I'm in the process of replacing (or trying to) the fuel pump on my "new" old '90 LWB. The vehicle hasn't run in years (at least 5, perhaps as long as 10); I bought it off of a guy who needed to get rid of it. The fuel tank was a mess, so I dropped it, pulled the pump and sending unit and had the tank cleaned, sealed and lined. I bought a new sending unit no problem, but the fuel pump is vexing me.
The old fuel pump was a mess when I took it out. All covered with nasty gunk. But when I saw what the dealer wanted for the whole assembly ($450!) I decided that I could, in fact salvage the bracket. So I took the old pump off and threw it out, it was in such bad shape I really just didn't want to deal with it. (Now I kind of wish I had hung onto it.) I cleaned up the bracket pretty well and ordered a new Denso pump from Rock Auto, figuring this to be OEM or at least close. The dealer doesn't seem to sell the pump as a separate item.
The problem that I'm having is in the fit of the pump to the bracket. The Denso pump is too small around to be held in place by the strap on the bracket and it also seems to lack a piece of rubber that allows it to fit snugly to the bottom of the bracket. I have hit most every auto part store in town and every pump has the same issues. Though I did find an Airtex pump at AutoZone that has the rubber piece for the bottom and seems to fit the bracket correctly with it (still too small around though).
Also, I've seen that some pumps come with a sort of neoprene sleeve that fits around the pump. I guess that helps it to shim up against the bracket and also provide some sound dampening? I think that the rubber stopper on the bottom would also provide some sound isolation.
Does anyone have any experience replacing their fuel pump on one of these vehicles? Any ideas or suggestions?
thanks,
steve
