Electric fuel pump for carb applications

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Would probably be a fine pump, depending on how much power the engine makes.

I'm using an Edelbrock pump, and it's not nearly as loud as the junk Holleys. I haven't been using it long, so I can't comment on life.
 
Thanks JakeR22- I've read good things about the Edelbrock pumps. One big concern I have with the Carter is that I'd order it and when it shows up it'll say "made in China" on the box- seems to be happening with a lot of Federal-Mogul parts these days :-(
 
Why do you want to run an electric pump? I've always prefered the simplicity, low cost and reliability of mechanical pumps in carbed applications.

I remember working on a friends Olds 350 with an electric pump retrofitted in place (I don't know what brand it was). It worked okay, but at idle the pump would knock because the carb would reduce the fuel flow too much for the pump. The problem was, without a return line, the pump fuel flow was too high at idle. I ended up putting a mechanical pump back on the car and there were no more issues.

If you ran an electric pump, I'd suggest running a return line.
 
I'd use the stock pump unless I had good reasons not to.
That means some specialized racing applications.
Even then, I'd get a high flow pump before an electric one.

I have fooled with electric pumps on cars, but felt silly and I reverted back to stock.
 
I converted over to an electric. Make sure it is not a high pressure, or you will flood past the float in the carb. (or add a regulator, but extra expense. So far I like my Airtex electric. I put it right at the outlet of the tank. After taking this picture I added a protector plate
page23-1016-full.jpg
 
I remember my car ran better when I switched over to an electric pump. It might have been the slight increase in pressure, but push seemed better than pull.
 
I'm using a return-based setup with a Walboro pump for an EFI Mustang on my carb. Using a Malory regulator.
 
Originally Posted By: Oldswagon
Why do you want to run an electric pump? I've always prefered the simplicity, low cost and reliability of mechanical pumps in carbed applications.



Generally I'd agree, but modern winter gas makes running a mechanical almost impossible- too much heat conducted to the fuel through the pump body, and with the super high vapor pressure of winter fuel its a sure-fire vapor lock, at least on this vehicle. Plus mechanical pumps just aren't as long-lived as they used to be- alcohol blends are hard on 'em and since they're no longer the main things used, they just don't build them as well as they once did.

And another bonus with an electric pump is avoiding long crank times to fill the carb when the car isn't driven frequently. turn on the key, let it pump for 15 seconds, and light 'er up!
 
Originally Posted By: 440Magnum
Anyone ever used the Carter GP4070?
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/CRT-P4070/

I'm curious about longevity/durability in street use. Its supposed to be a lot quieter and longer-lived than the Holleys, but they're notorious for not holding up on the street so that's faint praise.


If you can find this pump for your application buy it, it works great and can handle 400HP, no electric pump needed.

Works great! Oh! I have used the carter pumps in the past, nothing special and not in the same league as Holly and Edelbrock..

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/EDL-1721/?rtype=10
 
The mechanical fuel pump is 30 years old on my '79 Cadillac. I'm wondering if it's something I should replace in the near future. The car has very low original miles (10,000+), so the pump hasn't been worn out I guess, but there is the "age" factor. Not sure if I want to go electric though, but who knows.
 
The diaphragm in the mech. fuel pump is what goes bad, I don't know if replacement diaphragms are sold.
 
Originally Posted By: L_Sludger
The diaphragm in the mech. fuel pump is what goes bad, I don't know if replacement diaphragms are sold.


I just checked around, seems like these AC pumps are non-servicable. The ACDelco site has a replacement pump that will fit, so I'll probably get one pretty soon.
 
For the price of a mechanical pump, I never saw the point of just changing the diaphram. Although, all the cars I have had had non-rebuildable pumps.

That said, I have never had one fail, but I do typically replace them as preventative maintenance when they get enough miles on them.
 
Originally Posted By: 440Magnum


Generally I'd agree, but modern winter gas makes running a mechanical almost impossible- too much heat conducted to the fuel through the pump body, and with the super high vapor pressure of winter fuel its a sure-fire vapor lock, at least on this vehicle. Plus mechanical pumps just aren't as long-lived as they used to be- alcohol blends are hard on 'em and since they're no longer the main things used, they just don't build them as well as they once did.

