Ongoing fuel pump problems on my olds.

I just put a pump on here that is like new/ rebuilt. I havent been able to get it to prime. I pulled it out today and was feeling around to see if the guy who rebuilt the motor had put the eccentric in. Is it possible that he didn't? How can I tell if there is one in there?

 

If its on an olds motor I'm pretty sure its your cam I had a 57 olds and the can lobe where the fuel pump rides for some reason are soft I've had the same problems you have the best fix is an electric fuel pump. I even keep the mechanical pump on the motor use the electric pump as a helper cause some fuel pumps run the wipers if u still have vacuum wipers. Hope that helps a bit

 

hmm what if i prime the bowl by pouring gas down the line? Do you know anywhere to buy an electric wiper conversion?

 

Disable the ignition and crank it over & see if you can look in there by using a mirror.
If you cant feel it with your finger,cut a piece off a broom handle or something and stick it in there,crank it.

 

I was thinking something like that. Ill have to get my dad to come out and take a look for me.

 

If that's not your problem just go with electric fuel pump its you best bet for the 100 bucks its gonna cost ya. Plus oldsmobiles are know to vapor lock on hot days so the electric pump eliminates that

 

I would but i gotta find an electric wiper motor first
im lookin around.

 

Newport sells an electric conversion $. But that is not to say some swap from another car won't work.

 

I think it was Street Rodder I was looking through the other day that showed how to install a conversion kit from Specialty Power Windows. I'm going to check into them for my Merc. What they showed you don't have to mount in the factory location if you want to use that space for something else or move it under the dash to clean up the engine compartment. they operate on a cable so you can pick your spot.

 

Yeah for my application the price was over 250 bucks. Before I spend all of my money im gonna keep working with the pump I got some more. I fill the bowl through a rubber hose i hooked up to the "in" and Im gonna put it back in today after I get my dad the help me find out if the eccentric situation is solved/ dissmissed.

 

Last year I rebuilt and installed my mech. fuel pump on my 371. I am pretty sure the pump eccrentic is ground into the cam.

The pump primed itself and the motor was off and running.

Did you make sure the pump arm rides under the cam when you installed it?

Did you operate the pump manually on your bench to insure proper pumping operation before installing?

If you crimped your supply line to shut off the fuel while installing the pump, did you remove the device (ask me how I know this) to allow free flowing fuel again?

Just some thoughts.

 

Go electric back by the tank. Ends alot of problems.
And the line crimpers can getcha every time.

 

You can still run vacuum wipers with an electric fuel pump. Just get a vacuum tank from a 60's or 70's car with vacuum flip up headlights and a one way valve. Tap the vacuum from the intake manifold to the one way valve to the a T, one side of the T to the vacuum tank and the other to the wiper switch.

 

None of my lines are crimped. I can see the front of the timing gear set from where the pump goes in. Does the Eccentric on the cam stick out past the timing gears? It seems the arm will only go in front of the gears not behind.

 

The eccentric, at least on older Olds engines, is bolted on in front of the cam timing sprocket. The three bolts go through the pump eccentric, the timing sprocket and into the cam.

 

Thats what I thought I didnt think it was ground onto the camshaft, if it was at least from how i see it, the arm from the pump wouldn't fit behind the timing gears. I feel like, maybe the previous owner may have forgot to install it? Maybe he planned on doing an electric fuel pump setup. I felt around for it and I didnt notice anything other than what may have been the bolts for the timing gear set.

 

Learn something new everyday. I guess I was lucky to have my eccentric installed.

Looks like you have a choice to make now. Electric Pump, or set her up for your mechanical pump.

 

yep and since i dont pay bills yet im going electric The motor is already in the car, with the waterpump and everything installed so it may be more expensive but definitely easier in my opinion than to pull that stuff out to get to the timing chain/gears.

 

are you sure the pump has vac? anyway, im going electric too on my 58. not gonna leave something like that to chance. good luck!

 

I am fairly sure it does. Everything is hooked up correctly, but I will double check everything before i dish out the $ for the new electric pump. Im also going to pull the pump one more time and use a telescopic mirror to try and get a better look in the motor.

 

Finally got a friend to lend me a hand in the garage. There is definitely no eccentric, I am going to run an electric pump. I have a question though. Is it really necessary to wire it with a relay? The instructions show two ways one with and without a relay, but it says that the best way is to use a relay. I feel like they just want people to spend the extra money on one though. Any thoughts?

 

With a relay you take your power from the fuse box and not of the ignition switch. That wa the switch only has to handle the coil in the relay and the relatively high current of the pump is isolated from the ignition wiriing. No fires under the dash!! Go with the relay. It's safer.

 

Any electric fuel pump will work better running it through a relay, and only using ignition switch voltage to trigger the relay.

 

Cool thanks.

 

It is better to switch a low current relay coil than the higher current pump. As said above it is a safer way to wire it. Some other tips:

Run the pump on it's own circuit. Use thick gauge wire and try to minimize wiring distance from the battery to insure maximum power to the pump. Electric pumps like a full 12V all the time. Frequent or prolonged voltage drops can greatly reduce the pumps life.

Wire in a safety shut-off in case of an accident (God forbid). You don't want fuel continuing to pump if there is a fire or people are trapped. There are many threads here on the hamb that explain how this is done.

Plumb the pump back by the fuel tank. These pumps are designed to push fuel, not pull it.

For what it's worth I ran a Carter 4070 pump for about 4 years with no problems. I switched to the mechanical pump just for looks and to eliminate the noise of the Carter pump (and I just didn't trust the Carter pump). However, I still use my Carter now to prime my pump after sitting for long periods, and for a backup in case my olds pump dumps on me.

Good luck.

 

May need to think about a pressure regulator too. Some electric pumps put out too much pressure for some carbs. Especially Edelbrocks. If you put too much pressure on them they flood over at idle.

 

Run your wipers off the intake vacuum for now. They will just slow a bit (or maybe even stop) on hills. Put one of those plastic spheres on it from a newer vehicle for a vacuum reservoir.

 

The mechanical pump is able to pull through the Carter pump when it (the electric pump) is not running then? Contemplating putting an electric pump as a backup/primer and trying to find what will work part time.

 

Im running a holley pump. Yes i know they are loud haha, i dont mind the noise. It is preset at 7 psi and is a 67gph rated pump. From talking to others they said it should work fine. Im running a 600cfm edelbrock performer. BTW i am running the relay; both the pump and the relay are in the mail now.

 

Fuel pulls through the Carter pump just fine.