Hey Guys,
My 1997 Ram 360cid started to take a while to start. I did a pressure test and found that the fuel relay would turn on to prime the system to 50 psi. Once the relay shut down, the pressure dropped as fast as it rose, back to 0psi. I pulled the pump. I used 2+2 carb cleaner and cleaned the input and output of the pump. I concentrated more on the output at the top of pump. A bunch of brown varnished residue came out after multiple cleanings. Finally, it came clean. I put some back pressure (air gun) into the output of the pump and the check valve retracted into place. I cleaned a few more times. I reinstalled the pump and the pressure checked and the pump primed as it should and held pressure at 48 psi. It started right up the last 10 times and runs fine (it ran fine before I did this; I just had the hard start problem).

So, I dont know if this is a temporary fix or not. We'll see. If it turns out to last, I've done well. Maybe this information can help you to if you have a similar problem. Jimbo.

 

Thanks for posting that. It's uncanny what timing it is since my 97 ram 360 is having the exact same problem with a hard/slow start yet runs fine. You sound a little more capable than me so I'll just replace so I don't have to do it twice. Is there anything I should know? Is the tank going to have to come all the way down? Any advice would be helpful.

 

There two schools of thought on replacing the fuel pump - drop the tank or move the bed. I opted to pull the tank and avoid potential damage to the bed/paint. I was able to sit somewhat upright with my head between the bedside and frame, looking at the top of the fuel pump. From there, I disconnected the four lines and electrical connector without moving the tank. Then, I held the tank up with a jack and board and removed the strap hardware and even removed the straps to get them out of the way. I lowered the tank and pulled it right out from under the truck. I suggest that while the tank it out, you dump out the remaining gas and use it in your lawnmower. I found that the five gallons remaining in my tank had an orange rusty tint to it, possibly from bad gas from somewhere, I'm not to sure. Theres a thorough do-it-yourself writeup on this forum that provide details and pictures to help walk you through this removal and installation of the pump.

If you take the pump off and you can blow through the output with no resistance, you probably have the same problem I did - stuck check ball. Its really not hard to clean and correct. I hesitated to buy a new pump because my truck ran so well with this one. Some searching and reading on this forum gave me the knowledge to tackle it.