Hello there. I'm new to the forum and I need some opinions.

I own a 1996 Ram 2500 5.9L Cummins Diesel. The Fuel Gauge warning light has been continuously illuminated for a long time. Rather than getting it fixed immediately I have simply been resetting the trip meter to zero after every fill-up. My questions are: Is this most likely a sending unit problem? If so, which is the better approach to repairing or replacing it...drop the tank or pull the bed? How much should I expect to pay for the work?

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

You can unplug the connector at the tank, and put a jumper wire between the two pins for the gauge, and see if it moves. If it does, then the sender in the tank is toast.

 

I've done my fuel pump twice now (made the mistake of putting an airtex in the first time so I changed it last weekend for peace of mind)...my opinion is it's definitely easier to raise the bed. I've tried it both ways and those quick disconnect fittings are just a pain in the *** to try to get loose when reaching up from underneath the tank. I just pull the six bed bolts, unplug the tail lights and license plate lights, and have my dad or someone help me lift the bed up. I put a moving pad on the bumper and rest one corner of the bed there and the other corner on the rear tire. Much easier than dealing with that big bulky tank I think!