What a very professional video, came across you by accident looking for something else. As a TH-cam channel classic car restorer it was an absolute pleasure watching you rebuild the pump well done.
Coming from you Digger, I take that as a real compliment. I have watched your channel with interest over the years working on the theory that you can always learn something. Let's face it, that's what makes life interesting. There are some twenty other videos on my channel, with a variety of subjects. Just type in my name Tony Hillyard in the search box at the top of the TH-cam page and you will go straight there. All the best, Tony
Thanks very much for taking the time to make this video Tony. My daughter and I have just finished rebuilding the pump on our 1949 Land Rover. It was a great moment when the pump started clicking away happily when we'd finished. As you say much easier to follow a video than printed instructions. Another small step on our restoration journey completed! Cheers, Mark
Hi Tony, the first production Land Rover was JUE 477 (freshly restored and owned by Jim Ratcliffe of Ineos Grenadier fame). That vehicle was built mid July 1948 so ours is just within the first year. I believe the first series 2s were made in 1958. For anyone remotely interested in Land Rovers the JUE 477 restoration is the subject of a lovely new book by Martin Port.
Thank you so much for a perfect video of the process! I just rebuilt the pump from my 50 MG TD. The aluminum plate was stamped 50 19 I assume that means it's the original pump for the car. I bought a kit with all the bits... diaphragm, points, check valves and the fiber washers... it also included a new varistor to save the ponts. It also contained the 11 "washers" that go around the diaphragm. The new ones are brass, the original ones are aluminium. The kit included the "funnel" the check valve sits in, it was brass, the original was aluminum. I actually did not have to go back in and unscrew the diaphragm a hole or two. I have to look in my garage, I think I tried to rebuild a pump 20+ years ago and it didn't work. I had given up and bought a new one... I'll bet there is a spare in my garage with new points and diaphragm that just needs to be adjusted....
Hi Tony, this is a fantastic video, thanks a lot, this helped a lot and is much better than the fitting instructions. Thanks for taking the time to provide this to the public.
I'm glad it helped Peter. It's nice to be able to spread your knowledge around a bit. In my opinion the only way to learn how to do something is for someone else to show you. Instructions are all very well but they are usually written by someone that has little experience in actually doing the job.
Many thanks Tony for this very clear video. Very useful for the adjustment of diaphragm and contact which are not often clear in the notice joined. Cheers Bruno V ( from France )
Hello Bruno, can you explain a little further what you mean by the condensator? This pump was from my 1931 Riley Nine. Very basic and very simple, no additional fancy electronic gadgets. I know that some later pumps fitted to "more modern cars" had all sorts of "necessary" extra bits fitted. Manufacturers do like to complicate things if they can. Je suis content que vous ayez trouvé ma vidéo utile.
Great video - just a word of advice. I have just rebuilt my fuel pump using this video as a reference and followed the instructions to use the plastic spacer around the diaphragm not the brass spacers in the kit. However, when installed on the car, the pump wouldn’t function and it turned out the the plastic spacer was slightly larger than the brass spacers and was jamming up the diaphragm. I guess su must have changed the design slightly. I replaced with brass and it it worked perfectly. Moral - change the spacer to the one in the kit!!
You make a very good point Richard. I too have had problems over the years with SU replacement parts. Replacement diaphragms too stiff to be usable, when the electronic points were launched I bought a set for a Daimler and had to send them back as there was a manufacturing error. I replaced them with original style contact points. A few years ago, for another project, I ordered a pair of brand new SU carbs. The delivery time was very long and when they finally arrived they had blow holes in the castings. I had to accept these carbs as this project had a time limit. Originally, before the SU company was sold, they obviously had either in-house production or well established sub-contractors for parts manufacturing. The production tolerances were well known and understood. When the SU company name was purchased by Burlen Fuel Systems there would have naturally been some major changes in quality and sub-contractors. We all have to accept that we are now buying reproduction parts so the fit and quality is bound to vary. I'm glad you got your pump working. The lesson seems to be, buy the replacement parts from Burlen Fuel Systems but remember we all have to tinker around with these products to make them work. They are certainly not ready to go out of the box.
very useful Tony, I am glad I bought a replacement pump!my only observation is that you did not return to your scribed marks.If the Kit is sensibly priced I will rebuild my SU, however my MGB Roadster is not A1 so not having the OE pump is hardly an issue, well to me that is!
