FUEL PUMP: MotorCraft? Delphi?

[TORNIT07]

So, I replaced the fuel pump assembly at 161,000 miles back in 2018. Installed a Carter complete assembly. It's been great, now starting to be a bit noisy some 55,000 miles later. My concern is that it's not going to last much longer & I live in the mountains now so getting stranded means no cell phone service & a LONG walk home. I'm going to replace the pump but here is my issue: The MotorCraft assembly has the crappy exposed spade connectors which is the part that actually failed on the original. The connectors were burned/melted. I always kept at least 1/2 tank of fuel so it wasn't a low-fuel/heat issue.

The Delphi assembly looks to be MUCH better constructed, no exposed spade terminals, etc., everything tight & sealed. I know Delphi makes pumps for GM and years ago I replaced quite a few GM pumps when I had my shop (MANY years ago) many pumps well before 70,000 miles. I know things have advanced since then, so perhaps Delphi is making a longer-life pump these days? The Delphi actually has a Limited lifetime warranty as opposed to MotorCrafts two year unlimited miles.

Any experience/opinions about MotorCraft VS Delphi

 

[max78]

No experence with Delphi here, but our stock motorcraft pump is at 221k miles and still going. I suspect its getting a little week as it too is noisy and I will be replacing it with a Motorcarft unit.

As for the burnt connections, I would not attribute that to the connections themselves but rather the pump drawing more current as it failed. Just because the Delphie connections cant be seen does not make them better, they will still be in the fuel and I bet you they are not 100% sealed and will have fuel on them.

Also looking a the Motorcaraft pump on rock auto the connections look identical. IMO your Motorcraft pump lasted significantly longer than the the other aftermarket pump, stick another Motorcraft in there imo. Also will you really still be driving this thing at 300K + miles if the motorcraft only lasts another 160k?

Be sure to change your fuel filter as that could have contributed to the early failure of your pump.

 

[TORNIT07]

No experence with Delphi here, but our stock motorcraft pump is at 221k miles and still going. I suspect its getting a little week as it too is noisy and I will be replacing it with a Motorcarft unit.

As for the burnt connections, I would not attribute that to the connections themselves but rather the pump drawing more current as it failed. Just because the Delphie connections cant be seen does not make them better, they will still be in the fuel and I bet you they are not 100% sealed and will have fuel on them.

Also looking a the Motorcaraft pump on rock auto the connections look identical. IMO your Motorcraft pump lasted significantly longer than the the other aftermarket pump, stick another Motorcraft in there imo. Also will you really still be driving this thing at 300K + miles if the motorcraft only lasts another 160k?

Be sure to change your fuel filter as that could have contributed to the early failure of your pump.

Thanks for the reply, max78. I concur with you about the burnt connections. You're probably right about the Delphi connections as well. I have changed the fuel filter before, but admittedly not nearly as often as I should. As for driving my expy to 300,000+ miles...anything is possible.
I'll post back with my final decision.

 

[TORNIT07]

Today I replaced the fuel filter & what I discovered concerns me. The filter was pretty much blocked. Upon removal I was able to blow through but with great force. The fuel that ran out at that point was clean. After I installed the new MotorCraft filter, I shook the old filter out & pure black fuel ran out. It had a lot of tiny specs of very fine metal mixed in the black fuel. At this point I could no longer force ANY air through the filter. 100% blocked.

I wonder if the black metalic mixture is coming from the fuel pump deteriorating or whether I picked up a mega load of crap from a pump? I worry that this may have gotten past the filter into the system, but if so it should have produced symptoms. I can report that the pump is nearly 40% less noisy with the new filter. I have no confidence in the remaining life of the pump, though.

Either way, I ordered the OEM MotorCraft pump from Rock Auto for $223.00 It will be here Friday so this weekend I'll be dropping the tank. I drive less than 5,000 miles a year these days. I will probably start replacing the fuel filter annually from this point forward.

On a side note, tomorrow I'm replacing the driver seat bottom cushion/pad and cover. I lucked out and found one in Texas (Shout out to Francisco @ Gene Messer Ford!) Who went the extra mile to help me find that backordered part.

 

[max78]

I had the same thing happen when I replaced my filter, It was twice as heavy and full of stuff. I would not worry about anything contaminating the other side of the filter, it did its job. Let us know how it goes with the replacement, I will be doing mine soon.

 

[TORNIT07]

FUEL PUMP UPDATE:
I replaced the fuel pump a couple days ago. All in all it went well. The only issue was the fuel pump electrical plug. I had replaced the pump in 2018 with no issue. For whatever reason, this time the plug broke at the release clip. Upon reassembly I used a fuel line zip tie that snugged nicely around the curve of the plug. I then ran a longer zip tie through the protective metal cover over the fuel pump housing assembly & through the zip on the connector. It's totally secure, but for good measure I secured an additional fuel line zip tie around the front part of the connector where the red locking tab used to be.

I am totally confident that it will not come loose. I ordered a new connector (they are available online from $25.00 up to $67.00) by Standard Motor Products for $25.00 I may replace it this spring, or not but at least I'll have it.

On a final note, all that metal debris in the filter did not come from the pump. I have checked 3 of 6 gas jugs plus my 6 gallon outboard motor tank. ALL have the metal residue on the bottom to one degree or another. I buy my fuel from one station exclusively for the past 2+ years. I found no residue on the bottom of my expy tank, probably the majority was sucked up & caught in the filter. The gas jugs & boat tank all get 100% non-ethanol & the expy plain old regular unleaded. It looks like aluminum flakes/specs. I'll have to investigate further.