And another bonus with an electric pump is avoiding long crank times to fill the carb when the car isn't driven frequently. turn on the key, let it pump for 15 seconds, and light 'er up!



Okay, that seems like a good set of reasons. My brother's daily driver is still a mechanical fuel pumpe and carbed car, but he doesn't seem to have that issue (on a SBC). My only carbed car left is my old Torino which doesn't run when winter gas is being used, so I haven't seen that problem either.

I've never trusted the aftermarket too much when it comes to the reliability of parts like this, OEM is usually much more reliable. Have you considered trying to retrofit a low-pressure FI fuel pump? I know that the GM TBI pumps are pretty reliable (mine went 200K plus and was still fine) and they run at low PSI (9-12 PSI is the GM specs IIRC). Still higher pressure than a carb, but with a pressure regulator a return line, I am sure you can make it work with your carb. Plus, these pumps are very cheap, I put a Deplhi pump my truck for $65 CDN this fall.

The only issue would be the stock pump has a nipple fitting only on one end. The other end has a connector for a fuel sock. Unless you had a custom sending unit made so that it could be installed in tank, a stock unit might not work. But I did find this unit by Carter, which has an adaptor so both ends have the nipple fitting. At least it "should" be built to OEM specs, but it is quite a bit more pricey than a stock TBI pump.

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/CRT-P5001/
 
Originally Posted By: Oldswagon


Okay, that seems like a good set of reasons. My brother's daily driver is still a mechanical fuel pumpe and carbed car, but he doesn't seem to have that issue (on a SBC). My only carbed car left is my old Torino which doesn't run when winter gas is being used, so I haven't seen that problem either.

I've never trusted the aftermarket too much when it comes to the reliability of parts like this, OEM is usually much more reliable. Have you considered trying to retrofit a low-pressure FI fuel pump?


Your concern about the aftermarket reliability question is EXACTLY why I opened this thread. Most aftermarket electric pumps don't seem to care AT ALL about long-term reliability, quietness, etc. They're made for strip warrior cars where they run a few minutes and no one can hear them over the engine anyway. Holley pumps in particular are notoriously loud and unreliable on street cars. The Carter has a pretty good reputation from what I can gather, as does the Edelbrock electric pump.

What I've done in the past is use Facet-Purolator impulse type pumps for low volume applications. Those were OEM on a lot of industrial engines (as well as some cars like late 70s Mazda trucks), and they are extremely reliable. But they're limited to about 30-35 GPH, which gets iffy on feeding even a stock big-block v8 under wide-open throttle. Lean-out is not something you want, so having a bit more reserve fuel flow would be a very nice thing. Right now I'm leaning toward testing out the Carter myself and seeing if I like it.

The GM TBI pumps are another really good candidate, but in the vein of simplicity I'd like to eliminate regulators and return lines if possible (although a return line would be good for the whole vapor-lock problem anyway, so I may bite the bullet and do it.)

Which brings up another point- several people have commented on simplicity/reliability when arguing for a block-mounted mecanical pump. There was a time I'd have agreed, but frankly I now believe that electric pumps are generally much more reliable. I've never had an OEM electric pump fail before somewhere around 200,000 miles, but I've had plenty of mechanical pumps fail (and dump fuel into the oil when they do....) at 1/4 to 1/3 that mileage. My only real doubt is with aftermarket vs OEM reliability.
 
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I've heard of people using a mechanical pump, backed up by an electric. If one fails, the other will still get you by.
 
Originally Posted By: JakeR22
I've heard of people using a mechanical pump, backed up by an electric. If one fails, the other will still get you by.


Whether or not you can do that depends on the type of electric pump. Some electric pumps (mostly the rotary-vane type like Holleys) won't allow fluid to flow through them if they aren't turning... so if your electric pump fails it turns to a potato in the fuel line. Some have internal bypass valves to overcome that. Still thers (like the Facet-Purolator impulse pumps) inherently allow free flow whether they're on or off. That's why that type is also commonly used as a diesel engine lift/priming pump.
 
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