I'm glad the video was of help to you. That is what TH-cam is all about, helping each other. TH-cam is always my first port of call when I need to know anything.
@@cobar5342 I use a spare 12v battery below the workbench. I made up a couple of thin insulated cables with small crocodile clips on each end. Drilled a small hole in the top of each 12v battery terminal and screwed a self tapping screw into each hole. That way it is possible to clip the small crocodile clips onto the large battery terminals. So you have a 12v power source available when you want to test your rebuilt SU fuel pump. In the past I tried using jumper leads for testing but that was so clumsy and always ended is sparks everywhere!!! Good luck.
Good Morning Howard. Thanks for that. The owners of the SU brand and several other makes of carbs is burlen.co.uk They do have importers in various countries around the world but this is where it all happens. They are sometimes a bit slow to reply to emails. Good luck with your SU pump rebuild. I now have a 1952 MG TD, so we are all fans of British classic cars.
Good Morning Michael, the green wire came in the kit from Burlen Fuel Systems. It was not required on this particular model of SU pump. There are quite few different models of SU pumps, so Burlen seem to provide a general selection of some parts.
@@Qspecialman Fair enough. I should read my comments before I post. I noticed quite a bit of arcing at the points, does that model not have anything to quench the arcing? I have had to fit diode across the coil in mine.
I would be happy to do that William, but I don't have either to hand. If I find any I will certainly do that. They are not difficult to rebuild and are very similar in their construction.
my 56 MGA 1500 just died and i'm here tryinmg to figure it out if i can do it myself or get a mechanic, does this tutorial aplly to the original pump ? i know i have the original one, but i know nothing about it
This video can show you how to do a repair Miguel, but only you know if you have the confidence to do it. It sounds like you need to talk to a competent mechanic.
It's a good idea Dennis. I have found that some of the new diaphragms are so stiff they don't work very, if at all. In the past I always keep the old diaphragm handy. If you rebuild the pump and it it still does not work well, pop the old diaphragm back in and see if it works then. If the pump does work you have a dodgy new diaphragm. If you go to the SU company website www.burlen.co.uk - Burlen Fuel Systems, own the SU brand and production now, you might find the way to flex the diaphragm. If not send them an email -via their website or their phone number is 00 44 (0) 1722 334221 Good luck - Tony
The points based SU electric fuel pumps are dual polarity, so you don't have to change anything. The electronic pumps (including the converted ones) that do not have points are polarity sensitive, so you would have to buy the correct polarity pump. I hope the electronic conversion kits are better these days as when they first became available they had some production issues. If you stick to the old style points they are repairable at the side of the road. Plus they last for years and years. I hope that helps.
There were a whole range of cars including many Jaguars and some Land Rovers. For a complete list I suggest you contact the now owners of SU products - Burlen Fuel Systems. Google then and you will get their contact details.
David, it is possible, if you have access or can borrow another pump give that a try. I am assuming your car (whatever it is) has a carb or carbs. I would check the mixture first before I looked too far into other possibilities. Good luck and let me know how you get on.
@@Qspecialman Many thanks for taking the time to reply Tony. Just been looking at it and assumed it was an SU pump but is in fact a Hardi which will be fairly new as almost certainly put on by previous owner when he did the restoration a few years ago. Mixture is fine and carb seems to be working correctly. Looking at ignition system now. Cheers.
@@DavidUKesb Could well be ignition related. I had a similar problem recently with my Porsche 914. It turned out that a previous owner had fitted those horrible carbon filled HT leads. They were breaking down, plus there was some carbon dust on the outside of the cable. All became clear when in a darkened garage, with the garage lights off it looked like a firework display. Hope you find the problem.
@@Qspecialman Interesting. I'll check my HT leads as these were sourced by previous owner. Is there any way to identify whether they are carbon filled.....would it definitely say so on the leads themselves?
@@DavidUKesb Take a look at the end of the HT cable. If you can see copper wire clamped to the end cap, you are OK. If the inner of the cable does not appear to be metal/copper you might well have carbon filled HT cable. Nasty unpredictable stuff. It is rare to see for any useful information to be printed on the outside.
Good morning Adrian, I agree, the audio is poor. But as I have funded all my twenty odd videos on TH-cam myself, to share my knowledge with others so they can take advantage of this for free, the cost of good quality audio equipmet is out of the question at the moment. If you would like to offer some good quality sound equipment or funds to help my channel that would be a really helpful contribution on your part.
