[pcoghlan]

So this is turning out to be one of THOSE weekends.

The engine was missing on acceleration so I rebuilt the carb. Whilst at it I replaced the fuel pump (mechanical) to carb hose with braided hose that included a fuel filter (no filter previously!) and PSI gauge.

The engine now refuses to fire. every once in a while it 'catches' for about half a second but it doesn't sound even close to trying to start.

I primed the carb with an eggcup or so of fuel a couple of times to get it going in the hope it would then pull sufficient fuel through from the pump. No joy...

I removed the hose from the fuel pump and turned the engine over, expecting to see something issue from the pump but nothing?! Even turning the engine for 20-30 seconds produces nothing from the pump. It seems a little too coincidental that the pump has failed on the day I replaced the hosing and rebuilt the carb.

Any ideas on where to go, possibly to grab another pump me thinks. On that subject IF I need a new pump is there any logic to opting for an electric pump instead of a mechanical one? I am running a 440HP 383 with Holley carb.

Thanks,
Paul

[richard stewart 3rd]

Hi Paul,
I prefer an electric pump myself, I've been using them for a lot of years, a pump pushes better then it pulls, so it stands to reason that putting a pump at or near the fuel tank would be the better choice, the last few pumps I have bought have been MSD inline units, I've had zero problems with them.
Rich

[curtis73]

That happens to me almost all the time if the pump is more than a couple years old.

What happens is the diaphragm stays nice and pliable while staying soaked with gasoline. Once you pull the line off the carb and the fuel drains back past the pump, that diaphragm is exposed to air and it cracks.

It has been my experience that fuel pumps nearly always fail in this situation.

[T-bucket23]

You may want to check the feed line for the pump as well to see if it is getting fuel. I may have somehow became blocked. Strange things can happen when you disturb lines that have been in place for a while.

[pcoghlan]

Well I wish I knew what I fixed but I dont!

I replaced the spark plugs with new ones after leaving them out for an hour in case the engine was flooded. I put opened the fuel pump, put it back together and wired everything back up. Turned the key and it roared to life?! Mystified...

Either way the miss has gone and it revs smoothly. There is still some smoke out of the exhaust but it sounds absolutely beautiful so I doubt there is anything too much wrong with it.

The car sat in a barn in Tipperary Ireland (no, really!) for 6 cold, damp years before I brought it to Florida so it is no surprise that it needs to be driven for a bit to see if everything settles down. The engine has only 14 miles on it so everything is brand new. We shall see what it does after 100 miles on the road.

It has had fresh oil, filter, plugs, carb rebuild,coolant, fuel tank flushed and new fuel and a few other things I cant think of. I wouldn't be surprised if there is something major I HAVE forgotten though!

Thanks for your replies!

Paul

[richard stewart 3rd]

Hi Paul,
Glad you got it fixed.
Good Luck with it,
Rich