Fuel pump noise prior to stalling

[archer286]

My daughter's `97 Grand Am w/2.4L engine, bought used w/125K miles on it, has been stalling very occasionally. It began stalling when the fuel tank was almost empty, and it always appears to be accompanied first by hesitation and a loud howling sound from the fuel pump/tank area. At first I blamed it on a faulty gas gauge, assuming she was, in fact, running out of gas, however she encountered power loss and howling yesterday while coming home with a 3/4 full tank and 130 miles.

After it warms up the engine will begin hesitating, then lose power and stall. It won't restart until it sits for 5 minutes or so, then it will tend to keep stalling after several minutes. Each time it's happened we've filled the fuel tank and it runs fine after that, so I was considering either a fuel pressure, pickup, or tank pressurization problem. With the pump noise, I suspect the fuel pump is either failing or starved, rather than an injector problem, but I haven't been able to check fuel pressure at the engine yet. (It happens too infrequently to troubleshoot, and usually away from home.)

I've replaced the fuel filter and recently replaced the gas tank due to a rust hole, although the problem began before I replaced the tank. We use injector cleaner regularly due to a rough idle (wrong plugs, just fixed). Before I replace the pump, I thought I'd see if anyone else had any ideas/suggestions? Thanks for your insights!

[Knifeblade]

Actually, I think you are on track with thought of the fuel pump itself.

[archer286]

Originally Posted by Knifeblade_03

Actually, I think you are on track with thought of the fuel pump itself.

Thank ya much for confirming my suspicions! Relatively easy to replace but $pricey$.

[richtazz]

the fuel pump on your car is a module unit. The lines are a common problem, and GM redesigned the module to correct this problem. I agree that the fuel pump needs replacing.