Triumph Repair: replacing fuel pump in a 77 Spitfire, spacer blocks, spitfire 1500

Question
The fuel pump has stopped working and I wanted to know the best procedure for removing the old pump and replacing with a new one. Are there any "make sure you do this" and or "never do that" I should be aware of. I have not had the car long and this is the first repair I have done on it. It is a 77 Spitfire 1500

Answer
Hi Jay,

jack the front of the car up so that fuel does not run out of the fuel line or if you have a rubber hose up front pinch the line off and remove the old pump and be careful to retain any spacer blocks that may be between the pump and the engine block.

Compare the new pump arm with the old pump arm because there are some companies supplying both short arm pumps (used when no spacer block is used) and long arm pumps where thick spacer blocks are used. Many car owners over the years change engines and pumps back and forth so you need to be aware of the differences in pump design.

When installing the new pump be careful to keep the pump in alignment as you install it so as not to let the arm slip off to one side of the cam it rides on when bolting it up. This will result in the destruction of the pump.

Use a fresh gasket on each side of the spacer when a spacer is used.

Howard