Budget fuel pump option?

[89Suburban]

^^^ THIS, except that the non-FF pump for this year has THREE fuel lines. FF pump is not interchangeable. The 4.8L fuel pump for that vehicle is the same as the one for the non-FF 5.3L.

Good for you for helping her out, @Caddylack!

EDIT: The non-FF pump uses an O-ring to seal; the FF pump has a much bulkier gasket to mate to the tank, and I think a different lock ring.

Out of my Tahoe generation experience zone, thanks for the save my man.

 

[MassHoe04]

I suppose I should have been more specific...

This thread is not about choosing between GM/Delco and the cheaper brands. I would agree with all of the posts on that topic.

I'm wondering if there are any pumps listed for other vehicles that would drop in. For example, on Rock Auto, if I switch from 4.8L to 5.3L, the price drops from $84 to $59 for the cheapest. I know you have to be careful on a flex fuel car, but couldn't I use the flex fuel pump on a 4.8? There are just so many LS-powered vehicles, and people use all sorts of pumps for LS swaps.

The problem actually turned out to not be the fuel pump. Fuel pressure was good, and I ended up realizing that my dumb ass forgot to plug the crank sensor back in when I did the starter. Random thought: Rigging the crank sensor to a switch might be a stealthy anti-theft tactic.

I appreciate the generosity towards my neighbor; that's really nice of you guys. She is a single mom, and her son just graduated from a really rough high school where a lot of kids don't graduate. She has worked a steady airport security job forever, but she is paying for the entire household by herself. She doesn't have much left over after bills.

What's really sad is that this woman has been taken advantage of really badly in the past by shady "mechanics"...

She had a problem with her Tahoe running rough and stalling out. She went to a local shop and they told her the throttle body was bad. She paid cash for a brand new GM throttle body + labor, the problem still wasn't fixed, and the shop ignored her. It only took me about 3 or 4 minutes to find the problem. I noticed there was electrical tape on the air intake, so I pulled it off. The bottom of the tube had a massive hole in it, that had just been taped with regular electrical tape. And this shop just sold her a brand new throttle body!!!

I've been doing my best to help her out and teach her what I can. She has been buying parts from Rock Auto and I have been installing them. So far it has been 4 shocks, 2 ignition coils, a starter, an air filter, and a coolant temp sensor. Up next is more coils, sway bar end links, and then pitman & idler arms.

Another example of the helpful and generous nature of so many members here on this forum!

You are a great neighbor and friend to be looking out for someone needing a helping hand to keep things together when they really need it.

You may not even realize how much your help, support and friendship might permanently change the life path for these other people.
You could be a real game changer in what happens to them in the future.

I am not judging anyone based on what they believe or do not believe, but I would say there is a special place for YOU in heaven or whatever other afterlife may exist.
I am sure everyone in your circle of friends and family can appreciate all you do, even f you don't know it.

 

[petethepug]

Parts Geek (Delphi, AC Delco & Hella aka: Continental/and Amazon (bosch) had the least expensive pumps for the 07-14 series.

These are all the companies that GM sources their OEM pumps from globally and then pays the to put their GM logo on the part and sometimes triple the price. DO NOT get any other brand or you’ll pay almost exactly when the generic warranty expires and (BAM) then again for labor.

Check out those two places for your earlier year truck and have a good Indi shop, preferably a diesel shop install it. It’s commonplace for them to drop a GM tank and no biggie. Non diesel shops will whine about it and probably charge double because they don’t like doing it.

 

[petethepug]

A quick look shows Parts Geek the least expensive and Amazon has the Delphi & Bosch for about $60 more. Verify you also get a new fuel level sender.

 

[Doubeleive]

for whatever it is worth to any future people in need of a oem fuel pump at likely the cheapest available cost is a "herko", they have a website and they sell on ebay as well
Herko makes nothing, they do however remarket oem equipment as the "herko brand" sometimes even in a herko box, might even have a herko marking on it, but if you look closer it is simply a oem part that has been relabeled, why they market it as such is probably for legal reasons is my best guess. they purchase excess inventory and over runs etc and resale it. they mostly sell ignition coils, injectors, and fuel pumps. it's all oem but they wont say it. so if you have time to order it instead of running down to the parts store you can save some money and get a new oem part.

