Rear crossmember replacement

When replacing the fuel pump I leaned against the tailgate and the rear body crossmember simply caved in. So … a simple fuel pump replacement turned into a full body repair.

The crossmember corroded so badly that it wasn’t supporting the rear of the body at all. So, out it comes.

But to get the replacement installed I had to pull the fuel tank. Otherwise it wouldn’t be possible to wiggle the new crossmember into place.

And during all this work I battled the chronic rust that appears on these vehicles. Especially after they’re nearly 30 years old. I had to fabricate a number of small sheet metal patches to replace the rusted out bits.

Thankfully we’ve had a pretty mild winter thus far. I was able to open the garage to air it out after spray paint. And, for welding I was able to keep the door open and get some fresh air moving through.

Fuel pressure issue

The rover has been throwing a EFI code 23 in the diagnostic box for months now. It’s become a growing issue and the idle has been creeping up and up. I stopped driving the beast because of this. Last time the idle was up near 2000 rpm.

I purchased a 5/16″ tee and fuel pressure gauge. After some fiddling around I got the tee and gauge installed up in the engine bay. I performed some tests and got an average pressure in the high 20’s. It should be in the mid to high 30’s.

Clearly there’s an issue with the pump. I bet it’s the original pump. Time to replace it.