Well, I knew it was coming, but I'm not mad at all. The fuel pump currently in my car, lasted 20 years!!! That is a quality product without a doubt. Now I have to choose a new fuel pump. I'm wanting the very best plug and play drop in replacement that's available. The other big decision I have to make is, To trap door, or not to trap door! I don't have a lift available so this will be a ground attack. If anyone out there could lead me in the right direction on a quality fuel pump choice I would greatly appreciate it. Oh yeah, If there is anything else that you think I should replace while i'm in there please let me know, I've done a few in tank pumps in my day, but not one of these. The tear down, or cutting,, will begin tomorrow afternoon. Thanks for taking the time to read this post.

 

this is a no brainer.....racetronixs pump and hotwire kit....WS6 store is a sponsor and has all the tech support ya need.....i vote NOOOO to a trapdoor

also be sure to check the foam sleeve on the pump....mine was rotted out

 

Personally, I can't see any reason to NOT do the trap door, especially if you don't have access to a lift. It doesn't compromise structural integrity nor rigidity, it's never going to be visible under any circumstance (unless you don't want carpet installed in the hatch area), and sealing it is as easy as using a bead of silicone if you're worried about fumes (though the only potential fumes would be from the exhaust if you happen to have dumps at the axle, otherwise you shouldn't ever get raw gas fumes unless you don't get the assembly sealed properly in the tank). To me, this is no different than drilling access holes in the inner door structure to do a power window motor swap. And just to provide some perspective, I still believe in this method even as it applies to my 18k mile 97+ point show car.

As for pump selection, what is your power level and do you ever plan on increasing it further?

 

Do the trap door. Makes things very simple.
What year is your car?

Here is mine

 

Trap door, did mine in 2004, no hesitation to cut. In 2006 during a trip to Florida from Ohio, the pump started dying while exiting off I75. Made it running erratically/coasting to an empty lot. I had a spare pump along in the spare parts kit for travelling. 15 minutes and back on my way. Back at the motel, ordered another from Summit for delivery to the motel I was staying at. Didn't want to drive back to Ohio without one.

 

Thanks for the replies. As far as power, I'm gonna keep it as close to stock as possible. I'm a big fan of reliable. I'm definitely leaning towards the trap door method,, there's a lot of stuff between the ground and the gas tank that has to come off!! And I'm pretty sure the temperature will be about a thousand degrees again today. When I start cutting the trap door I'm thinking about starting the cut in the top right corner, "looking at the tank from the rear of the car" and make the right side vertical cut first. Before I start the horizontal cuts to the left I'm gonna go ahead and make an appointment for carpal tunnel surgery, then I'm gonna sacrifice a new pair of Mid West red handles to make it a little bit harder to chop through the fuel lines. Opps, I almost forgot the very first thing you have to do before every single in tank fuel pump removal ever, remove the 16 gallons of 93 that's in the tank!! It died about 1 mile past the shell station! I've always wondered what it's like to swap a fuel pump on an empty fuel tank, I heard it's nice. Well I guess I better get out here and git er done. Thanks again.

 

Been 16 years now with the trap door. I overcut mine to the up and left, those 2 steel line there caused a struggle to get the long pump assembly out, so I made that cut. I just used a street sign to cover it all, no sealing. Never had a problem with exhaust fumes, rain wetness, or road debris getting in.

 

Just an FYI to the OP: The two trap door pictures above show the proper cut location for a '98 car (which uses a different gas tank). The correct cut location for a '99-'02 car is slightly different (but a search should reveal some images of the '99+ setup for your review). Just wanted to point this out in case you weren't aware.

Yeah, it's not really much of an issue in that location/setting, but some folks with dumps at the axle have expressed a concern (not sure if it's ever actually been an issue for anyone though). Rope caulk would be another good option for an easily serviceable seal - if so desired.

If that's the case, I would just get a Delphi (they were the original equipment manufacturer) replacement module/assembly, assuming they are still producing one (I haven't needed to check on this in several years).

 

'98 and earlier - top picture
'99 and later - bottom

 

Get the trap door panel kit from Summit racing

 

Thank you for the heads up on the cutting location. Well I am officially a proud member of team trap door! It was a little easier to cut than I thought. I drilled a few holes in the bottom right hand corner to get my snips on the cut line and snipped away nice and easy. As soon as I had a big enough hole cut, I slid in some plastic strips I had laying around to protect the wires and hoses because they are very close to the bottom of the hump. Also like RPM mentioned, the exact location of the fuel pump varies between the different year models, some of the pictures and videos that I watched put the fuel pump location closer to the top of the hump when your looking in from the back of the car. Mine is 99 model with the plastic tank and the pump sits closer to the bottom of the hump, which is closer to you when standing behind the car. As far as the door is concerned, I'll probably just throw some safety edges on a piece of 032 aluminum with some duct sealer, that should be strong enough. I don't have any plans on power adders in the future, so I'm gonna go back with an OEM, AC Delco pump. After it's all said and done, I'm glad I went with the trap door method! Thanks everyone for your help.

Trap door for life!!

On a 99 T/A the pump sits closer to the bottom edge of the hump. your viewing the pump from the rear of the vehicle.

 

Those are some nice clean cuts you got there!

 

I would agree, duct sealer/HVAC tape is another good option for a sealer if desired.

The only caveat here is that a current "AC Delco" module could have been sourced from just about any supplier currently contracted by GM to produce these service replacements. The original assembly line piece was produced by Delphi, so if you can still get one directly from them (I was able to do this back in 2012, not sure if they are still making them) it's going to be the closest thing to true OEM quality.

 

Well, installed the new fuel pump and it's doing the same as before. Starts right up then immediately bogs for about a minute then dies.

 

Do our fuel pumps see/get full 12 volts for normal operation, a question to members.
When I did the trap door for a replacement pump, I installed a 'kill switch' as 'theft protection'. If I kill it while running, it'll very quickly die due to lack of fuel pressure. Try to restart while still 'killed' will crank but no fire due to no pressure.
If the pump sees full voltage (12) normally, can a switch with fuse be hot-wired from ignition run circuit (or even directly from a 12 volt source) as a test. The pump draws quite a bit of amperage I started out with 10/15 amp 12v switches and they eventually failed (overheating and internal failure). I got 50 amp 12 v switches from Summit and they've been fine.

 

Hey everyone here's an update on my car. It wasn't the fuel pump, or any of the parts that I fired out of my parts cannon. It was a tank of watered down gas! And by the time I figured it out, I hydro locked it. I'm pulling the motor now and it's going to the machine shop. Here's the # 2 plug

 

I'm still proud to be a part of team trap door!