A faulty Fuel Pump can trigger warning lights on the dashboard, most specifically the check engine light. If the fuel pump does not supply the proper fuel pressure-particular standard vehicles run in the region of 40-60 psi-pressure sensors detect this irregularity and send a signal for the vehicle's onboard diagnostics system to turn a warning light on. Low fuel pressure affects the air-fuel mixture, and for the most part, it creates conditions such as lean running, which the ECM would flag as a probable problem.
In such cases, when the pump or the related components act up, certain diagnostic trouble codes get stored, such as low fuel rail pressure-P0087-or fuel pump circuit malfunction-P0230. Use an OBD-II scanner to get these codes, and you will know directly if the warning light involves a problem with the fuel pump. Of course, mechanics say that the fuel system, particularly the pump, is a common offender in up to 10% of all check engine light cases, particularly those over 100,000 miles.
In other cases, a faulty fuel pump may be the cause of an indirect warning, such as the reduced power light, when the ECM self-regulates the engine's power to prevent possible further damages due to the improper delivery of fuel. This is a modern feature of the car when the speed or acceleration becomes more than what the engine can tolerate, making the fuel supply unreliable. When this occurs, in particular, failure of the pump, especially one delivering less than 80 percent of its rated capacity, the safety mechanism is engaged, and power is reduced, and the warning light will start turning on.
If these warning lights are continuous and the symptoms include stalling, hard starts, or loss of power during acceleration, then it indicates that the problem may be with the fuel pump. Routine maintenance or replacing the Fuel Pump at the right time prevents this sort of problems and delivers fuel smoothly, hence avoiding warning lights due to fuel system problem.