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MG MGB Technical - Universal Fuel Pump-anybody using One?

I am thinking about replacing my fuel pump on my 79B. I checked out one at Advance Auto Parts for under $32 that should work -- according to their computer. The one I looked was a Purolator PRO42S. They also had another brand for around $60.

Has any one used on of these universal ones??

What about the install...any problems??

Ron
79B



Ron Eberhart

I'm running a universal pump that puts out up to 5 psi. It wasn't hard to mount. I did have to change the stock lines a bit. The real bastard is they are really loud. If you can find a rotating style pump (where the pump works like a water pump) it will be a lot quieter. Other wise make up some rubber mounts for the puralator pump.
Bill
Bill Mertz

In my shop we remove more aftermarket pumps than you would beleive. We find that they put out about 7 pounds of pressure which is way too much for a MG with SU carbs. Spend the money and use the standard pump, You"ll be much happier
Jim Pelletterie

Ron, Advanced has a Purolator that puts out 1 to 4 lbs of pressure. I've been running one on my car for a few years now and haven't had a single problem (and I use my car a lot). However, Jim is correct in that you might be happier if you stick to an SU, especially one of the new electronic ones.

Robert
71B
Robert Rushing

Ron - Robert is correct, there is low pressure version of the little square, run all the time, make a lot of noise pumps. Be sure that you get the low pressure (1 - 4 PSI) and it will work fine. Hard mounted they make a horrible racket and it is there all the time. I use one of them as a back up pump and got some rather nice sound mounts for the larger Fawcet pumps. With those mounts, there is less noise than from the SU pump. I am, however a real believer in using the standard SU fuel pump if at all possible as the main pump (but with a back up pump mounted, plumed and wired in through a switch). See my article on the SU fuel pumps and the associated write up on my SU fuel pump services if you are interested in fixing your original pump. The write up is at:
http://www.custompistols.com/cars/articles/dd_su_fuel_pumps_101.htm
Good luck - Dave
David DuBois

Ron,

There is an article in the Jan-Apr 2002 issue of the British V8 Newsletter on installing an aftermarket fuel pump in an MGB that you might find interesting at:

http://www.britishv8.org/back.htm
Dan Masters

I use one from Advance, #PA 5773407, Fuel Pump E8016S in both MG's. It is a low pressure pump, around 2-4 psi. It's round and about 5" long and comes with an inlet filter. It cost $30.49 in May 2000 and has a limited life replacement. It does make the hammering noise on start up but after the carbs are filled and the engine is running I never hear it until next start up. I realize if it fails a hammer will not start it and you walk. FWIW, Clifton
Clifton Gordon

Ron, Also take a look at The Holley 12-801-1.
Dan H.
Dan Hanson

Ron,
Many years ago I replaced my SU pump with one that a sports car shop recommended. I don't remember what kind it was but I did not have to make any modifications to install the pump. I do remember having problems with too much pressure so I had to install a regulator at the flexible line near the carbs. I eventually went back with an SU type as I had problems with the hybrid occasionally and was really not satisfied with it. Getting one with the right pressure seems to be the main thing you want to look for. FWIW
Paul
Paul S. Canup

Ron -
I've been running a solid-state pump in my GT for over
10 years. I ahve one in my roadster as well. It fits fine where the SU did, you may want to put 90 degree elbows on it. I see Moss is now selling it as an 'emergency fuel pump'. But it is a reliable pump and puts out 30 GPH for our cars and really QUIET too.
Made by (imported) Walbro, make sure you specify the one for Imported cars.
JC Whitney, part number 74JE9423W, at least from my old catalog. $34.98. I bought a spare to carry in the boot as well. E-Z installation. Nobody sees it but you unless you are a stickler for originality.
It's a beautiful thing.

