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Whack that pump [ Fuel Pumps ]

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Jedi Knight
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My NAPA pump quit on me last night. "Fixed" it with a couple of good whacks. So this is the second one to do this. What is a better pump? The NAPAs seem to only last 2 years before needing a good whacking. Now I have two spares (my spares are previously whacked). I feel kinda silly going and buying another NAPA pump today. Like buying plastic sprinkler heads I suppose.
Are the SU pumps any better? I heard of them being whacked also. At 4 to 8 times the price.
 
Re: Whack that pump

Well it is true that the Lucas units do need whacking, but that doesn't usually take place until the unit is about eight to ten years old. You can buy these with solid state electrics nowadays, which would seem to be a more worthwhile investment, as they will never need whacking. You could, of course, clean the points in one of your old units which would give you a new lease of life with it. I don't know about the NAPA units, but the Lucas ones could be serviced.
 
Re: Whack that pump

I'm not sure what a "NAPA" pump is (we have NAPA auto stores here, but I think they sell a variety of electric pumps).
Anyway, I've been running a Facet solid-state electric fuel pump in my racers and street cars for years and they are super-reliable. No points...all the electrical stuff is solid state. The downside is that they are very noisy, but mine is solidly bolted to the chassis....you could probably use rubber mounts and a bit of sound-insulation to quiet the thing.
I just bought a 1970 Midget that had been sitting for over 10 years (perhaps as much as 17, I think). The fuel pump it has is a Facet (instead of the original Lucas). I drained and flushed the fuel tank on this car and pulled the feed line off the carbs. The minute I turned the key, it started pumping! If you get one of these, you may also need to buy a fuel pressure regulator. I have a regulator set to 2 psi on my racer (but it's a Sprite....a big AH could handle a bit more). The smallest Facet pump can put out 3.5 psi which might be about perfect for your car. Facet link:

https://www.jcwhitney.com/autoparts/ProductDisplay/s-10101/p-1104/c-10101
 
Re: Whack that pump

Aero,

These are both facet pumps. Napa relables them.

I use rubber buffers, ya they are noisy. Humm.

T
 
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