put in an electric fuel pump?

[Vinnie]

Hi folks,

For my 73 I'm thinking of putting in en electric fuel pump. This is because I don't drive it much and everytime I do I have to crank 4-5 times before I get fuel to the carb again. I think so because after 2-3 weeks my see-through fuel filter has hardly any fuel in it.
Also recently I had my Holley carb replaced with an Edelbrock. Last week I had to drive slow for a longer time and at some point it sounded like it was low on fuel briefly. I'm thinking maybe it's sucking in more fuel than the pump can deliver at low speeds?

I googled a bit and learned there are pumps that you put inside your tank and ones that are outside your tank. Does one have big advantages over the other?

I'm curious to hear your thoughts, opinions and recommendations!

Thanks,
Vincent.

[Hemikiller]

Edelbrock (and Carter) carbs are notorious for going dry after a couple weeks (sometimes even just hours) of sitting. They also heat-soak a lot easier than a Holley and should have a 1/4" thick insulator gasket.

I would simply replace you current mechanical pump with a new one, or maybe the Carter M6882 musclecar pump, and see if it solves your fuel issues. I never recommend an electric pump for stock applications, too much that can go wrong. Mechanical pumps are dead simple and work.

[Mister 4x4]

Nah - go for an electric pump. I had originally gone with a Holley Black (rollervane) fuel pump, but it was loud as Hell. I recently swapped it out for a Holley Mighty Mite (gerotor-style) and it makes hardly any noise at all.

My car has sat since April or May, and when I hopped in last weekend, I turned the ignition switch to "On," waited for the fuel pump to prime, tapped the gas pedal once, turned the ignition switch to "Start" and the car fired right up.

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/hly-12-427

Here's the fuel pump installed on the rear frame rail inside of the driver side rear wheel well.

   

And here's a splash/rock shield I made for it (just in case). Someone had left a lower splash shield from a Volkswagen Jetta or something at the Auto Hobby Shop, so I repurposed some of it for this project.

   

[Don C]

Both Hemikiller and Mister 4x4 have valid points. You'll need to weigh the pluses and minuses to decide which way to go. I've run electric pumps with few problems, just make sure you match the pump to the engine and load.

To answer your other question about in-tank pumps. They are high-pressure pumps for fuel injection systems.

[turtle5353]

I would run a stock mechanical. I have one in my car and I am running a 900 quick fuel and it feeds it fine!

[rcadd1ct]

Biggest issue on electric pumps is that they want them lower tha n the as tank. That is difficult for most vehicles.

[Mikes73]

My edelbrock mechanical pump has never let me down and seems to feed my engine just fine.

[Vinnie]

Thanks for the advice folks! I'm going to look for a mechanical pump and hope that it will pump better than the current pump (which I think might be broken). Also I'm not looking forward to the extra wiring and fuel lines that are required for an electrical pump. It's not expensive so if it doesn't work I can always go electrical after all :-)

[detritusmaximus]

Or you could run both. It's not hard to set up a priming pump that you turn on for a few seconds to fill the carb, then shut it off and run on your mechanical. I agree with the gerotor type and it is a pusher, not a puller, so it needs to be down low and protected.

Mechanical pumps are relatively cheap and easy to replace, when in doubt, replace it. Better now than on the road...because it will be dark and rainy. Electrics are easier to swap in an emergency and I prefer to have a known good spare.

Almost forgot, if you run an electric it is extremely wise to install an oil pressure shutoff switch and an inertia switch. They will shutoff fuel flow in the event of an accident.

[turtle5353]

Problem with trying to run both would be the mechanical pump would have a hard time pushing fuel through the electrical pump if its mounted after the mechanical. or if its mounted before the mechanical it would have a hard time pulling fuel through it.

When I swapped a 302 into my 1989 Bronco II I tried to leave the in tank pump in place and pull fuel through it and it would not work.