Club 80-90 Forums

Decided to refit a mechanical pump for now. Maybe I'll look into fitting the electric pump properly with relay etc in the future (didn't really fancy lying on the floor in the rain!)

Bought the mid priced pump from Brickwerks (£21ish), a new pushrod and some fuel pipe/clips. The bakelite spacer was still present under the blanking cap so didn't have to replace that.

Only took me 10mins to fit. All fired up first time and is running perfectly! Quite an achievement for me... I'm a complete amateur when it comes to mechanics!

The electric pump was already starting to pee me off... The engine would start, and run for approx 20 seconds (just enough time for me to drive out and block the road...) Then the engine would die! Most likely the pipe from the outlet of the pump to the carb was full of fuel, which allowed the engine to start, but then the long 3m run from the fuel tank to the inlet of the pump must have been empty! I'd have to switch the engine off, and leave the ignition on with the pump clicking away for 20 seconds before it'd start again. Pain in the a***.

All good now... Back to how it should be! (and best of all... It's silent)

Many thanks to all for your help and advice

I think fitting an electric pump is more of a project for a tinkerer looking for something to do than the best solution to pumping fuel properly. The brickworks high-quality option of replacement pump does the job perfectly even after the van's been standing, plus the original system is beautifully simple, easy to maintain, silent and safe. The less additional electric motors and connections, the better as far as I'm concerned - if an original pump breaks while travelling it takes 5 minutes to swap, what happens if the electric bodge fails? Low-loader time.

Electric one just as easy to replace. Both are good.