FAQ: Fuel Pump - General Questions, Compatibility & Troubleshooting

Now there's some rust man.................

What's scary is how many of them are in that kind of shape. Keep this in mind, never get a fuel pump for these cars without getting a new lock ring.

AA wrote:

I feared that possibility. If your lock ring looked like this, what would you think?
I think the dealer would have told me I was up a creek and needed a new tank.

Sure would have been an easy sell for the dealer. So that is salvageable?

It turned out to be just fine underneath it all. I had to destroy the cam locking ring during removal, but like others have suggested, I used a shop vac to suck away the debris. That's about the only rust on the car, and I'm glad to see it gone.

Update: New pump solved the problem. I took a 700 mile round trip to western MI last week; the car drove with no issues. Have since put about 500 more miles on the car with no stalls. Glad that's out of the way - thanks again to everyone who helped me in identifying and fixing this problem.

I just had to replace the fuel pump in my 96 SC Riv. I'm technically the third owner, I've owned it since 2002. It's got 113,000 mi. Car was having starting problems and bogging out, just running rank. I said I thought the fuel pump was messing up. It was tested and had pressure. Had the Crank and cam sensors replaced and the car ran good for a little while then back to running like crap. Brought the car in to a different place for diagnostics and asked them to re-test the fuel pump and was told it was fine .Had a "defective" Crank Sensor replaced. Car started and ran, meh, like a normally aspirated 3800 but boggy. I was told that my supercharger was dead and I now had a "regular old Riviera". Now, I'm no mechanic but I knew that was bull crap, so I went back to my original mechanic and asked him to re-test the fuel pump AGAIN. Guess what? Intermittent failure, cutting out and dropping pressure.
Replaced the fuel pump with a new Delphi.

5mph-80mph in about 7 seconds. No bogging. I love this car.

I have a rough idle, and long start condition with my car. I think this may be because of the fuel ,pump being made for the N/A riviera and not the S/C where can I get a fuel pump that WILL work and how much does it cost?

I believe you can get the actual fuel pump on E Bay. You don't need to replace the whole module if your fuel gauge is working. That will cut down on the cost. This is the entire Module on E Bay.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Delphi-FG0031-Fuel-Pump-Module-Assembly-E3922M-/360343264747?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&fits=Year%3A1996|Make%3ABuick|Model%3ARiviera&vxp=mtr&hash=item53e621ddeb

That's a really good price. About a hundred dollars cheaper than Rock Auto.

My fuel gauge works, and very well. when it is on E it's COMPLETELY EMPTY LoL, found out the hard way.

Does anybody know the part number for just the pump?

dtrumbo wrote:

Does anybody know the part number for just the pump?

GM doesn't sell just the pump. Take a look at this. http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-FUEL-PUMP-STRAINER-KIT-GM-VEHICLES-VARIOUS-GA1000-/150723891168?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&fits=Year%3A1996|Model%3ARiviera&vxp=mtr&hash=item2317d80fe0

dtrumbo wrote:

My fuel gauge works, and very well. when it is on E it's COMPLETELY EMPTY LoL, found out the hard way.

Running the tank that low is a good way to kill any fuel pump. Surrounding gasoline is what cools the pump.

I did mine. There is an access panel in the trunk. If you have to do the sending unit then it's quite easy. If you have to do the whole pump, be very careful and have a shop vac handy. There was lot's of corrosion around the retainer ring that I had to chip off carefully with a jewelers screwdriver. I didn't expect the thing to pop up either when it finally broke free! Take a magnet and swirl slowly on the bottom of the tank while you have it open. You wont believe the crap that comes out! Not a fun job but at least you don't have to drop the tank.

dtrumbo wrote:

I have a rough idle, and long start condition with my car. I think this may be because of the fuel ,pump being made for the N/A riviera and not the S/C where can I get a fuel pump that WILL work and how much does it cost?

My long start issue was a bad FP regulator.

I was thinking that too... But the pump was just replaced, unless I get a pressure test done I won't know for sure if it's the ump or not

Where did you find these metal tabs? do they have a specific name and can they be bought at a local parts store?

Do you mean the locking ring, or the tabs on the tank itself? I bought a new locking ring at the local dealer parts counter for a good price.

My 95 has been taking longer to start after sitting and the pump is really whining which it never has. The performance and idle seem a little off too. I guess a pressure check is in order first.

I see some ACDelco, Delphi, and Airtex available online and was wondering if they are all of equivalent performance and reliability?

Rockauto has all three.


I have a Delphi at a local auto parts store here in town available, so that would be convenient if the Delphi is a good replacement?

Thanks,
Al

al_roethlisberger wrote:

I see some ACDelco, Delphi, and Airtex available online and was wondering if they are all of equivalent performance and reliability?

