I have a 1999 Cherokee 4.0 Litre 6cyl with 219,000km. In the last week my Jeep has lost all power the the engine 4 times which resulted in no acceleration. Two times it also lost power steering at the same time as engine loss which was quite scary when I was nearing a tight corner. At the times of engine loss it wasn't reving at more than 2500rpm or going faster than 60kph. If I completely turn the car off and on again it works as normal. I think it's a problem with fuel supply but I was hoping someone on this forum might know something more about it.

If this info helps as well for the last few months when it's down to about 1/4 tank it struggles to start. The starter motor sounds like it works but the cylinder head splutters and struggles to get going. Sometimes it takes 2 or 3 attempts. It's started losing acceleration at that level now.

Thanks in advance.

 

Power steering loss is expected as it runs from the same belt as the rest of the motor. Fuel pressure should be checked, as well as the filter on the fuel pump, and fuel filter itself.. It's sounding like a fuel delivery issue. Though not positive why the 1/4 tank issue exists.

 

If your fuel pump is 14 years old and has 219,000 Kilometers on it your fuel pump is probably toast.

If you elect to replace your fuel pump module assembly install a Carter or Bosch unit. Avoid Airtex fuel pumps even though they're cheaper. Airtex pumps have a bad habit of prematurely failing.

Rockauto.com has good prices, and once in awhile you cn get one off Ebay.

FYI: The fuel filter(s) are integral to the fuel pump module and cannot be accessed unless you remove the pump from the fuel tank.

 

Classic fuel pump failure. Either the pickup tube is leaking or the pump has a temperature related failure when it's no longer submerged in gas.

 

Must have been a sweaty-palms-moment having that engine and PS gone all of a sudden, hey? But this is why you join a forum like this. Give it a go with a new pump and let us know how you go.

 

The sweaty palms are way better than that certain pucker that accompanies a brake failure!

 

Have it checked for codes while its still running.....

 

Thanks for the advise. I'll replace the fuel pump and see how that works. It was quite scary suddenly not having control of my car. Thankfully I wasn't on a highway when it happened.

 

Absolutely, mate.

 

This sounds almost exactly like what I had happen to mine. For about 6 months I had to turn the engine over 3-4 times to get fuel to it, then if the engine was under heavy acceleration, the pump couldn't keep up and the engine would sputter. Finally, as it did with you, my engine decided to just turn off and in my case it wouldn't stay on for more than 2 seconds. Take CCKen's advise about the Carter or Bosch pumps, I tried an Airtex and it didn't even last me a day. I got a Bosch and have had no problems for over a year.

 

I finally got around to fixing it and it turns out that the CKP Sensor was faulty. Since it was replaced I haven't had any problems.

 

Thanks for getting back