Hello Folks,

First of all, my truck is a 1986 F250, supercab, 2wd, 6.9 IDI...

Thinking of wiring up an inline electric fuel pump for a few reasons:

1) Boost pump to ensure fuel pressure and fuel flow on cold start

2) Less susceptable to air intrusion issues

3) To prime the engine after filter changes, etc

I plan to keep the existing mechanical lift pump and use the electric boost pump primarily on cold start and then turn it off once the engine's running. The pump I've been looking at is a Mr. Gasket model 12D and can be viewed at Mr Gasket 12D Electric Fuel Pump Diesel or Mr. Gasket :: Product Details

My question is:

1) Anyone have experience with this pump? The price is right but....

2) Does anyone know if this will restrict fuel flow when it's turned off? If I install it how I'm thinking right now the mechanical lift pump needs to draw fuel through it.

3) Is 35GPH at 4-7 PSI an ok flow rate / pressure for an IDI

Any thoughts much appreciated!

 

I am pretty sure that is the exact pump that several members have had trouble with.
You will need a flow through pump Not sure if that one is or not. The only Idi I ever used a electric pump on, I used the cheapest pump on the market. It actually looked like an old metal inline filter and worked for years, as far as I know it still does and it was flow through.
They do not cure, or make them less subseptable to air intrusion it just makes it to where people doesn't repair it until it is running fuel onto the ground.

Air issues are a pain but if properly chased down and repaired last for years with no issues. In my opinion adding an electric pump adds two more possible places for air problems, and it does it in the plastic line that never gives a problem.
If you do go with that pump I wouldn't use that mickey mouse looking filter at all.

 

rup's got 60k plus on his i think he said.
im using one,though i haven't gone anywhere yet lol.
im getting close tho! she's starting to look like a finished rig ready for inspection now boys!
yeah,the pump meets idi specs and surpasses GPH a bit even.
i asked this question back along before i got mine.the results and price was enough to give her a go at it.
some guys don't care for modernizing and feel some things are best left as stock.
though,this doesn't slow those who like to update/mod down anyway lol.

dang its cold out there!
im gunna catch some z's and finish up latter on.
catch ya guys sometime latter on in the wee hrs lol.

 

Thanks for the reply Starmilt! When I said 'less susceptible' to air intrusion issues what I mean to say is more along the lines of being less susceptible to getting stuck out on the road because of a no-start caused (either directly or indirectly) by air intrusion. I understand that it does not make the problem go away... sorry for the misunderstanding, sometimes things aren't as clear as originally thought once someone else has read it!

Again, thanks for the reply.... based on that I certainly won't be going with that particular pump. I was concerned with the flow-through thing as well. Another pump I've looked at is a Walbro product (recommended by a guy that runs an old diesel Toyota Landcruiser) He said (for what it's worth, I still need to confirm this) that it is a free-flow design (same as flow-through I believe) and that many of the people he knows in the Landcruiser diesel world have used them. The two I'm considering are:
http://wem.walbro.com/distributors/FR/FRA-1.htm
http://wem.walbro.com/distributors/FR/FRD-1.htm
more info: Auto Performance Engineering - Walbro fuel pumps and more

Again, I need to confirm whether or not they are free-flow/flow through. The other thought I have about these two is which one would be better for what I want to do.
The FRD-1 is a 20GPH @ 4.5-7PSI, On Demand pump (meaning it will only pump when pressure falls below 4.5-7PSI, could wire this in with a 5 amp fuse to be hot anytime the key's on); and
The FRA-1 has the same specs as the FRD-1 except it is a continuous-flow type pump (runs anytime power is applied, wire this one up to a normally open rocker switch in the cab and power it for a few seconds when required)

Sorry for the long post..... Any thoughts?

 

Just read FORDF250HDXLT's post..... rethinking yet again! I wonder if Rupe can chime on on this to confirm that..... The price is certainly desirable! Do you know if the mechanical lift pump will draw fuel through it when it's turned off? Or with this particular pump would a bypass be required?

And Starmilt.... I agree with what you said about the mickey mouse filter!