 

[Rocket Man]

I suppose I should have been more specific...

This thread is not about choosing between GM/Delco and the cheaper brands. I would agree with all of the posts on that topic.

I'm wondering if there are any pumps listed for other vehicles that would drop in. For example, on Rock Auto, if I switch from 4.8L to 5.3L, the price drops from $84 to $59 for the cheapest. I know you have to be careful on a flex fuel car, but couldn't I use the flex fuel pump on a 4.8? There are just so many LS-powered vehicles, and people use all sorts of pumps for LS swaps.

The problem actually turned out to not be the fuel pump. Fuel pressure was good, and I ended up realizing that my dumb ass forgot to plug the crank sensor back in when I did the starter. Random thought: Rigging the crank sensor to a switch might be a stealthy anti-theft tactic.

I appreciate the generosity towards my neighbor; that's really nice of you guys. She is a single mom, and her son just graduated from a really rough high school where a lot of kids don't graduate. She has worked a steady airport security job forever, but she is paying for the entire household by herself. She doesn't have much left over after bills.

What's really sad is that this woman has been taken advantage of really badly in the past by shady "mechanics"...

She had a problem with her Tahoe running rough and stalling out. She went to a local shop and they told her the throttle body was bad. She paid cash for a brand new GM throttle body + labor, the problem still wasn't fixed, and the shop ignored her. It only took me about 3 or 4 minutes to find the problem. I noticed there was electrical tape on the air intake, so I pulled it off. The bottom of the tube had a massive hole in it, that had just been taped with regular electrical tape. And this shop just sold her a brand new throttle body!!!

I've been doing my best to help her out and teach her what I can. She has been buying parts from Rock Auto and I have been installing them. So far it has been 4 shocks, 2 ignition coils, a starter, an air filter, and a coolant temp sensor. Up next is more coils, sway bar end links, and then pitman & idler arms.

You’re a stand-up dude. My hat’s off to you.

 

[Rocket Man]

for whatever it is worth to any future people in need of a oem fuel pump at likely the cheapest available cost is a "herko", they have a website and they sell on ebay as well
Herko makes nothing, they do however remarket oem equipment as the "herko brand" sometimes even in a herko box, might even have a herko marking on it, but if you look closer it is simply a oem part that has been relabeled, why they market it as such is probably for legal reasons is my best guess. they purchase excess inventory and over runs etc and resale it. they mostly sell ignition coils, injectors, and fuel pumps. it's all oem but they wont say it. so if you have time to order it instead of running down to the parts store you can save some money and get a new oem part.

You selling car parts in your eBay store now as well as computer stuff?

 

[Doubeleive]

You selling car parts in your eBay store now as well as computer stuff?

I was getting some dorman parts for a while a couple years ago but that source dried up with covid, I still have several thousand dollars worth of dorman parts listed, mostly vvt solenoids, blend door actuators, door actuators, pulleys and stuff like that. Auto parts are a hard sell, sometimes it takes several years to get a return on it in general it's not like they just go bad sitting on the shelf so whatever.......most of the gm stuff is long gone

 

[ScottyBoy]

I suppose I should have been more specific...





She is a single mom, and her son just graduated from a really rough high school where a lot of kids don't graduate......

I've been doing my best to help her out and teach her what I can.

Personally, I would try to teach her son as well since you said she's a single mom. Most high school aged young men are pretty eager to learn about troubleshooting and repairing vehicles, especially if they're learning by working on their own vehicle. You didn't mention whether or not he drives her Tahoe, but if he does then he definitely should be learning more about how repair it, and take care of it, and he would be helping his mother out at the same time. If lack of tools is an issue, maybe think about buying him a cheap set or starter set of basic sockets and bits that you'd need to work on a Tahoe. Just tell him it's a graduation present or and early Christmas gift or something like that. If money is an issue, I'm sure between all of here on this forum we could all chip in a few bucks to buy the young man a decent starter socket set.

 

[YukonRog]

I agree with all the above and can relate. I buy a lot of parts from Autozone and since they offer lifetime replacement I figured why not? Well why not turned into replacing it about 2 yrs later. RA carries the Delphi and is a lot less money than Napa but as stated their lifetime warranty seems like it takes one to get the replacement. It's a bad situation all around for your friend unfortunately. I miss the old days of the external fuel pumps!