Good morning Charles, I have just tried the video and the sound works fine for me. Perhaps someone has clicked on your computer mute button (third from the left at the bottom of the TH-cam screen) or you have a problem with your computer. Good luck, Tony
What a very professional video, came across you by accident looking for something else. As a TH-cam channel classic car restorer it was an absolute pleasure watching you rebuild the pump well done.
Coming from you Digger, I take that as a real compliment. I have watched your channel with interest over the years working on the theory that you can always learn something. Let's face it, that's what makes life interesting.
There are some twenty other videos on my channel, with a variety of subjects. Just type in my name Tony Hillyard in the search box at the top of the TH-cam page and you will go straight there. All the best, Tony
@@Qspecialman subscribed to your channel I will really look forward to going through them.
The perfect video-guide for a complete rebuild. Thanks a million!
Thanks very much for taking the time to make this video Tony. My daughter and I have just finished rebuilding the pump on our 1949 Land Rover. It was a great moment when the pump started clicking away happily when we'd finished. As you say much easier to follow a video than printed instructions. Another small step on our restoration journey completed! Cheers, Mark
As you say Mark, it's not always easy to follow written instructions. Your 1949 Land Rover is that a late series 1 or an early series 2?
Hi Tony, the first production Land Rover was JUE 477 (freshly restored and owned by Jim Ratcliffe of Ineos Grenadier fame). That vehicle was built mid July 1948 so ours is just within the first year. I believe the first series 2s were made in 1958. For anyone remotely interested in Land Rovers the JUE 477 restoration is the subject of a lovely new book by Martin Port.
A thousand thank you's Tony for this excellent tutorial. The SU pump in my 1953 TD lives on!!
Thank you so much for a perfect video of the process! I just rebuilt the pump from my 50 MG TD. The aluminum plate was stamped 50 19 I assume that means it's the original pump for the car. I bought a kit with all the bits... diaphragm, points, check valves and the fiber washers... it also included a new varistor to save the ponts. It also contained the 11 "washers" that go around the diaphragm. The new ones are brass, the original ones are aluminium. The kit included the "funnel" the check valve sits in, it was brass, the original was aluminum. I actually did not have to go back in and unscrew the diaphragm a hole or two. I have to look in my garage, I think I tried to rebuild a pump 20+ years ago and it didn't work. I had given up and bought a new one... I'll bet there is a spare in my garage with new points and diaphragm that just needs to be adjusted....
Hi Tony, this is a fantastic video, thanks a lot, this helped a lot and is much better than the fitting instructions. Thanks for taking the time to provide this to the public.
I'm glad it helped Peter. It's nice to be able to spread your knowledge around a bit. In my opinion the only way to learn how to do something is for someone else to show you. Instructions are all very well but they are usually written by someone that has little experience in actually doing the job.
Many thanks Tony for this very clear video. Very useful for the adjustment of diaphragm and contact which are not often clear in the notice joined. Cheers Bruno V ( from France )
Very clear and helpful, thanks! Just about to rebuild the pump on my P Type MG, plus a spare for the tool bag!
I'm glad it was useful Andy. I had a TA Q Type that I fitted with a supercharger - see one of my other videos. Now I have an MG TD. Great fun.
Excellent video, Tony! Via the video I rebuilt my SU pump and it took off running perfectly with no fuss at all.
I'm so glad it was useful to you. It makes the time and cost making videos for TH-cam worthwhile.
Great video. Wanted to rebuild my Rover P4 fuel pump and didn't know where to get started. Now I do! Thanks
Just pulled my 75 MGB (US) out of the barn to get it running again. Great video of the fuel pump rebuild. Thank you.
Perfect thank you !
Just resurrected not one but two SUs with tired points thanks to your clear demo..
I'm glad you found the SU pump video useful Tim. Have a good Christmas - Tony
Thanks Tony, I just rebuilt mine for my 78 MGB and it is working great. Brilliant video.
i have to do this on my 77 MGB this coming week. Was it hard?
Very interesting Tony, nice to see the overhaul done on camera. This will be very useful, thanks👍
I'm glad you found it useful Monty. As you say, there is nothing like watching someone actually do a repair.
That was fantastic
Great video
Nice video with clear instructions,many thanks
Nice clear video Tony, thank you very much.
I hope you found it useful Mick. All the best, Tony
I'm glad you found the video helpful Ane. Now you can enjoy your P4, a nice car.
