I have a 99 dodge Durango with a 5.9 that recently would not start. I found that when you turn the key on all of the gauges come on as they should except for the fuel gauge. It stays at the bottom and does not come up. I also cant hear the fuel pump running. Sometimes after a short period, the gauge comes up and the fuel pump then turns on and the engine will start. But, after ir runs a while the gauge drops back down, fuel pump shuts off and the engine dies. Does anyone know if the pump and guage operate on the same circuit? any other ideas?

 

hum? well that is odd. I have not ran into anything like that. Well just taking a guess here because u say fuel gauge comes on then it will start.

First thought would be bad fuel pump, has a intermittent open
Second guess would be bad cluster?

 

Could be the fuel pump relay. Switch it out with a different relay. They should have the same part numbers so you can switch it out and see if the relay is bad. (dodge does this for a reason). I think it is located under the hood in the fuse panel on the drivers side. This is the PDC.

The other thing you could do is:

Drop the tank and replace the fuel pump. While it's out rinse out the tank with fuel and hook it back up. Clean the harness before you plug it in.

 

I wish people would follow up with a resolution after they have a problem! Not just make 1 post to say what is wrong..

 

^ LOL ^

We get this all the time!

 

lol id guess relay than pump cause the gauge is controlled by the pump

 

I had the same problem.
After doing a tune up I found that my battery cables were loose. So I fixed the problem by adding some spacer material on the battery connector. The car needed a little more juice...

 

I would love to post my resolution. But, I haven't found it yet. I have checked every electrical connection I could find. I have replaced the relays. Which, the one for the pump does not effect the gauge. I have tested everything I can think to test with no results. Still no engine codes to go off of either. So, I am still at a loss. I am currently hunting the wrecking yards for a new cluster. I have had several people tell me that Dodge had an interesting way of wiring things, and a bad cluster can cause all kinds of problems. Another problem I have, is that last weekend while trying to trouble shoot... I couldn't get it to mess up. Ran just fine for hours!

 

The fuel level gauge/cluster would not have anything to do with the operation of the fuel pump, unless there was an issue at the connector (@ fuel pump). The level is read via float then transfered, the computer contols the operation of the pump as you know.

Let's start from the begining, i will ensure you a proper fix and walk you through it...

have you dropped the tank yet?
Have you tested the pump gauge?

 

have you tested the pump?????? this is the most likely culprit at this point considering that you are not getting the engine to fire, or the fuel gauge reading, leading me to the conclusion that your pump module (inside the gas tank) is most likely bad and should be replaced