Rockauto has all three.


I have a Delphi at a local auto parts store here in town available, so that would be convenient if the Delphi is a good replacement?

Thanks,
Al

not to be a smart ass but,i see you have about ten threads goin,dont you know anything? get yourself a repair manual.

Easy on the newbie Robo! You know people get excited about these cars! Al, I think the Delphi unit will be fine. Maybe concentrate on one thing at a time, like getting her running. Did you confirm that the pump is bad? Before replacing ,test to be sure it is getting power if it is not running.

Also, a factory service manual is a must have if you plan on servicing her yourself.

robotennis61 wrote:

al_roethlisberger wrote:

I see some ACDelco, Delphi, and Airtex available online and was wondering if they are all of equivalent performance and reliability?

Rockauto has all three.


I have a Delphi at a local auto parts store here in town available, so that would be convenient if the Delphi is a good replacement?

Thanks,
Al

not to be a smart ass but,i see you have about ten threads goin,dont you know anything? get yourself a repair manual.

Well honestly, saying "not to be a smart ass" pretty much guarantees that someone is about to be....

If you don't want to read my posts, you certainly don't have to. But I'm not sure what the problem is with my asking questions, whether ten in a week, or ten in a day..... given that is what a forum like this is for after all. I've been reading about every FAQ and "write up" up to 1-2am every morning before I ask a question, so.....

...not to mention that some of the FAQs and "write ups" reference parts and URLs that are no longer available, or have dead photo links, many seeming to be most commonly in the 2007-ish time frame. So I definitely thought it good to ask about some of these topics for current info.


I will certainly get a service manual, and have done quite a bit of auto repair in the past. I even moderated the FAQ/"write up" forum for the Moto Guzzi V11 Lemans Forum for years. So yes I understand. However I've been trying to leverage the knowledge here to know what I'll need or was getting into before I bought the car, and as we've gone through the car today what we've discovered we are going to need. We want to get this car back on the road ASAP, so apologies for the number of posts, but I assure there will be more.

I'll put a meter on the fuel pump and verify power, but after putting in a new battery it definitely isn't spinning up.

Thanks,
Al

bigdave wrote:

Easy on the newbie Robo! You know people get excited about these cars! Al, I think the Delphi unit will be fine. Maybe concentrate on one thing at a time, like getting her running. Did you confirm that the pump is bad? Before replacing ,test to be sure it is getting power if it is not running.

Also, a factory service manual is a must have if you plan on servicing her yourself.

Thanks Dave, I'll check it out and definitely keep an eye out for a SM.

Is eBay the best place these days for a Service Manual?

Thanks,
Al

well not to be a smart ass but,man,youve done auto repairs in the past and moderated a Moto Guzzi forum?well thats all well and good.i understand your caution diving into a new car but youre questions border on "hey man,would you mind if i sent you my Riv via e-mail and have you repair it for me?please?" key fob questions? key that dropped into the ac duct questions? i mean,who has an answer for that one? get a fukin magnet! who wouldnt think of that!
dont exacerbate the mind of the members with frakin NOOB queeries!
Good God!

robotennis61 wrote:

well not to be a smart ass but,man,youve done auto repairs in the past and moderated a Moto Guzzi forum?well thats all well and good.i understand your caution diving into a new car but youre questions border on "hey man,would you mind if i sent you my Riv via e-mail and have you repair it for me?please?" key fob questions? key that dropped into the ac duct questions? i mean,who has an answer for that one? get a fukin magnet! who wouldnt think of that!
dont exacerbate the mind of the members with frakin NOOB queeries!
Good God!

No, I see no reason in reinventing wheels.

Why wouldn't I ask a question about repairing or improving a Riviera on a dedicated "performance" Riviera forum?


Again, if you don't want to read my post or help.... please feel free to ignore them.

Is this the typical welcome a new member receives, including profanity?


....and yes, "key fob" questions. I have three of the later versions lying around, so I can save quite a bit of money if I reuse them. So I thought I'd ask which type is compatible, especially if someone has tried to get the later versions to work with a 95. No worries if not, but why not see if someone has already given it a go or if there are any tricks to do so? Seems smart to me, and not for just this topic.


This was in fact the very type of questions that were encouraged on several technical vehicle forums I've participated in, or moderated. I can't tell you the number of "write ups" I've done. Do a search for "miata eyeball vents" for one example, or "V11 Lemans" hosted at Pashnit. So I get it.

But the more folks one can get to ask and answer questions, the more ideas are floated, the more value the forum has for its readers. More info and participation is good.

Want a forum to atrophy? ...then stifle communication. I wouldn't suggest that.

Take care.


Thanks,
Al