Hello Bruno, can you explain a little further what you mean by the condensator? This pump was from my 1931 Riley Nine. Very basic and very simple, no additional fancy electronic gadgets. I know that some later pumps fitted to "more modern cars" had all sorts of "necessary" extra bits fitted. Manufacturers do like to complicate things if they can. Je suis content que vous ayez trouvé ma vidéo utile.
Great video - just a word of advice. I have just rebuilt my fuel pump using this video as a reference and followed the instructions to use the plastic spacer around the diaphragm not the brass spacers in the kit. However, when installed on the car, the pump wouldn’t function and it turned out the the plastic spacer was slightly larger than the brass spacers and was jamming up the diaphragm. I guess su must have changed the design slightly. I replaced with brass and it it worked perfectly. Moral - change the spacer to the one in the kit!!
You make a very good point Richard. I too have had problems over the years with SU replacement parts. Replacement diaphragms too stiff to be usable, when the electronic points were launched I bought a set for a Daimler and had to send them back as there was a manufacturing error. I replaced them with original style contact points.
A few years ago, for another project, I ordered a pair of brand new SU carbs. The delivery time was very long and when they finally arrived they had blow holes in the castings. I had to accept these carbs as this project had a time limit.
Originally, before the SU company was sold, they obviously had either in-house production or well established sub-contractors for parts manufacturing. The production tolerances were well known and understood.
When the SU company name was purchased by Burlen Fuel Systems there would have naturally been some major changes in quality and sub-contractors.
We all have to accept that we are now buying reproduction parts so the fit and quality is bound to vary.
I'm glad you got your pump working. The lesson seems to be, buy the replacement parts from Burlen Fuel Systems but remember we all have to tinker around with these products to make them work. They are certainly not ready to go out of the box.
Great job
very useful Tony, I am glad I bought a replacement pump!my only observation is that you did not return to your scribed marks.If the Kit is sensibly priced I will rebuild my SU, however my MGB Roadster is not A1 so not having the OE pump is hardly an issue, well to me that is!
About to rebuild a s3 landrover pump from 1974, hopefully I get it right....
Great video Tony, very clear, Thanks
I'm glad it was useful, that is what TH-cam is all about.
Brilliant video Tony...
Thank you Gary.
Thank you for a superb video. It has been a great help to me
I'm glad the video was of help to you. That is what TH-cam is all about, helping each other. TH-cam is always my first port of call when I need to know anything.
@@Qspecialman Just one thing Tony.. what did you use as a voltage source for the test?
@@cobar5342 I use a spare 12v battery below the workbench. I made up a couple of thin insulated cables with small crocodile clips on each end. Drilled a small hole in the top of each 12v battery terminal and screwed a self tapping screw into each hole. That way it is possible to clip the small crocodile clips onto the large battery terminals.
So you have a 12v power source available when you want to test your rebuilt SU fuel pump. In the past I tried using jumper leads for testing but that was so clumsy and always ended is sparks everywhere!!!
Good luck.
Tank you my friend.
excellent tutorial
Very nice video. Could you please share a link yo the site where I can buy the kit?
Hi Tony, , in addition to my previous comment I have a question . Why you are not using the condensator in your "new" pump ? Thank for all. Bruno V
Any tips why once set up and assembled pump has good power on pressure side but if block vacuum side she stalls out.
Tony, excellent video! Thanks for sharing. I have a 1957 MGA, any idea where I can purchase a rebuild kit for my SU pump?
Good Morning Howard. Thanks for that. The owners of the SU brand and several other makes of carbs is burlen.co.uk They do have importers in various countries around the world but this is where it all happens. They are sometimes a bit slow to reply to emails. Good luck with your SU pump rebuild. I now have a 1952 MG TD, so we are all fans of British classic cars.
Liked the video Tony.....you don't mention the wire left on the bench. The green one. Whats that one for?
Good Morning Michael, the green wire came in the kit from Burlen Fuel Systems. It was not required on this particular model of SU pump. There are quite few different models of SU pumps, so Burlen seem to provide a general selection of some parts.
its a diode with a suitable reverse breakdown voltage to protect the points from arcing. they used to use condensers for this.@@Qspecialman
thanks. do you know off any membrane that can tolerate ethanol?
Sorry, I have never looked into that. Methanol is nasty stuff, it attacks everything.