Good Luck,
Sam
Sam

I'm running a pump I got from Carquest. It's rated at 2.5 - 4 lbs, but since I already had a fuel pressure regulator, I wasn't worried about over pressure. This one isn't a rotary pump, but the clicks are very subdued, and are no louder at startup than any other time. This one fits on the stud between the battery box and wheel well. It has a lifetime warranty, and cost about $50.

The pump I replaced was another aftermarket pump of unknown make or model. The PO had done a mediocre job of rerouting lines and so I had a chore of neatening it up.
Matt Kulka

Thanks for all of the advice..am reviewing the information. Will check out the suggestions...and make a decision. You have all been very helpful...as ususal.

We're all in this together....MGB owners, that is....
It takes a "village" to own one!!

Ron
79B
Ron Eberhart

Here's my old saw again.....

'84-'85 Honda Accord pump. Sounds like/works like an SU. Looks similar, easy to mount, quiet, much cheaper than an SU, reliable. 2.5 PSI by my gauge.
David
David

Regarding the Honda pump. "Sounds like/works like an SU"...they eventually fail like the SU pumps. I had one like that in a Mazda truck that I owned a number of years ago and it eventually burned the points out. My point being that all of the pumps are electro-mechanical devices and all will eventually wear out, either electrically or mechanically. Some will last longer than others, but they will all die eventually - this is just a fact of life. My latest Mazda pickup has one of the Fawcet run all the time, make a lot of noise pumps and it gave out on me. The embarassing part of that, not being an MG, I fussed around with the truck from some time before it hit me that I was dealing with a failing fuel pump, whereas, had it been the MG...
Cheers - Dave
David DuBois

David,
Yeah, they will eventually fail like an SU, just not as quickly or as often. Just my experience.
David
David

David - The one on my first Mazda pickup lasted about as long as a new SU fuel pump does, but I couldn't get repair parts for it as I can for the SUs. I got about the same lifetime out of the Fawcet pump in my later Mazda pickup. The problem I have seen in restoring the SU pumps is that the swamping resistor in the coil gets burned out. This is caused when there is a clog in the fuel tank or in the fuel line between the tank and the pump. When this happens, the pump stalls in the current on condition and it doesn't take long is this condition for the swamping resistor to burn in two. Since the swamping resistor is part of the arc suppression circuit, once it burns out, there is more arcing at the points and they are fried in a shorter time period. This is why some people can't seem to get much life time out of replacement points. This is also why I recommend that people not put filters between the tank and the pumps - it just agrivates the problem and without a filter, the pump will pass much larger particles through it. Filters between the pump and the carburetors make sense to me rather than before the pump. On average, about 75% of the pumps that I restore for MGBs have the swamping resistors burned out as compared to less than 10% on the pumps for the earlier MGs. Cheers - Dave
David DuBois

Prior to converting to efi, I used an '82 Subaru pump. I believe quite a few Japanese cars use this pump.
sounds just like SU,
Works perfectly, better
I put mine up in the engine compartment cause I didn't like crawling around underneath the car (simply bypassed the SU with a piece of fuel line). Stashed it above the guard in that hole/space. Took about a half hr to change over.
Second hand it was very cheap.
Peter

David,
Thanks for the word on pre-pump filters. I had no idea that problems could result. I've been putting off installing one and now I don't feel so bad!
Cheers,
David
David

David - Unfortunately most people don't have any idea of the problems that can be caused by a clog between the tank and the pump, whether the clog is in the line or dut ot a plugged up filter. I only found out because I remove the coil from the coil housing so I can clean and paint the housing. I consistantly found the swamping resistor with heat damage ranging from slightly burned insulation to being completely burned out. Later, when I arranged a test stand and started running the pumps through a 24 hour endurance test, I noticed that if the pump stalled in a current on condition, the pump would start to heat up (as expected). I found that the pumps would continue to heat up to the point of becoming a danger in my garage and eventually installed a thermal shut off circuit in the stand. It was then that it dawned on my why I was seeing the damaged swamping resistors. Some experimantation with the pumps configured with points showed that he arcing at the points increased dramatically when that resistor opened up. The biggest problem with this situation is that, with the resistor concealed inside the coil housing, no one has any idea that it has been damaged and instead just figure that the quickly burned points are normal.

