Fuel Pump not pumping?

[Type One Motors]

Hi all,

I have one I need help with and I just can't seem to figure out where I am going wrong. I have a '68 Beetle that had sat in my garage for awhile and when I tried to start last month it would not crank over. First thought was old pump and perhaps tank was clogged. I had a rebuilt German fuel pump I had purchased from one of the good folks here on the Samba some time back and installed that. Would not pump. Took it all apart again, lubed, check dimensions in the pump rod and such. All looked good. Disconnected line from tank and straight into a gas can. I put a filter between pump and carb. Filter still dry. No gas coming through. Am I missing something here or ? It is the only thing holding this car back from driving.

Thank you all!

[OldSchoolVW's]

Is fuel getting to the pump inlet? If not, you may need to disconnect the hose at the pump inlet and add fuel to the tank to prime the line. As has been pointed out in other discussions, the pump is good at pulling fuel, but not air trapped in the line. It's okay to use a clear filter on the outlet side of the pump just to check for fuel flow, but many of us aren't fans of having a filter anywhere in the engine bay on an ongoing basis.
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Tom

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'63 Beetle Sedan
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[Type One Motors]

Tom,

Thank you. I will try priming the pump with fuel through the line and then go from there. I did a separate gas can to eliminate the gas tank for now. I only put the filter there for that reason. I know it is not good to have in the engine bay for fires. I will remove once I can get it going.

Thanks again.

[bsairhead]

Squirt some fuel into the carb first. Syringe or fuel line with small funnel or take the top off and pour some gas into the carb. You need the speed of the running engine to get the pump pulling gas.

[busdaddy]

Clamping the palm of your hand over the carb throat while a helper cranks solves that problem, and the stuck needle and seat that you'll discover after you get the fuel pump un stuck too. Don't worry it won't eat your hand, pull it off when you feel wetness or the engine coughs.

And drain that gas, if it's old enough to glue a pump valve down it can also cause bigger problems if you continue to run it.
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[Eric&Barb]

[Type One Motors]

Hi everyone. Thanks for all the replies and sorry for the delay in all of this. I had a few life adventures come up and finally got back to the bug. Some of my wording may have been incorrect and sorry about that. I disconnected the tank line and put an new line from the pump to a gas can full of fuel. I then put a clear filter between the pump and carb to assure that it was pumping. When I start the car with starter fluid it runs. I did the route of having someone start while I continue to feed it fuel and it runs fine. The pump is not pumping. I kept the fuel going from me for about 20 seconds with high revs to try to get it to pump. Nothing.

I am at a loss here. The pump was rebuilt correctly and all is attached correctly. I did confirm the top travel of the rod is where it is supposed to be. I really don't want to buy another pump but is this the answer?

Thanks

[Eric&Barb]

[Type One Motors]

I have disconnected the line from the tank. I am running a line only from a side can with gas for the pump to pump from. I needed to take the entire tank and line out of the picture to make sure it was not an issue there first.

[Eric&Barb]

[Type One Motors]

Thank you I will check that. Otherwise it might be another pump to check.

[bsairhead]

Take the pump out of the picture. Run from the temporary tank straight to the carb. As long as its high enough and the hose is into the gas it will get a siphon on start up.

[Cusser]

I've found that one may have to prime the carburetor with aerosol starting fluid a few times to get a mechanical fuel pump actually pumping. These are designed to pump liquids, not air.
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[wimkever]

Maybe the lines to the gas tank and the line to the carb are switched at the fuel pump.
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[Cusser]

[Type One Motors]

I don't believe I have the inlet and outlet lines mixed. Can you show a photo of how it is supposed to be on a stock German fuel pump?

[bsairhead]

[Eric&Barb]

[Multi69s]

[Type One Motors]

Thanks for the photo. I do have the correct set up. Tried again with priming system to get air bubbles out. Fuel directly into carb or starting fluid, tried both and no dice. So frustrating. All I can guess is that the pump is bad. Will get another and try it out.