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MG TD TF 1500 - emergency fuel pump

Well i got a couple of things done this weekend... first i got my radiator overflow can installed and hooked up. it came out nice. Thanks to Laverne on that.
second i put together what i had seen made as an emergency fuel pump. just for the heck of it i tried pressurizing the tank last night and blew the rubber stopper out when i got to 2 lbs of pressure. (Not sure how accurate my gauge.) must not have any leaks in the tank anyway.
i was thinking as i finished it up that i used to have a pump w/gauge for a Harley i had. it was used on the air shocks. worked on low pressure 2-5 psi as i recall. i thought it would be easier to pump up. but i couldn't find it, which means i gave it away at some point. Anyway not sure if this thing really works but it was cheap and fun to put together. i will keep it in case...
TLW Wright

See http://www.ttalk.info/LockePump.htm fort Stuart Locke's original and http://www.ttalk.info/EmergencyPumpII.htm for my gauge'd version. There's no need to go as high as 2 psi. Bud
Bud Krueger

Yup. That is what I read.
I saw 2-1/2 to 3 lbs in his article and assumed I should shoot for those numbers. But seems to me I also read 1 psi would do the trick.
TLW Wright

If memory serves me (not always a sure thing) VW Beetles used the pressure in the spare tire to power the wind screen washer fluid squirter. Don't know what pressure was used but there was supposed to be some kind of regulator to prevent the spare from fully deflating. Wonder if that gizmo is still available?
Jud
J K Chapin

TLW - The SU fuel pump used in the TDs is 1.5 psi. The later TFs with the fuel pump in the rear of the car puts out 2.6 psi. Cheers - Dave
D W DuBois

Jud

As an owner/driver of a 72 VW beetle, I can confirm the windscreen washers work by air pressure from the spare tyre. My problem is after 35 years in tropic Australia, all the plastic tubing has perished or gone hard and broken apart.

Having never gone into its operation in detail, so can not comment on the system in detail.

Stuart
Stuart Duncan

When I was a wee, precocious lad, we would over inflate the VW's spare tire and turn the washer sideways. Then we'd pull up next to a "friend", motion for them to roll down the window, and let them have it full blast! Oh, the joys of a misspent youth!
Kirk Trigg

Was just finished bragging about Lazarus' reliability when he decided to make me prove it while about 5 miles from home. Turned on the key, pulled the knob and there was no starting sounds, nor ammeter actions. There was no power on the coil. Hooked a short clip-leaded wire between the hot side of the coil and one of the fuses. (shown in Image 2). Engine started!!! But then it died after a wee bit. My ears sensed the lack of fuel pump action. Tracing my memory back to about 2009 I remembered my auxiliary pump back in the boot. (see Image 1). Lazarus only needed a couple of minutes worth of bulb-pumping to have him up and running. First time I'd ever actually needed to use the pump. Tomorrow I'll hunt up the wire problem. Could be the 74-year-old ignition switch.

BTW, Lazarus' owner is aiming for birthday #90 next Tuesday.

Bud Krueger
Marietta, GA






Bud Krueger

I always carry a rebuilt fuel pump with me, but in your case it sounds like its a wiring issue than a fuel pump issue.
Christopher Couper

Right on, Chris. There are two wires that are connected to the IG terminal on the Ignition switch. The one that leads to the A3 fuse terminal had come off of the IG terminal. That wire provides power to the fuel pump and the ignition coil. A new fuel pump wouldn't have helped. Getting access to the IG terminal is a real pain. Bud
Bud Krueger

When I rebuilt our 1954 TF I added a backup fuel pump. Our TF is an early model with the SU pump on the firewall (versus the later TFs with the pump in the right rear wheelwell). In the wheel well I added a Moss Motors Facet pump. Dave DuBois told me to make sure the pressure was good for the location, i.e. some pumps suck the fuel (my SU pump) and some pump the fuel (Facet in the rear). Sorry, but I do not remember the pressure ratings. The Facet works great and I have used it a couple of times when I had a loose fitting on the SU pump drawing air. Dave explained that the best thing I could do was to not touch the SU pump (which he rebuilt to electric standards).
Under the instrument panel I installed a three-way toggle switch (on-off-on) that allowed me the switch pumps and also shut off the system as a sort of anti-theft device. The only issue I had was a few years ago the engine quit. Of course I pulled over to the side and my first thought was to switch fuel pumps. When I touched the toggle switch I burned my fingers. Ouch! There was nothing wrong with the wires, i.e. none were hot. The lousy switch just melted inside. I installed a much better quality toggle switch after that incident.
Also, on the advice of Dave, I installed a shutoff valve in front of the fuel tank. This makes it much easier to work on the fuel lines without having to drain the entire tank.

Larry
LD Kanaster

This thread was discussed between 25/08/2014 and 24/03/2025

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