Paul Hunt stedfastly refuses to change from points style pumps, pointing out that he gets very good milage between times that the points in his pumps start giving a problem. I suspect that Paul has kept his fuel tank cleaned so there is no problem with clogs between it and the pump and has therefor not damaged the swamping resistor in his pumps, resulting in a truly "normal" points life.

Just some observations over 25 years of restoring SU fuel pumps.

Cheers - Dave
David DuBois

Sorry, I should have read this thread before asking about a "New Fuel Pump". There is a lot of valuable information here. My question now is: Since my car has a Weber carb (as I bought the car) would the SU pump even work? There is a pressure regulator near the carb and I don't think the pump is original. I do need find out for sure what kind of pump it is though.
Could I remove the regulator and use the SU pump?
BC Cuddy

BC - Ifyou want to swap back to an original SU fuel pump, remove the pressure regulator along with the non original pump and replace it with a AZX 1308 SU fuel pump. The AZX 1308 pump puts out slightly more pressure (3.8 PSI) than the original which should make the Weber carb happier, but not so much that a regulator is required.
Good luck - Dave
David DuBois

Ron-
I've been using the solid state (electronic pointless) version of the SU fuel pump in my car for quite a while and have had no problems with it. #3 Son also uses this pump in both of his MGs and also has had no problems with it. David Dubois is correct about keeping an eye on any fuel filter that's located between the fuel tank and the fuel pump. If it gets clogged, your pump will soon expire.
Steve S.

Thanks Dave. I'll start looking for the pump that you suggested. The weber seems to run OK now, do you think it will run better with that new pump and no regulator?
BC Cuddy

BC - If everything is working well now, I don't see any improvement happening with a new pump. As long as the carburetor is able to shut off fuel flow from the pump and nt flood the engine or the pump is not pumping so slowly as to cause fuel starvation at high speed, then I don't see any reason to replace the current setup. Originality is great, but can also be rather expensive for no operational reason. Cheers - Dave
David DuBois

Sorry, I forgot to mention that I've had to tap the fuel pump three times this summer to get it to work. The car hasn't stranded me yet but It might soon if I don't fix it.
Thanks again for all the info.
Bill
BC Cuddy

My situation for posting this question originally is that my fuel pump does not make the "ticking" noise. It has stopped working on numerous occasions...been stranded one time this summer. My solution is to pour gas directly into the carb via the hose after detaching it from the fuel filter. This gets the engine running again. I suspect that the problem might be in the ignition switch as when this occurs, there is no flow of gas coming into the fuel filter. I thought I would start with the fuel pump..it has not been replaced since I have been the owner for 14 years. I haven't added that many miles...during this time..but the age could be causing the problem.

The advise is great...thanks to everyone.

Ron
'79B
Ron Eberhart

If it *is* the ignition switch the engine wouldn't run even pouring fuel into the carbs, and the gauges wouldn't register either. Lack of use can cause SU pumps to stop working, even brand-new ones come with a slip of paper in the box saying not to return the unit as faulty until the points have been cleaned. Problems at the pump can be caused by bad conenctions in the 12v and ground supplies as well as the points, and will affect a new pump just the same. Diagnose it to the pump first, and cleaning or even replacing the points is no big deal. Some aftermarket pumps require you to butcher the connections, a replacement SU is preferable (but not a solid state!).
Paul Hunt

I've been running a Weber with an SU pump for 9 years in an MGB, with no need for a pressure regulator and no problems. Acceleration is fine, there are no signs of fuel starvation at any speed. I did have an aftermarket pump on another MGB (with SU carbs), also with no issues, other than it sounded strange to have it run all the time. "If it ain't broke..."

Ira
Ira Spector

This thread was discussed between 21/10/2003 and 03/11/2003

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