I have seen a post that suggested cutting a opening in the sheet metal behind the rear seat to allow access to the fuel pump.....it seems like a practical method...the standard way almost seems impossible for the DIY guy.....and extremely expensive at a shop
looking for thoughts

 

Only, or should I say Because, I have done it the hard way, so to speak, I would not cut a hole in the metal under the convertible top. I'm pretty flexible but I can see restrictions getting into the tank without a good size hole in that shelf.
Plus, save messing with those hard to get at connections, draining the tank and pulling the fill tube and wrestling the tank back.
I feel like I could do it in less than 3 hours now, but still painful to reach things.
Make sure you get the new filter with the pump or order separately. Better if they come as a unit because the one from Autozone required some adjustment to the bracket for a half way decent fit.
Get a head strap light, you will need both hands.
Good luck and let us know how you did.

 

My thinking as has been documented in previous post around 2014, where I opted to do a nibbled access hole topside with the intent that if I was on a road trip, I could fix it where it laid.
However now, I think that I wimped out based on these facts. I have a 2002 XKR with primary and secondary relatively inexpensive pumps. I check both pumps ~twice a year by jumping their relay sockets. Even if one were to fail on a trip, I could most likely manage to return home without delay. I now regret that I may never have the satisfaction of conquering the standard fix and although it does not show, I have a big hole (with a steel cover) that I will always consider a hack.
If I had only had a single pump vehicle, my thought process may have evolved differently.

 

I made the hole in my 97 with the thought that I could easily replace the pump while on a trip. I even carried a cheap chinese knockoff as a spare. If I have to replace the pump in my 06 I'll do the same, but no cheap knockoff for that one.

 

Not that it would be the right way, and not trying to hijack the thread, but I've wondered if it would be possible to "just add" an external electric fuel pump to the line. I don't know if the gas would draw through the bad pump or not. Just curious

 

thanks for your reply.....at 71 just can't get there.....lol

 

^^^^ +1

my thinking is likely in the minority. The relatively low price of these cars makes forking over 8+ hours of labor just to change out the pumps seem like an excessive expense. However, cutting a hole in a firewall shelf, no matter how it is patched, is indeed a hack repair, plain and simple.


Z

 

06ACES, Jon89 and I did mine in January this year on jack stands. At 79, going in and out was slower for sure, but after getting a box for my neck to rest on, not too bad.
The greatest effort was in getting the hoses disconnected and then connected. Only because we were figuring the easiest way to get it done. There is not room to play with so longer tools were required.
Once figured out how to get things in place on the disconnect tool, right out, then another hour or so to get it back in. That was solved with a cheap 22 inch HF screwdriver with a little grind on it. Took all of a couple of minutes to get them back in. The standard connection tool was not working and was in fact giving a indication all was in, but a little pull proved it was not in place.
We did a good write up, so have a look for it.
I think it's funny on how long it took to find the connections on top of the rear end, could not believe how hidden they were.
Wayne

 

thanks for your input.....i personally am not qualified to know

 

I made a little copper pipe that I used a dremel to cut off a length of it so it could half way go around the pipe (like an o2 sensor socket) and used it to push the plastic fuel line disconnect tool harder onto the 2 lines from underneath. I had ropes around each line to pull the lines.

I can do the right way in about 4 hours now on my 00 XKR. Then again, I was 23 and like 5'10" 130lbs, so long thin arms lol.

 

I replaced my fuel pump by removing the fuel tank and the only difficult part is coaxing the tank out of the trunk, but it's not too bad. I just wasn't going to do a hack job on my Jag and cut a hole in it. It's that simple.
I don't buy many parts from NAPA because of price, but this time I did because I wanted a quality part. It came with a harness that meant no splicing.
I raised the car off the rear suspension to create access to the fuel lines at the bottom of the tank easy.
It's all just nuts and bolts and I didn't have to repair a hole in my car when I was done.
In hindsight I'm glad I did it this way. I learned a lot about the car and it really wasn't difficult.
One benefit was that I was able to work inside the fuel tank while the fuel tank was on the garage floor, so I could easily make sure that everything was perfect in there. That alone is reason enough.