kev1n wrote:I am curious if this is related to the way people refuel.

For the folks who have had this issue, do you run your tank all the way down to empty before refill usually , ie the light on or close to empty?

"perhaps frequent low fuel levels in the tank may be causing mechanical damage to the part, due to increased vibration."

that's what i would like to know!
we are very careful to not let the fuel level get too low in both of our Pathfinders, mainly to be sure to not roast the fuel pump by running it dry.
sometimes it doesn't get filled until the warning light goes on, but at that point, fill up is approx 17 gallons.
presumably, that should leave 3-4 gallons still in the tank before refilling.

Of late, I let it go until the low fuel light comes on. I'm on my third sending unit and after the latest install, the low fuel light comes on earlier than before. The trip computer will say less that 25 miles left and I can only put 17.5 to 18 gallons in the tank.

My first sending unit was replaced at around 4000 miles on the Pathy (new). From what I recall, I waited until I was around an 1/8 tank.

I've never had any problems with the PF to date. The only thing I need replacing is the rear bumper from a small fender bender on the pass side. I poped out the dent.

No problems here. But I've only hit the low fuel light twice since I've owned it. I normally fill up at just under a 1/4 tank.

A_L

i usually run mine close to empty. Not all the way to where the DTE starts to blink though, just run it near the end of the tank.

kev1n wrote:I am curious if this is related to the way people refuel.

For the folks who have had this issue, do you run your tank all the way down to empty before refill usually , ie the light on or close to empty?

No problems at all. I refuel when I get close to the warning light coming on. One time I let it run to almost empty and decided later that might not be a good idea.

Citcope wrote:i usually run mine close to empty. Not all the way to where the DTE starts to blink though, just run it near the end of the tank.

Don't want to insinuate there is a pattern based on the limited info here, but maybe 2008PatherfinderS has a point about letting the fuel get to low on a regular basis.

I usually end up filling at 1/2 because we do a crapload of highway driving and i'm worried the wife will forget to fill. It also feels better psychologically cuz its less fuel at one time... albeit twice as often...

t

Thanx for all the replies, I was thinking maybe some gasoline has dirt or small debri in it,so when you gas up the small particles float around and hang up or interfere with the sender unit? do some people have the key turned forward to have an accessory turned on but the engine is off when you fuel up? there are all kinds of things to 2nd guess, I can't believe Nissan does not look into this..

Well, crud.....

I filled up the tank yesterday, it was almost on empty... 13 gallons. It didn't click until today that I bet the one in mine is bad now.

Of course being overseas now, this may be a problem getting fixed. Anyone got the link for the thread handy for this one? I wonder if it's something I can try to fix myself.

when I get the chance, I'll post pics of the fuel sender that went bad in my 05 SE-OR.

Looking at it closely, I can see what happened - and it will be the same with ALL Pathfinders. Eventually they with ALL have issues. The fuel sender unit has a float that (obviously) floats in the fuel. As the level goes down the arm pivots - at that point where it pivots on the orange body there are some small metal 'fingers'. These very small tabs/fingers make contact with a circuit board and are what 'measures' the remaining fuel. (I'll try to take some close-up pics to show this...then it will make sense).

On my sender unit, these metal fingers had worn almost completely off - they are normally longer and bent so they make good contact with the circuit board (there is a slight bit of play in the pivoting arm and this tension of the fingers holds them to the board).

Well, I fill my tank twice a week and usually run my tank almost dry before filling (get 320miles per tank on average). This constant wear and tear of the metal fingers against the circuit board wore the metal down - I'd estimate about 1/64th of an inch - just enough so that they weren't making contact with the board anymore. I don't know if the gasoline eats at the metal, but the constant rubbing will eventually wear the fingers away - it's almost guaranteed to happen with EVERYONE'S sending unit. I don't know what other manufacturers use for a design, but Nissan's is a POS and is going to keep failing.

My original one failed around 54k miles. I replaced it (ordered from Courtesy Nissan for about $55) around 65k miles (just had to keep an eye on the odometer for 320miles ) and now have 70k miles. I do notice this new sender likes to flash DTE around 240miles, while the old one would wait til about 280miles.

I'll post some pics when I get the chance.....

Didn't Tech post a newer part number for the fuel sending unit ?

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no problems with the fuel sending unit, the ac blower is busted though and she rattles like a bean can but thats it

no problems for me yet?

replaced mine @ 55k and i run it down until the fuel light comes on before i refill it