Thank you. very helpful, only, no ac quwnching?
Thank you for your comment Kimberly, I speak a few languages but could you translate "no ac quwnching" for me?
@@Qspecialman Fair enough. I should read my comments before I post. I noticed quite a bit of arcing at the points, does that model not have anything to quench the arcing? I have had to fit diode across the coil in mine.
Could you please do a similar vid for rebuild/recon a BMC dynamo? And the Starter.
I would be happy to do that William, but I don't have either to hand. If I find any I will certainly do that. They are not difficult to rebuild and are very similar in their construction.
my 56 MGA 1500 just died and i'm here tryinmg to figure it out if i can do it myself or get a mechanic, does this tutorial aplly to the original pump ? i know i have the original one, but i know nothing about it
This video can show you how to do a repair Miguel, but only you know if you have the confidence to do it. It sounds like you need to talk to a competent mechanic.
Do you need too flex the diaphram before tightening the valve block screws?
It's a good idea Dennis. I have found that some of the new diaphragms are so stiff they don't work very, if at all. In the past I always keep the old diaphragm handy. If you rebuild the pump and it it still does not work well, pop the old diaphragm back in and see if it works then. If the pump does work you have a dodgy new diaphragm. If you go to the SU company website www.burlen.co.uk - Burlen Fuel Systems, own the SU brand and production now, you might find the way to flex the diaphragm. If not send them an email -via their website or their phone number is 00 44 (0) 1722 334221
Good luck - Tony
Question: my Healey is a positive ground. Do I need to reverse the wires under the cap?
The points based SU electric fuel pumps are dual polarity, so you don't have to change anything. The electronic pumps (including the converted ones) that do not have points are polarity sensitive, so you would have to buy the correct polarity pump.
I hope the electronic conversion kits are better these days as when they first became available they had some production issues. If you stick to the old style points they are repairable at the side of the road. Plus they last for years and years.
I hope that helps.
@@Qspecialman Thanks much Tony!
What were the later cars these SU were fitted to ?
There were a whole range of cars including many Jaguars and some Land Rovers. For a complete list I suggest you contact the now owners of SU products - Burlen Fuel Systems. Google then and you will get their contact details.
@@tonyhillyard7163 Great thanks.....looking at using them for projects and grabbing a couple from the wrecking yards
Hi Tony. Could a 'pulsing'/slight surging at higher RPM mean a defective SU fuel pump? Thanks
David, it is possible, if you have access or can borrow another pump give that a try. I am assuming your car (whatever it is) has a carb or carbs. I would check the mixture first before I looked too far into other possibilities. Good luck and let me know how you get on.
@@Qspecialman Many thanks for taking the time to reply Tony. Just been looking at it and assumed it was an SU pump but is in fact a Hardi which will be fairly new as almost certainly put on by previous owner when he did the restoration a few years ago. Mixture is fine and carb seems to be working correctly. Looking at ignition system now. Cheers.
@@DavidUKesb Could well be ignition related. I had a similar problem recently with my Porsche 914. It turned out that a previous owner had fitted those horrible carbon filled HT leads. They were breaking down, plus there was some carbon dust on the outside of the cable. All became clear when in a darkened garage, with the garage lights off it looked like a firework display.
Hope you find the problem.
@@Qspecialman Interesting. I'll check my HT leads as these were sourced by previous owner. Is there any way to identify whether they are carbon filled.....would it definitely say so on the leads themselves?
@@DavidUKesb Take a look at the end of the HT cable. If you can see copper wire clamped to the end cap, you are OK. If the inner of the cable does not appear to be metal/copper you might well have carbon filled HT cable. Nasty unpredictable stuff. It is rare to see for any useful information to be printed on the outside.
Great knowledge.
Horrible audio on this video.
Why is the audio going on/off.
SO distracting.
Good morning Adrian, I agree, the audio is poor. But as I have funded all my twenty odd videos on TH-cam myself, to share my knowledge with others so they can take advantage of this for free, the cost of good quality audio equipmet is out of the question at the moment.
If you would like to offer some good quality sound equipment or funds to help my channel that would be a really helpful contribution on your part.
Sound? What's wrong with the sound on this video? Everything is quiet & garbled.
Good morning Charles, I have just tried the video and the sound works fine for me. Perhaps someone has clicked on your computer mute button (third from the left at the bottom of the TH-cam screen) or you have a problem with your computer. Good luck, Tony