Td5 Fuel light ?

Hi guys
Son has ran out of fuel twice since buying his disco and it seems to run out more or less as soon as the fuel light comes on, is this right or is the sender faulty

cornish rattler said:

Hi guys
Son has ran out of fuel twice since buying his disco and it seems to run out more or less as soon as the fuel light comes on, is this right or is the sender faulty

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No it isn't right. Possible one or both of the float arms or whatever they have is out of order.
Had a beemer like this once!
Got fed up of carrying a can and walking!
But it ain't clever to drive around until you are nearly empty!
Could also mean his pick up pipe has been displaced too, spose!
Only way to find out is to take it out and look at it.
Now someone will come on and tell me I am talking sh!te cos it's an electrical problem!

It might have had a defernder pump fitted in the past which I believe can cause problems even though they fit ok.
Griff

cornish rattler said:

Hi guys
Son has ran out of fuel twice since buying his disco and it seems to run out more or less as soon as the fuel light comes on, is this right or is the sender faulty

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Hi, what sort of range is he getting to a tank full of fuel ? I know this can vary depending on driving style & type of journey. The tank holds 21 gallons so at 20 mpg it should have a range of 420 miles before running out. When I got mine the gauge read empty all the time with the fuel light on so I replaced just the sender but I can never get the gauge to read full so I always reset the trip at every fill up then refill at about 300 miles as the last thing I want is to run out.
If it was me I would use the trip rather than rely on the gauge/light.

Andy Warren said:

Hi, what sort of range is he getting to a tank full of fuel ? I know this can very depending on driving style & type of journey. The tank holds 21 gallons so at 20 mpg it should have a range of 420 miles before running out. When I got mine the gauge read empty all the time with the fuel light on so I replaced just the sender but I can never get the gauge to read full so I always reset the trip at every fill up then refill at about 300 miles as the last thing I want is to run out.
If it was me I would use the trip rather than rely on the gauge/light.

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Sh!t , can't beeleeve this.
why dont you just get it all sorted out?
I couldn't live like that!

wow ,, not right at all !

ganthercage said:

wow ,, not right at all !

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It is a shame it is illegal over here to drive around with a full can of diesel!
He may find it useful.
Or simply to always fill up when the gauge indicates a 1/4 empty.

Stanleysteamer said:

It is a shame it is illegal over here to drive around with a full can of diesel!
He may find it useful.
Or simply to always fill up when the gauge indicates a 1/4 empty.

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Poop, meant a 1/4 full, duuuuh!

Don't worry Stan I knew where you were coming from

Defender pump will be fitted.
People buy them cos they’re cheaper.

If the pump is ok just buy the sender unit, bit no 26 on the link.
Genuine Fuel Tank Sender And Mountings (with Diesel Engines) For Land Rover Discovery 2 1998 - 2004 Classic | Jaguar Land Rover Classic Parts

Is it possible the float arm is the only difference, shorter or longer?
It clips off quite easily, I kept my old one when I replaced my pump.

Andy Warren said:

Hi, what sort of range is he getting to a tank full of fuel ? I know this can vary depending on driving style & type of journey. The tank holds 21 gallons so at 20 mpg it should have a range of 420 miles before running out. When I got mine the gauge read empty all the time with the fuel light on so I replaced just the sender but I can never get the gauge to read full so I always reset the trip at every fill up then refill at about 300 miles as the last thing I want is to run out.
If it was me I would use the trip rather than rely on the gauge/light.

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I'm not sure but think its closer to 500 mile to a tank

Thanks guys for all this info, think son is going to order a new pump and sender unit

Well looking at the drawing not much in it, looks lie the float bottoms out when the lower arm is horizontal , I'm sure you could test it with a meter, having said that , well I would just bend the arm up so the light comes on sooner, giving you a decent reserve , and save buying a new pump assembly

frostythor said:

Well looking at the drawing not much in it, looks lie the float bottoms out when the lower arm is horizontal , I'm sure you could test it with a meter, having said that , well I would just bend the arm up so the light comes on sooner, giving you a decent reserve , and save buying a new pump assembly


View attachment 252740 View attachment 252741

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Re bending the arm.
ME TOO!!!

frostythor said:

Well looking at the drawing not much in it, looks lie the float bottoms out when the lower arm is horizontal , I'm sure you could test it with a meter, having said that , well I would just bend the arm up so the light comes on sooner, giving you a decent reserve , and save buying a new pump assembly


View attachment 252740 View attachment 252741

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Sorry to say bending the arm will not resolve it. The low fuel light is activated not by the sender, but by the position of the needle on the actual gauge. Yes I know it sounds weird, but its a Land Rover.

See attached from Rave

that may be true, but I cant see why a simple bend on the arm wont, give a false reading to the fuel gauge after all they are linked together, as simple test ..say take it out the sender unit, reattach the wiring, and move the arm, up and down, and make a note of the fuel gauge needle corresponding position, so lift the arm up should then get the gauge to read full, it hat is true then a small bend upwards would make the needle show its on reserve and still have enough fuel to reach a garage

frostythor said:

that may be true, but I cant see why a simple bend on the arm wont, give a false reading to the fuel gauge after all they are linked together, as simple test ..say take it out the sender unit, reattach the wiring, and move the arm, up and down, and make a note of the fuel gauge needle corresponding position, so lift the arm up should then get the gauge to read full, it hat is true then a small bend upwards would make the needle show its on reserve and still have enough fuel to reach a garage

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Totally agree. Get the driver to look at the fecking gauge and not rely on an idiot light to tell him/her when to go to the nearest garage, which might be miles away.
Spoken as someone who drove cars before they had warning lights.

Also in the world of building kit cars. you often have to make your own tank then modify a sender unit to work with a gauge. It ain't rocket science and some of them are actually tunable, maybe to suit various production cars.
But that was back in the day when simplicity ruled.
So yep, go ahead bend the float arm and watch the gauge. So you might not ever get to the "bottom" of the tank. SO WHAT it is always sound sense to not drive on the sh!tty dregs at the bottom of the tank ANYWAY!

I agree, as I never let my tank get below a 1/4 full, for the first 10 years of owning it, I did not even know I have a reserve light, and to date after now having it 15 years I think it only been on twice as Stanleysteamer says its not Rocket science