Priming (?) 1.6 Fuel Pump

[_JH_]

Just replaced a leaking tank to pump hose on a GSi I've just bought. For the last week its run fine. starts, drives fine etc, no probs at all - bar the leak.

Went to start it after changing the hose and it would idle for a second or two then cut out, now won't even start (i'm guessing it was using up what petrol was left in the lines).

I've removed the lines in the bay and there is no petrol getting through. The relay is working. The pump is doing something but it doesn't quite sound the same. I've tried blowing/sucking on various hoses but my guts can't take any more lol.

Now I've primed plenty of diesel pumps, and in my experience mechanical petrol pumps just go on there own, but I've never had this problem on any other injection cars.

Clearly refitting is not the reverse of removal or whatever haynes says so can somebody shed some light on what is probably something stupidly simple I'm over looking.

cheers in advance

[sterl]

have you put the petrol feed and return pipes on the right way round

[_JH_]

yeah after checking the petrol wasn't getting through I made sure they went back right. but they hadn't been touched at all when the problem started (straight after putting the tank to pump hose on)

[dave.gsi]

put the old one back on and see if it works. if it does your new hose may be blocked/ wrong size???

maybe :lol:

[_JH_]

hose is a good condition one from a GTE. It's not blocked as I have sucked petrol through it fine lol

hmmm

[Aragorn]

pull the outlet off the pump, attach a small length of hose and turn the engine over

petrol shoudl spray out the hose

if it does reattach the hose to the pump and remove the fuel rail feed and do the same at that end

should give u some pointers

if your getting fuel out the pump but nowt out the other end maybe a blocked fuel filter?

[Will F]

Where in S Wales are you mate, I have about 10 pumps etc you could try.
I dont mind having a look, I am used to sorting fuel problems on mine!

:lol:

[mikeyredtop]

u shouldnt need to prime a petrol pump, but u can use the tyre type valve on the fuel rail to see if there is pressure, activate the fuel pump by by passing the relay ie give the blue/red a live...then u wont kill the battery when ur cranking

[_JH_]

pull the outlet off the pump, attach a small length of hose and turn the engine over

petrol shoudl spray out the hose

if it does reattach the hose to the pump and remove the fuel rail feed and do the same at that end

should give u some pointers

if your getting fuel out the pump but nowt out the other end maybe a blocked fuel filter?

tried removing the outlet last night and it only came out after I had sucked a bit through the inlet and stuck it on. nothing from the engine end of the lines. fuel filter is fine.

and will f I am in south pembs and if I remember your in newport area ( I emailed you about a car months ago). I've got another fuel pump I could try. but everything was working. it was literally drive car into garage, change hose, won't idle for longer than 2 seconds, won't start. must be an airlock of some sort.

As there's nothing obvious I was overlooking, I'll just have to strip it all down now. needed new metal fuel lines anyway.

[mikeyredtop]

stupid q but have u got petrol in the tank

[_JH_]

lol, yeah plenty. its a bugger trying to stop it spilling everywhere when removing different pipes. (no lights nearby, garage doors wide open!)

[Will F]

Where are you based mate (as above)

[Aragorn]

sorry i didnt quite get your response there.

are u saying u removed the hose from the pressure side (smaller outlet) of the pump (normally pointing towards the back of the car) and nothing came out when u turned on the ignition??

if so then i'd say the pump is fucked

do you hear the pump running??

[mikeyredtop]

it makes a eemmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm noise

[_JH_]

Where are you based mate (as above)

south pembs, but I'm all sorted now cheers :wink:

I finally found my spare pump, damper and bracket (which is solid. after having spent an hour last weekend making a new one by hand from sheet steel :x ) and popped it all on (bar the bracket, I quite like my masterpiece). wired it up, shorted the relay and it spat petrol everywhere, bingo :D I also took time to stick some metal fuel lines on as some "mechanic" had replaced them with new plastic ones.

like I said in the first post the pump didn't quite sound the same. it was odd that it should go within 30mins of turning the engine off but maybe the petrol was all that was holding it together if that makes sense. the diaphragm could have been on the way out and it draining out then pumping rapidly as it refilled maybe have been the preverbial straw.

But it could easily have been a problem with the damper. While trying to find the problem, I was unable/couldn't be arsed to disconnect the pipe in between them to check which it was. by the sounds of the pump, it may well have been this as the pump definitely wanted to budge, the only thing I can compare it to is the starter motor on an old tractor when its been parked under a drip and water has enter the chambers through the exhaust lol. sounded like the pump diaphragm couldn't go all the way out (makes sense? didn't think so) so couldn't come back in etc.

for those that care (me then) I'm gonna separate the two and see if the pump does still work. would be nice to have a spare

[Aragorn]

mine doesnt even have the diaphram on it as i couldnt find one

and i used an upside down cav sri130 bracket and some custom mounts to make it all fit ;)

[_JH_]

I'm not trying to pick holes but the diaphragm is part of the pump internals (well normally, unless vaux pumps are different). do you mean the damper (thats what I've always called it anyway) ?