ok be honest. how far and what can u do to your pump before u start taking life away, i have heard from allot of folks that the "pumps are maxed out as they are" and if u do anything to them u will just tear them up. and how can u adjust your timing and how far is conservative. will i notice power from the timing change.

 

i dont think you get more power but better fuel milage due to the timing of the fuel burn in the combustian chamber. thus being more efficient, as for pump life. everyone seems to do it and it look sto be working great. but i hardly drive my truck but once a week and 3 times a month in the warm season towing so i dont total up miles fast. when i bought my truck at 158k miles i put a new injection pump on it jus tto have a starting base. plus i messed the old one up.

jiMMy

 

my truck has 250 k on it the pump was turned up at 50 K +- and its still going i dont know how long the pumps will run but i think i got my moneys worth

 

These pumps are certainly not maxed out from the factory...just look at the numbers some guys get when all they do is tweak the pump a bit.....
A stock VE (new) will generally produce about 75-80cc's of fuel.
With a tad of tweaking you can easily reach 100 - 110cc's....and that's without making any changes to hard parts....it's also no were near the upper limits of the pump if you want to "go for it" so to speak...

On the 'excessive wear" issue...a well known enthusiast and knowledgeable fellow in this sport has said that when you adjust the pump to the point were your idle rises noticably ( I assume this meant a couple hundred RPM) you are now into the area of increased pump wear which may eventually result in earlier (than normal) failure.
This is one reason why we should all use a good additive in our fuel no matter what time of year it is.
Our pumps are lubed and cooled by fuel only, since we are going into the low sulphur/no sulphur fuels, we really could use the additves to improve lubricity, detergent and cetane improvement. It's my opinion that this will help to counter some of the increased wear and tear we inflict on our pumps by tweaking them up.....

JMO mind you...

pb....

 

Speaking of fuel lubricity, I've heard other mechanics say you should add around
half a litre of motor oil or ATF in the fuel tank per fill up. Will this work or would the commercially prepared additives be better.
Cheers, Jim

 

I have a 81 VW rabbit diesel I beat around in once in a while with 380000 miles every 3rd tank full I put in a quart of ATF and every fuel filter change I fill the filter with ATF Let me tell ya it works great it lubes the pump and cleans the injectors also idles smoother.

 

Nobody's addressed to timing question, so I'll hit that one. On a 1st gen, all you have to do is rotate the pump towards the engine. If there isn't a match mark on the pump and timing case, make one. Pull the banjo bolt out of the AFC tube on the top of the bump. Loosen the 3 nuts that hold the pump to the timing case - the bottom one is a bear, you need an "S" or "U" shaped wrench. Harbor Freight sells an "S" set for $10 that includes a wrench that works well. There's one more bolt holding the pump to a bracket at the rear, loosen that and you should be able to rotate the pump. Turn it until your match marks are 1/8" apart and lock everything down.

 

I concur timing would help. The factory has it timed for emissions and warranty issues. Improving the timing, I imagine would help the pump not work so hard to get the fuel into a compressed area. Also, I wouldn't turn the pump to max without injectors to releave some of the increased pressure. For most with components closer to stock, injectors are usually enuff to give you power and not too much unused fuel. They get injectors and retard the fuel screw. When you get the bigger turbos, and other mods, then you can start maxing out the pump after you already get bigger injectors. Most of what I've learned is from guys like Bushy, above. If he doesn't know, he has immediate access to the guys who do. Dave seems to have his act together about the pumps a bit too. AND, I look forward to all his turbo experimenting he's been doing. Nascar Mark and Monty don't seem to post so often these days, but that's because they're busy doing big things with these trucks as well and are full of good info. Welcome aboard, take some time and research this forum and you'll have a new relationship with your truck. You get some time, go visit the "OTHER" thread in the menu and hang out there too. lot's of good guys and info.
Don

 

I strongly suggest you DO NOT add engine oil or ATF...neither was formulated or meant to be burnt as an additive. You'll end up with lots of contamination for your effort.
I know that the additives we'd like to use can be a tad pricey for the amount you get but it IS worth the cost....heck, you can double dose the tank on the first go, then, after that you can fall back to the regular "recommended" dose, or, you can go to "every second tank". Even that is better than nothing.
In my case I can tell within about 1/4 tank that I have no additive in the fuel, particularly in the winter when the fuel is a poorer grade.

pb.....

 

thanks for all the info. u guys are great help. for now i plan on getting a bigger turbo, advance timing, intercooling. and see where i am at. then i am going to start messing with injectors and fuel. (i want to keep fuel mileage up). what kind of additive do u recommend

 

Stanadyne, Howe's, and Power Service are all popular and well respected.

 

I 50-50 mix Power Service and Marvel Mystery Oil. I put in about a 1/2 cup of the mix when I fuel. Seems to work well, no fuel gelling and good performance. I turned the power screw 1 1/2 turns at 125,000 miles and the pump is still going strong at 181,000 miles. I had to replace a faulty head gasket this year, static coolant leak just below the thermostat housing after shutdown. When the mechanic had the head off, he commented how good the cylinders and combuston chambers looked, clean and no deposits. He said whatever I'm doing, keep doing it!

Mike

 

Power Service and Marvel mystery Oil each have any ingredient that when mixed together, create a caustic/ cyanide like bi-product that'll eat gaskets, probably etched the metal surfaces to appear clean and pollished. I'd worry about the rings sealing now.




Just kidding..... couldn't resist.

 

When you say turn the pump to max, are you just talking about moving it the 1/8 inch as max? Or the other two fuel adjustments. I turned both mine up a tad more last week and I think I may have lost a few lbs of boost.I was seeing 23. Havent got an accurate check yet. I havent advanced the pump timing yet but I am considering it. (I bought the Haarbor Freight wrench set)

 

The way I understand it, the further you turn the fuel screw past the lock collar, it is more strain on the pump, until you get bigger injectors to relieve the pressure. It'll take some turning, but it's gamble when you go overboard. I have an earlier engine with larger injector bodies, so when I took it past the lock collar, I wasn't super worried. I don't billow smoke where I'm set unless I stomp on it. I'll take it further when I get some POD's. When you appraoch max, or screw it in all the way, another side effect can be a runaway engine. Until you get mods, just turn it up til you start smoking good. You'll stop turning before you reach the runaway zone. You still need a pyro it appears, before you should be turning up the fuel anyway. Be mindful of your drivetrain too. There's a reason the factory detuned these engines, and everybody gets hooked on the tuning. I already went through a tranny and rear end with just the pump turned some.