Looking for an explanation

[Doyt W. Echelberger]

In the summer of 2009 one of my older gasoline fueled vehicles (1976) 
developed a nasty but random pattern of starting, running, getting me 
somewhere, and then not starting when it was time to come home.  Didn't 
happen every time...maybe about every third or fourth or fifth time.

Only one thing was obvious to me when it wouldn't start....there was no raw 
fuel smell after multiple cranking. I told this to my mechanic, but it 
always started when he tried it.

Left it with the mechanic for a week, and it started every morning for him. 
He called me and said "come pick it up, there is nothing wrong we can find. 
If we can't demonstrate it, we can't fix it."

So, I went to pick it up at his garage, got the keys, cranked it over to 
take it home......and it wouldn't start. He came out and was amazed (and I 
was vindicated). He took it inside, ran fuel pressure tests and declared it 
a failing fuel pump.

New fuel pump. The vehicle now starts flawlessly, every time.   I go, I 
come home.

I guess we are sharing some experiences about one of the mysterious failure 
modes of aging fuel pumps. The one in my 76 was 36 years old. Now, all you 
readers with fuel pumps over 30 years old will be a little more prepared 
for the future.

Doyt Echelberger