Re-fitted my Bosch 044 fuel pump

[JimX]

I think that I am now the pump meister!

I pulled it out again to see if I could hook up a longer bit of hose to pick up the fuel from lower. I couldn't find any shops with half inch fuel hose (Earl's has it, but they are closed on Sundays) so I had another look at the way it was mounted.

I took the lower hose off and tried mounting the pump around 4-5cm lower on the bracket. This fit perfectly when I put it back in the tank/bracket slot, with the bottom tip of the pump almost touching the fuel tank as it narrows towards the front. So I bent the tip of the bracket up to give it some vertical support (it had none before), put the hose and sock back on in a foward-left direction and put the bracket with pump attached back in.

Not only did it all still fit, but I was actually able to shove the bracket further down into the slot due to reasons unknown (more muscle?). Originally I had it in about halfway, but now it's about 3/4 or 5/6 the way in and much more secure.

If anyone has any questions about fitting their Bosch pump, let me know and I'll do my best to answer. I reckon it's something everyone can do at home in a couple of hours with standard tools. ie, pliers, heavy duty side cutters or hacksaw, simple electrical stuff (solder, iron, terminals etc), screwdrivers, hammer and socket extension (to get lid off), etc.

The results of refitting are: Fuel being picked up from much lower now (so it should run out of fuel much later than before, which was at around 8 litres left previous). Fuel pump noise is a little more but more consistent, because it's now touching the side of the tank, but not moving around as much (if at all). Previously it would kind of "groan" when low on fuel, now it just whines at the same pitch empty or full, except when idling (very quiet).

Did we actually cover the full installation procedure in the other thread about this a few months ago? If not I might do a complete write-up. If Tony wants me to do his I'll even be able to take photos (I ain't getting my pump out again just to take photos).

[inark]

wouldnt it be a bad thing that it reaches all the way to the bottom as it would pick up all the gunk at the bottom of the tank?

[JimX]

I've had a look with my Maglite and there is no gunk at the bottom of my tank. And as far as I know the factory pump doesn't run you out of fuel @ 56-57 litres as my first Bosch fitting did. I also had surge problems going around fast corners when low on fuel (well, with ~8 litres left?) with my first fitment which was how I could tell I was running out of fuel in the first place (maybe this is a good thing?!)

The sock and filter are there to filter out gunk. Anything finer than what gets through those shouldn't be enough to completely block up an injector. Sure it will slowly clog them up over time, but that's what injector cleaning is for. Every car needs it at some point.

[Brody]

hammers, hacksaws, solder irons, fuel tanks, yay!

[JimX]

Originally posted by Brody

hammers, hacksaws, solder irons, fuel tanks, yay!

I don't get what you're implying :confused:

[predator]

yup... No gunk at bottom of my tank when i was in there.. its pretty damn clean in there.

Think hes trying to imply it could be dangerous if these items were applied non-judiciously.. but its a safe job unless you do something obviously stupid.

[JimX]

Well of course Let me explain a bit better for the people that don't understand what goes on then.

The hammer (actually rubber mallet for me) and socket extension is used to bash the plastic cap off the top of the tank. From there, you remove the bracket carefully with your hands (so your tank needs to be nearly empty before you do this otherwise you have to dip your hands in petrol - not good!!!) with the pump attached.

You then remove the pump from the bracket, including undoing the wiring connectors with a small spanner. You then take the bracket over to your workbench and work on it with your cutters/hacksaw - this work takes place nowhere near the car! Unless you're stupid

The soldering I think might have to be done in the boot - I can't remember anymore. Either way you're working with a nearly empty tank of fuel. As long as you don't dip your iron in the tank you'll be fine, it's not hot enough to set the fumes off by a long shot. You'd have more problems with your mobile phone igniting it (so keep it well away during this).

Edit: I do realise that even a couple of litres of petrol igniting in your face is still going to cause you some serious grief. But it's still much less of a risk than a full tank. Just be sensible about it and it won't ignite anyway. Premium unleaded is pretty hard to set off.