 

Its usually recommended to run the mechanical pump or the electric, not together.

I had that pump on my truck for about a week. It came on a truck I had bought when I needed a motor. The previous owner, a friend of mine, said it was 2 months old and worked great.

I will say that it worked great for about a week, then it left me sitting on the side of the road when it stopped moving fuel.

Thankfully I had put the mechanical pump on and had it ready to go.

 

The problem i see with them is they both have 1/8 npt fittings, so you are restricting a 3/8 line to the inside diameter to that of 1/8 inch pipe. Any pump you use if you plan to leave it on other than just priming the filter you will need to bypass the mechanical pump.

FordF250 if there was a possible performance gain with an electric pump of any kind.
Here's how some of us grizzled old timers think. when an electric pump fails it stops right where it is sometimes it will go a little farther when it cools but don't count on it.
Now usually when a mechanical pump fails it will usually drop a little pressure and get a little diesel in the oil which should be noticed a thousand miles or so before it completly fails. My son recently broke his pump off the block while on a four wheeling outing, a piece of wood jammed between the pump and the frame enabled him to make it 130 miles home.
You are probably never far from populated areas and parts I am sometimes in areas where a 2 to 4 thousand dollar wrecker bill is not uncommon. I also find myself in places where a 15 or20 mile walk would be required to MAYBE see another person to get a ride from. And a cell phone is just added weight in these areas. So what I am saying is something that will work for you may not be a sensible option for everybody.
You ask yesterday why I would waste money on a D60 upgrade. I have waded a few miles before in deep snow to get out of the mountains in uncomfotable temps because of a busted front end, so to me 1500 for a D60 makes more sense than an 80 dollar pump that has no peformance benifits.

 

Holy Crap!! thats the pump I just put on,of course I aint fixed yet,but it seems to be working when I turn the key

 

That is exactly why I posted my idea..... I didn't think of the restriction..... Something more to think about!

 

Starmilt: "Any pump you use if you plan to leave it on other than just priming the filter you will need to bypass the mechanical pump."

I understand this and if I descibe to install an electric pump it will not be to replace the mechanical lift pump. I just want to ensure that I have a way to prime the system if an air instrusion problem presents itself (other than a whole lot of cranking) That being said, I am leaning toward the continuous-duty Walbro pump listed above and wire it up to a normally open switch in the cab. Turn it on momentraitlly when required (for the length of time the 'wait to start' light is on for example) then turn it off when the engine is started and allow the mechanical pump do it's job.

The statement quoted above brings up another question though: Not taking into consideration the restriction from routing a 3/8" line into a 1/8" inlet/outlet pump, If I install the electric boost pump inline on the frame rail (for use during priming and as a security blanket for air intrusion problems) Will it be able to provide positive fuel pressure THROUGH the mechanical pump?

 

Well it says no check valve so I assume it is a flow through design. lol I have assumed to much before though. I would still worry about the mechanical pump pulling enough fuel through an 1/8 pipe fitting. But I may be all wrong in my thinking there.

 

I agree that the 1/8" NPT fitting is a concern.... however, not taking into consideration the restriction from routing a 3/8" line into a 1/8" inlet/outlet pump, If I install the electric boost pump inline on the frame rail (for use during priming and as a security blanket for air intrusion problems) Will it be able to provide positive fuel pressure to the injection pump THROUGH the mechanical lift pump?

 

Ok now I understand DUH the lights on now. I think so but am not 100% sure. I would say yes because. I had one on one of the first chevy diesels because the type and location of the filter on them it was impossible to prefill the filter and those starters were only good for one filter change. I have known ford guys that ran these for hotshot rigs when new put a boat bulb in the fuel line to prime them with and they worked. So yea it will work.

 

Now that we're on the same page... that's great to hear! So now I just need to sort out that 3/8" to 1/8" restriction thing and I can rig myself up an electric boost pump!

 

I wonder why the lift pumps don't have a manual primer lever like many pieces of heavy equipment do? Would be so much simpler changing filters etc if they did.