new lift pump, still no fuel

[hg adams]

Just installed a new lift pump and I am still not getting fuel to come through the line going to the fuel filter from the lift pump. I can hook up the inlet and outlet line from the fuel filter, take the bleeder plug out of the filter housing, and fill the filter with a bottle of diesel and the engine will run fine. Ran the engine for 2 minutes doing this, and still no fuel from the lift pump. Maybe I did something wrong installing the lift pump.

 

[dstang97]

maybe the lift pump is fine and you have a bad pickup in the tank???
just a suggestion

 

[68impalass]

You could be sucking air from somewhere. Check all the rubber fuel lines, especially the ones on top of the fuel tank.

 

[BIG_RED]

I had to install my lift pump 4 times before it would work. The pushrod (1/2"ish shaft) that rides on the pump's arm has to be in exactly the right place (in the engine) or the whole thing doesn't work. I almost filled the hole in the side of the block with grease so the shaft would stay put while i put the pump on. Know how the pump is bolted over a cover that covers a bigger whole on the block? you have to remove that cover to get the pushrod to the right place. When you pull the pump off, the pushrod falls to a lower spot inside the block. (well, mine did). Good Luck!

 

[hg adams]

Finally got it running. I guess there was just air in the lines. I took the fuel line off the return valve on the IP, opened the bleeder screw on the filter housing, and pressured up the fuel lines with an air compressor until fuel ran out of the vent in the filter housing. Started up fine and is running good. Thankfully the lift pump was okay with my installation. When do you have to replace the pushrod? I just replaced the fuel pump and the gasket for it.

 

[BIG_RED]

You don't have to replace the push rod. But, if you're unlucky like me, you knock the push rod out of where it is supposed to sit within the engine the first 3 times you put the new pump on no worries, you're all good. Good job!

 

[hg adams]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I did not realize how sensitive these engines are to air in the fuel lines. I am assuming every line was dry after I replaced the lift pump and the fuel filter. That must be a large volume for the lift pump to fill compared to what it pumps with each stroke. I am sure glad to have it running again. Now, if I can just stop the slow drip of coolant coming from the bottom left side of the water pump where it bolts to the block.

 

[RAYZER]

i had a vw bus once with a electric fuel pump, while i had the motor out, a dirt dobber had built a nest in the fuel line and as a result, no fuel pressure, took me forever to find it.

 

[jimm1009]

I used my shop vac and put a 1 to 2 psi charge into the fuel tank and then bled the filter out than then the pump. It takes a while to do this.
Caution: you can burn out your starter if you are not ccareful.
It helps a lot to remove 6 of the glow plugs (all on r/h side and front two on L/H side because this allows you to turn your engine over with much less effert and it will turn over faster as well.
You will probably have to bleed the whole system which also involves disconnecting the high pressure lines to get fuel out of them, then connecting them and bleeding the nozzles with the glow plugs removed too.
Motor it until you get a mist cvoming out of the glow plug holes then you should have it.
jimm1009