it. (Some cars have this trap door from the factory.) They wouldn't do that for me. Guess they wanted return business which will not happen.
Is there anyone out there who knows the exact location of the fuel pump if I was to cut a trap door in my floor board to get to it inside the van? Is the tank far enough away from the body that I wouldn't cut into it with a small 3 inch cutting wheel? Help please!

Our 1997 Chevy express van has over 265,000 miles on it with the same Tranny but due to a blocked radiator we had to replace our over heated motor. I noticed we have the same problems as many here with their vans but the mileage we got out of our van(tranny and engine seems to be NOT the norm)

vellaboy

does any one out there experience fuel delivery problems with their chevy express?
my 2002 g2500 if it sits for any period of time [4 days]
will not run correctly.
every time its towed to the dealer all is well.
this truck definetly has a problem.
the dealer will not admit it.
i know there is a recall with this truck/5.7 liter
i just cannot seem to get a resolution to this matter,
anybody who has any insight to this problem, please speak up and ease my pain !!!!

astroman1

I just purchased a 93 chevy 3/4 ton van that was converted to run on comppressed natural gas. Just seeing if anyone out there knows about the dissasembly procedure the get rid of this system.

vanowneraz

tlbyers, I just was under the van changing my own oil today and the same thought crossed my mind; why is this oil filter so small but I realized that the larger filter that I was pulling off that a mechanic installed for me last time was the taller filter. With the larger filter from my memory watching the oil pressure gauge it seems that the oil pressure was lower with a taller filter than with the smaller filter. Is this the reason for a smaller filter? Not sure but it would be my guess why GM designed it with a smaller filter (plus it saved them $0.10 in manufacturing cost off an assembly line).

jodivan

have a question about the recall on the 5.7 L engine. we are looking at a 97 savana 12 passenger with a 5.7 and wonder whether that would be a recall also. is there some way to find out? how did you find out about the recall? the dealer seems to be in a real hurry to sell this to us, but is asking 5988 which seems a lot although it only has 114,000 miles on it which isnt a lot for a 97. any opinions?

jodivan

we are looking at a 97 savana, 12 passenger, 5.7 L, G25, RWD, for my daughter and her hubby and 6 children. dealer is asking 5988 which seems high for that year, but it looks and drives good. no mechanics in the family. i am concerned but it does only have 114,000 miles which isnt a lot for that year. she looked at an Astro 2000, LT, with only 1,000miles on new engines which drove out beautiful and it has 8 seats for about the same price, but of course she likes the idea of the roomier van. what is your opinion? what about the gas mileage comparison? we sure do appreciate your taking the time to tell us what you think!!! :confuse:

kyro_1234

I have a 97 chevy express. the fuel pump, fuel filter, and up to the pressure release valve before the fuel injector all work fine however the engin seems to not be getting gas. I sprayed some injector cleaner in the air intake and it would run till it ran out. any clue what the problem might be? thanks.

motto1979

I'm having the same problem with my 2002 3500 gmc 5.7 replaced the fuel pump and filter and it ran fine for a month now same problem did you figure yours out am i missing something, thanks

tireman9

I have a 2007 3500 cut-away chassis as the foundation for my Coachmen motorhome. The literature says I have a 35 gal tank. On my last trip I wanted to get very empty to save on gas as I have discount at local station, also wanted to see how much I had when gauge reads E.
I was between the last small mark and the E. I filed up and it would only take 28.3 gal so either I really have a 30 gal tank or the gauge is way off.
Ideas?

1320jon

Chances are its off. Im not sure, but did you get the low fuel light to come on? I havnt seen any newer car or truck not have a low fuel light in years, although Im unsure if our vans have them, as I havnt seen mine.

If you inspect the dash cluster carefully, with a small flashlight you might see the icon for low fuel. That would idicate that you probably do have a 35 gallon tank if you didnt have it on when you filled up.

My dodge ram 3500 is similar. It holds 35 gallons, but when its on E, and I mean on it, it still have about 7 gallons left. The most I ever put in it was 28 gallons, and I was afraid I was gonna run out for miles and niles towing a large trailer.

mugster64

I have a 2001 express with a v-6 4.3 i think.I am getting a code of P0440.I was told that it is a fuel recovery leak..I have a new gas cap but that didnt fix the problem...i am smelling gas to..The fuel pump was replaced after the engine light went on indicating this code...the van is a conversion van with body molding and plastic running boards also...Please help>>>

1320jon

two things...

Fuel level.....I noticed that in the owners manual it says you have some left when it reads "E".

Second, the fuel recovery could be a solinoid/valve on the engine and not the gas cap. The tank has a line that runs up to the intake. I dont know where on the the 4.3, but on the the 5.3 its on top of the intake at the front. The pcm pulses the solinoid to put the gas vapor in the engine (for emmissions) after it warms up a bit. Its not uncomin for the platic to break or crack, or the plastic line to it. It is possible to cap the lines and the vacuum leak with no ill effects to how it runs. It will have the code unless deleted via laptop retuning of the pcm and may not pass smog testing depending on were you are at. If the code is deleted, it passes no matter what, but is not good for the enviroment.

The solinoid could just be dead or stuck also. Most of the ones Ive seen are 1 inch by two inches long, with two wires run to it.

tchains

Hi guys, hoping you can help with a couple questions. I was wondering how easy it is to replace the oil filter on the Chevy Express/GMC Savana. Does the van need to be lifted at all or is there enough clearance to do it with it just sitting on the driveway? I presume the oil filter is accessible from the bottom. TIA

coesterly

Does anyone know exactly how to replace the fuel pump on a 2000 Chevy Express?

Does the owner's manual have directions?

thanks

evita1

I have an 2005 express cargo van. At about 40,000 miles, it developed a winding noise which appears to be coming from the power steering. I was not notified to change the power steering fluid, nor is it in the owners manual. Upon investigating, I've noticed that the power steering fluid appears to have been overheating. Does anyone know of this problem and how to solve it?

romaurie

The van is doing half the minimum mpg.About 7mpg. Garage says the vacuum pump is the cause and are replacing it.
I am a refrigeration/air conditioning engineer but until now was not aware there was a vac pump on these vehicles.They say it controls the air conditioning and fuel system runs continuously with the engine.
Just basically, how does it control the A/C and fuel?
I imagine the fuel is made to evaporate more efficiently but the A/C has its own circulating compressor for the R134a gas used.
I am a British engineer working in Eilat.I have no experience with these very popular vehicles so I would like to learn more.
Romaurie

romaurie

The replacement vac-pump ha improved fuel economy and the A/C flow.It also seems to have improved the auto gear changing.