Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Maintenance & Servicing Fuel pump won't work

Hi Folks,

I have a bit of a problem. I need to go to a show next week and my '70 4/4 with a Ford cross flow engine won't start. I've had if in my shop for about 2 months doing detailing to the cockpit and engine compartment. I have it to the point where it can be started now. I went to start it and it just cranked over with no firing. I shot it with either and it fired and stopped. I removed the fuel line and there is no fuel coming out of the line to the carb. It would seem as if the fuel pump is not working. There is fuel in the glass about 3/4 full but nothing happens when I turn the key except that the engine turns over and with vigor. I think that this is a mechanical pump but I have no knowledge of what to do to get it working again. Seems to me as if the fact that since it sat without being run, that something is stuck. Any help would be appreciated. I need to get it on the road quickly to sort out other stuff that I 've done and plan on doing. To my way of thinking it should be nothing more that hitting it in the right spot with a hammer to get it unstuck!
Any fuel pump gurus out there that have had this problem and worked out a fix? I can't believe that the pump went south by just sitting idle.

Thanks in advance.

Mark

The 70s 4/4 had a relatively simple fuel system so diagnosis should be straightforward.

I would first check that all the unions on the fuel lines are tight and not pulling air. Then perhaps check the obvious items like the float chambers, the carb jets, and even the fuel in the tank.

Then I would rig up a temporary fuel feed from a separate container directly into the fuel chamber, if this enables the engine to fire up and continue to run , you know that the fault lies backward of the this.

Are you using fuel with ethanol in it? If so this can soften rubber and gasket material used in the 70s , and this can lead to leaks and blockages. Try looking at all the rubber components.

Now look at the pump itself , is it a diaphragm type (sorry I don't know) and if so check that there is no tear in it, if so it needs replacing.

If you access it easily , check that the fuel pick up tube in the tank has not picked up something which is causing a partial blockage. You can do this by blowing compressed air back through the line , but make sure that you vent the tank.

Whilst on vents , check that the petrol cap vent is not blocked.

Good luck

Okay, I must have tapped on the pump correctly so that it started to work. One problem solved, however, now when I turn the key it fires up and as soon as I release the key it dies. It is just as if I turned off the ignition switch to shut off the engine. To my knowledge, I haven't disturbed any of the wiring in the dash. Is there any way to hot wire this car so that I can at least drive it onto the show ground? Something in the wiring is causing the car to stop as soon as I release the key from the start position. Sadly, I'm not into the electrical side of things on cars. I could use some ideas.

"Whilst on vents , check that the petrol cap vent is not blocked.Whilst on vents , check that the petrol cap vent is not blocked."

Good Tip, This is the first and easiest thing to check, leave the cap off, if it runs, thats it… good luck

Ballast resistor, the engine runs when the starter solenoid is pulled in and then dies once the starter stops.
With the ignition switched on, check you have power into and out of the ballast and to the coil.
In doing so you will confirm the integrity (or lack of it) of the ignition switch and wiring run to the ballast resistor, the integrity of the resistor itself and finally the the wiring from the ballast to the coil.

Solved both problems now. I had removed the ammeter for cleaning. Turns out that you need it in the circuit to allow it to run. Simple solution but I'm loosing hair over all of the little items.

Make that the tachometer.