I have a 63 rambler amb***ador, someone replaced the fuel pump with an electronic unit, but I don't see a regulator anywhere? Just the pump with 2 wires coming to it? Is it possible to have an internal regulator? The pump is also in the engine bay, should I relocate? And I'm in the middle of rewiring, so I was going to replace it anyway while im replacing a bunch of other stuff (anyone know what psi I should go with?) was thinking of running the fuel pump with a on off kill switch incase of a fuel line crack or what not? Is this recommended or is it unnecessary? I thought i read somewhere sometimes if that happens the pump can keep going and not stop?
You didn't say what brand of pump but most don't have internal regulators. The pump should be mounted as close to the tank as possible and below the fuel level in the tank. When you buy the new pump it will come with instructions on mounting and most will have wiring diagrams with oil pressure switch type kill systems. Depending on which carburator you run you will only need about five pounds of pressure, more than that and you need a regulator with a return back to the pump. The Holley red pump is a good one but it can be noisey.
Yes, definitely use a kill switch. They also make a kill switch that cuts off the pump in case of a roll over. Electric pumps come in a varying ***ortment of fuel pressures. You probably want something in the 7 PSI range or less depending on what carb your using.
Someone must have had a good reason to switch to an electric pump. I had to install an electric fuel pump on the sedan delivery because the lobe on the cam is too worn to hit the arm on the pump. I bought a 1.5 - 4 PSI low pressure pump that has no regulator or gauge and it works fine.It is recommended that the pump be wired to the electric oil pressure sender so it only works when the engine has oil pressure.I have a mechanical oil pressure sender so I was not able to do this. The directions that came w/the pump said to install it within 12" of the fuel tank.
Is there a reason for the electric pump? Or did somebody put it on because they think it is cool. I have a friend who's car burnt to the ground over a electric fule pump "because he thought there cool to run" I never have run a electric fuel pump on my hot rods, the only time I run one was on my drag car.
I would use a dial indicator on the cam lobe and see if it is worn. This is very rare. I would go with the old mechanical pump if possible. Maybe the guy was in a hurry or somebody said he could not buy a new mechanical pump which is typical of the non believers. I can just seeing somebody saying," You will never find a fuel pump for that car".
I installed a Carter a few years ago per reccomendations on here. Best thing I added was a momentary ****on so I could prime the carb before starting after she's been sitting awhile. Now I don't have to crank it too long. It's wired to an oil pressure switch also.
Another vote for the mechanical pump. I've run electric pumps on a few cars, but I'm not going to do that again. Mechanical pumps have the saftey of a kill switch built in. Mechanical pumps are easy to wire. Mechanical pumps are at the right pressure, no regulator needed. Electric pumps have been around for decades, but auto manufacturers used mechanical pumls until EFI made them go away. Billions of miles have been driven on stock pumps. Reasons to run an electric pump are EFI, VERY high Horsepower, or terrible heat soak/vapor lock trouble. EFI isn't really a "traditional" hot rod thing. I know people running 10's on a mechanical pump, so if you're racing you MIGHT want the electric, but that depends on your performance goals. If you've got heat soak problems, get the fuel line away from the heats source and/or insulate it. I like stock mechanicals. Reliable, cheap, easy. What could be better?
On a 63 Rambler it might be because the mechanical pump wasn't readily available at the local parts store. You probably have to order it and wait a couple of days to get one. If you keep the electric pump, I've always used an oil pressure switch as a safety switch.
Any time I see an electric fuel pump as an auxiliary to a mechanical pump it says to me there is a fuel feed problem and this is the redneck fix. Took the mechanical pump apart on my '36 Hupp and it looked as though it was full of coffee grounds....
I have the mechanical pump. It's one piece with the vacuum booster if I remember right. ***uming whoever put in the electric one did so because the old one wasn't working properly and was probably a cheap fix. I'm finding a number of cheap fixes as I did deeper in the car. As far as what carb I have it's a Holley 2 barrel, 450cfm I believe.
Looks like the Carter mechanical pump is about $90 from Rock Auto so it isn't cheap but not terribly expensive either.
I have an electric pump wired to a switch on the dash with a relay, and its used only to prime the carb after the car sits for a few days, or when racing.
Mechanical pumps have a better durability record than aftermarket electric pumps. The popular Holley pumps have a fairly high failure rate. I saw that over a long period at my friend's speed shop. As of several years ago that was still happening. Not sure if anything was ever done to improve the situation. High volume mechanical pumps seem to have a little more valve issues than "regular" volume pumps. Since those pumps have two and three times as many valves, that's not surprising. Keeping the fuel clean is going to help minimize that problem. The one thing I don't like about mechanical pumps is that most dump fuel into the crankcase if/when the diaphragm starts leaking.
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