NHTSA Complaint #10557238 — 1999 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 2500

VEHICLE HAD BEEN RUNNING POORLY FOR ABOUT 2 WEEKS MAYBE MORE. FUEL PUMP ALSO WAS SOUNDING FUNNY. INSTEAD OF THE NORMAL QUICK WHIRRING FOR A FEW SECONDS THE PUMP SOUNDED LIKE IT WAS LABORING AND HAD A SLOWER, DEEPER PITCH. I THOUGHT MAYBE IT WAS TIME FOR TUNE UP BUT MY RECORDS SHOWED OTHERWISE. ( I KEEP PRETTY EXTENSIVE VEHICLE NOTES ON ALL WORK/MAINTENANCE PERFORMED.) ON THE MORNING THE ACTUAL PROBLEM FINALLY WAS DISCOVERED I HAD STARTED MY TRUCK AFTER A LITTLE MORE CRANKING EFFORT THAN USUAL. ENGINE RAN FOR ABOUT 20 SECONDS OR SO AND THAN SHUT DOWN. TRIED TO RESTART BUT THE FUEL PUMP DIDN'T POWER UP AND THEN THE SMELL OF FRESH GASOLINE WAS EVERYWHERE. AFTER GETTING OUT OF THE TRUCK I TOOK A LOOK ON THE GROUND AND YES THERE WAS GAS ON THE GROUND AND STILL DRIPPING FROM UP UNDER THE TRUCK. TOOK OUT MY FLASHLIGHT AND CAREFULLY PEEKED UNDERNEATH AND RIGHT AWAY SAW THE MAIN FUEL LEAK. FUEL LINES ON BOTH THE SUPPLY AND RETURN SIDES ARE RUSTED PRETTY BADLY IN MULTIPLE AREAS. GAS WAS LEAKING AT LEAST 4 POINTS FROM WHAT I COULD SEE AT THAT MOMENT. SEEMS THAT THE PLASTIC HOLD DOWNS FOR THESE FUEL LINES AND THE BRAKE LINES ARE THE CULPRIT WITH THESE ISSUES. THIS PUMP BURNED OUT DO THESE LEAKS SO NOW I HAVE TO REPLACE THE FUEL PUMP MODULE AGAIN, AS WELL AS THE COMPLETE FUEL LINE SYSTEM FRONT TO BACK. I REMOVED THE 34 GALLON FUEL TANK AND THE TANK ALSO NEEDS TO BE REPLACED AS IT IS SEVERELY RUSTED. I MENTION ALL OF THIS BECAUSE I HAVE REPLACED THE FUEL PUMP TWICE BEFORE DUE TO FAILURE AND NOW IT SEEMS THAT THE ETHANOL BLENDS ARE RUINING THESE PUMP MODULES ALSO. EACH TIME I HAD REMOVED THE FUEL TANK I INSPECTED THE EXTERIOR/INTERIOR AND CLEANED, PREPPED, AND APPLIED RUST DETERRENT PRODUCTS AS NEEDED. I HAVE OWNED VEHICLES FROM THE 1950'S AND 60'S AND NEVER HAD THESE ANY OF THESE TYPE OF ISSUES. *TR