Fish Died. Fuel delivery problem

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64physhy

64physhy

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Last night, I went to a cruise night. As soon as I arrived at the "Mopar section", my car died (embarrassing). First, I thought my gas gage was just off, and that I was empty, even though the gage was between 1/8 and 1/4, so I put 5 gallons in it.

Couldn't get it to start still, so, still assuming I had ran out of gas, I assumed that I had sucked the lines dry, so I squirted some gas in the carb. Started up and ran long enough to get me to the top of the hill by my house, then died. This was about 4 or 5 miles from the cruise. I was able to coast it home.

So, today, I blew compressed air through the fuel line toward the tank in case something got sucked in, and changed the filter and pump. I got one of the clear filters so I could see if fuel was getting through.

I've cranked it and cranked it, using gas, starter fluid, etc. It starts until whatever I use burns off, but still not getting fuel flow to the carb.

So, now I'm thinking 1) I have a small hole in the fuel line from the tank; 2) the fuel pick-up in the tank is totally clogged or; 3) The lobe that drives the pump has gone flat.

Any thoughts or suggestions?
 
actuater level of the mechanical pump sticking in the down position ?
 
You could run a rubber fuel line from a 5 gal. can to the input/uptake side of the pump and see if its pumping. If it is , most likely the pickup in the tank is clogged. Drop the tank and see what's up in there. Good Luck
 
Try disconnecting the fuel line after the pump and aim it into a bucket. Turn the engine over and see if fuel comes out. If it does then the pick up and fuel line are okay as well as the cam eccentric, but if not, then as the guys say you may have a clogged up pick up sock, some criud in the line or a pump that`s toast.
 
""I've cranked it and cranked it, using gas, starter fluid, etc. It starts until whatever I use burns off, but still not getting fuel flow to the carb."" Apparently he already determined nothing coming out of the pump.
 
Like pettybluedart said, it`s possibly the fuel pump but was it a new pump you installed or something off the garage shelf? When you pulled the pump did you check inside to see if the eccentric is still on the cam or if it fell off or if it`s loose.
 
I put a new fuel pump on, and it did no good. New from the store, not garage shelf. Still no fuel from the pump. Didn't check the eccentric yet.
 
If you use the can of gas method and it pumps fuel, you know the pump and eccentric are good, and the problem is in the tank. If it doesn't pump fuel, you know the problem is with the pump or the eccentric. Pumps are notoriously crappy, and new replacement pumps are no exception. I've put new pumps on more than once only to find they're bad too, especially if it's a Pep Boys el-cheapo. If you determine that the problem is up front and not in the tank, pull the new pump and exchange it with another ( better one maybe?) When was the eccentric last messed with? They seldom are a problem compared to fuel pumps.
 
I'm going to go get some some gas to see if it pumps from the gas can. The eccentric hasn't been messed with since the engine was rebuilt about 11 or 12 years ago. Probably only put about 2,000 miles on it since. The pump was an $11 pump from Autozone. I have a good Carter I could use, but need to find some nipples for it.
 
If the cam hasn`t been recently installed or similar work done on the front of the motor then the chance that he eccentric is the problem is pretty slim. Try a good Carter pump with sumbitmopars gas can method and see what happens.
 
Well, Did the fuel can thing, with the pump pulling straight from a fuel can. Works fine, so at least I know the pump and eccentric are good. I guess I'll need to pull the tank next weekend.
 
double check the rubber sections of fuel line . one before the pump and one at front side of tank. If either is crack the pump will suck air and not fuel.
Good luck
 
Glad to see you're narrowing it down. Might as well be ready with some new fuel line to replace the section back there at the tank and a new sock. Both are cheap and unless they're already like-new should just be replaced while you're right there. Good Luck
 
Old post, I know, but I had a similar failure in my '64 273 Barracuda. Would run with starter fluid or gas in the carb, but died as soon as it was done and nothing was pumping up to the float bowl.

It turned out that the diaphragm on the fuel pump had perforated. New pump solved the problem.
 
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