 

[OR VietVet]

Ahhh, the old pull/push pumps. The newer design does push better and is more constant and runs cooler. More of a PITA to replace but that is why quality is so important.

 

[petethepug]

The fuel pump job is deff one you don’t want to do 2x due to cheap parts or a failed fuel level sender if the original is reused.

Heed the advice provided and know you’ve avoided a lot of heartache from installing cheapie copycat parts.

 

[Fless]

We might have missed it, but it's been determined that the problem wasn't the fuel pump. Some good info followed, but isn't germane to this specific instance.

 

[89Suburban]

We might have missed it, but it's been determined that the problem wasn't the fuel pump. Some good info followed, but isn't germane to this specific instance.

You had to use that word?

 

[Rocket Man]

We might have missed it, but it's been determined that the problem wasn't the fuel pump. Some good info followed, but isn't germane to this specific instance.

We didn’t miss it, but we like to keep talking anyway.

 

[petethepug]

Hit the Brakes!
Title: Budget Fuel Tank Option

Update:

I suppose I should have been more specific...

This thread is not about choosing between GM/Delco and the cheaper brands.

… The problem actually turned out to not be the fuel pump. Fuel pressure was good, and I ended up realizing that my dumb ass forgot to plug the crank sensor back in when I did the starter…

I appreciate the generosity towards my neighbor

 

[MassHoe04]

Hit the Brakes!
Title: Budget Fuel Tank Option

Update:

… The problem actually turned out to not be the fuel pump. Fuel pressure was good, and I ended up realizing that my dumb ass forgot to plug the crank sensor back in when I did the starter…

I appreciate the generosity towards my neighbor

It's all good...

Things to keep in mind here:
1) The bonus conversation about what fuel pumps to get or stay away from cold still be helpful to other members in the future, as they are searching for answers.
2) I am sure that you will not be the only person in history to have left the crank sensor disconnected after replacing the starter (or other work in the area).

You can be thankful for the generosity of other forum members, who were ready and willing to help pitch in, if help was needed.

You can also be thankful, that it was only a simple procedural mistake that prevented the truck from starting and not a real issue that was going to cost a lot!
You wound up with a no-cost solution. You were capable to have figured it out and got it going before more money was spent.

That is a win for you and a big win for the truck owner you were nice enough to help out on this repair!

It may have been an oversight to not connect the sensor, but hey... Hats off to you on this one for your calm, persistent, methodical approach and coming out on top!

 

[OR VietVet]

It's all good...

Things to keep in mind here:
1) The bonus conversation about what fuel pumps to get or stay away from cold still be helpful to other members in the future, as they are searching for answers.
2) I am sure that you will not be the only person in history to have left the crank sensor disconnected after replacing the starter (or other work in the area).

You can be thankful for the generosity of other forum members, who were ready and willing to help pitch in, if help was needed.

You can also be thankful, that it was only a simple procedural mistake that prevented the truck from starting and not a real issue that was going to cost a lot!
You wound up with a no-cost solution. You were capable to have figured it out and got it going before more money was spent.

That is a win for you and a big win for the truck owner you were nice enough to help out on this repair!

It may have been an oversight to not connect the sensor, but hey... Hats off to you on this one for your calm, persistent, methodical approach and coming out on top!

Many many many times on this forum, when a member has done some work and then something unexpected happens after the fact, the problem is solved by going back and inspecting a former work area on the rig.

We all can't be perfect and never make mistakes, like myself........

 

[petethepug]

The mod caught it not me. I drove through the stop sign and only intended to make it bigger. Nothing bad happened, did not intend to brow beat on the unexpected outcome because, like you said, it’s a win finding the solution, regardless.

If you really want to have your stomach drop after climbing out of the engine bay, try leaving a spark plug wire off and watch the cluster light up like a Xmas tree and the motor fight to keep idle. Your all aces in my book for helping the Mom with her hands full out of a jam.

Cheers!

 

[edward case]

You could see if the local junkyard/UPull has one, but they might be somewhat rare. And, as others have said, reliability is a serious question. Really, though, it's up to you what risks you want to take.

Pumps seem to go bad when they sit for a year or more. I have to happen at two older vehicles recently.