if I didn't get the cam and the pump arm lined up right will it cause any damage while I try and start it? I figure I'll be able to tell cuz it won't pump nothin' right?

 

I dont think its possible to get it wrong.

 

I don't have to get the arm and the high spot lined up, you mean it's a self correcting problem? or it's just not a problem to begin with, ther's nothing in the manual except a tip to make it easier to get off

 

Well supposedly if you get the arm on top of the cam and turn it over, it will wreck the pump instantly, and then proceed to screw up the cam lobe.

But, it shouldn't be that easy to do that.

 

Well, that's pretty effin scary, I didn't have any problems getting the pump out, and the new one slid in pretty easy. The thing that worries me is that the arms looked different. The original had about a 45º angle and the new 1 is maybe 1/2 that. I checked w/Napa and they told me that this is the pump specified for my truck. either way the effin thing won't start and my wife's riceburner took a dump too, so we don't have a running car. I told her to get it looked at about 3 months ago, she didn't and it's somehow my fault! so anyway, any suggestions will be appreciated.

 

Is the fuel filter full of fuel? If not, top it off to save some cranking. There's a bleeder on the top of the filter housing you can open to bleed air out and you can verify that the pump is pumping fuel from that. Once you know you have fuel coming up to the IP you're most of the way there. You might have to crack open a few injector lines by the injectors to bleed air out of the lines and once she fires up torque them down again.

 

Yea, I topped off the filter with Diesel Kleen and popped the valve a couple of times, but how would air get into the injection lin...lightbulb, never mind

 

Good luck to y sir

 

This is another project on my list. My lift pump works fine right now but I am thinking of replacing it before my 4000 mile cross-country trip. The arm and cam thing still confuses me. If I put the new pump in the same way the old one came out, how can I mess it up?

 

I think it depends on the angle you install it.
Its obviously a problem that some people have had, because they have changed the design on some of the pumps and include the warning with the new pumps.

I have not tried to replace one, so I can't really say much more.

 

Yeah the old pumps had a sharp bend in the arm. Sharp enough that when you pull it out you'd think "holy cow how did that get bent!" While the new pumps have a more conventional straight arm on it. The sharp bend was impossible to feed over the top of the cam lobe, but the straight arm apparently can make it over to the top of the cams pump lobe. I've never had it happen and I think putting it in with the arm on top of the lobe would entail a "It's not in there straight but it'll straighten out when I tighten the bolts" mentality.

 

OK now I'm seriously worried, I couldn't work on truck yesterday, rain, rain, but I'm getting nervous about my cam, the levers on the old pump and the new one were both in the same position (up) so I thought I couldn't go wrong if I just put it in. It slid right in with no resistance and bolted right up. the first time I cranked it it sounded fine, but about the third time it clattered and the whole engine shuddered. I stopped working on it after that and haven't gotten back to it yet. I'll go home and pull the new pump and check it, what should I look for on the cam if the pump is fubar? aaaaagh

 

It sounds to me like your engine tried to start. Try cranking it again and see if it fires up.

 

Little bit off topic but does anyone know how much power the mechanical lift pump takes to operate? Should there be any noticeable increase in power if you delete it and add an electric pump?

 

It also sounds like it tried to start to me.
If you do pull it off again, just make sure the arm is angled down when you slide the arm in . If the cam lobe is in the right place it will bolt up with no resistance, if not you will notice it trying to hold the pump at a slight angle.

Answer to diesel fuels question, there would not be enough difference to be noticed, but it does take power, not near as much as the alt, power steering, fan etc.