MTFCA Forum

Anybody ever cheat and add an inline low pressure electric fuel to help out in those instances where a T with an under-seat fuel tank starts to stall on a hill? It wouldn't be run all the time, just turned on when needed. I'm interested in your experiences, good and bad.

Unnecessary modification and uglification.

http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/41 ... 1393734894

Never had a T start to stall on a hill as I always keep the tank full.

Tim,

In my Touring and my speedster I run downdraft carburetors, so I also use fuel pumps. I use 6V Airtex pumps. I suppose you'd need a 12V version. They're good pumps, but I'm never without a spare under the seat! To install one for "part time" use could be a plumbing issue. I know of no pump that will just flow through when not energized. All that said, in my T's with stock carburetors, I have never gotten starved for gas on any hill, regardless of how much is in the tank, (within reason of course!) I think the starved for gas thing is more of a wive's tale. Closer to the fact might be starved for power. But then , I haven't tried to climb every hill everywhere, so.....

Fuel will flow thru a Facet Posi-flo pump when the pump is not running. The reason I'm considering a pump is because I had one experience of "faltering" on a hill in Indiana during their Covered Bridge Tour. It didn't quit but threatened to. I also had a few sputters when going down the highway with only a couple of gallons in the tank.... I've never had problems when I have a half full tank or better. I'm going to go thru the fuel system looking for issues this winter and am just trying to cover all the bases.

I started using electric fuel pumps Because I had a down draft also, I have switched to updrafts but found Tillotsons & Sheblers require more volume than standard T carbs. most 12 vdc pumps require a regulator for gravity Carbs. Most 12 vdc pumps will be fine with 6 vdc. I personally have had P.P. luck with electric fuel pumps and run two side by side incase one fails. Tony Bowker has a fun story about the last one that failed on me on a Speedster run. I have found that stock T carbs are best below 2 psi & later carbs work best @3 psi. Most important thing is if the pump is on a separate switch from the ignition and is left on there is a bad fire in your future. Every time we try to improve on Henry's car we create a new set of problems to deal with Be Safe. Craig

I have an "inertia" switch behind the dash on my Racer as it runs a Winfield SR downdraft, 12v. pump & regulator - I also run 2 lbs.

I can understand old car owners trying to bypass the complicated floats/levers/actions in a worn out and leak prone vacuum tank on cars which ran them. The pump can often be hidden inside the vacuum tank so nobody knows it's there. What I don't understand is why anybody believes gravity is ever going to fail. If there is a problem in a gravity fed system, it's not the gravity part that fails. A fuel pump just masks the need to find and sort the real problem. This does not necessarily apply if your T no longer conforms to factory norms.

Allan from down under.

Allan wrote: ↑

Wed Nov 18, 2020 9:59 pm

I can understand old car owners trying to bypass the complicated floats/levers/actions in a worn out and leak prone vacuum tank on cars which ran them. The pump can often be hidden inside the vacuum tank so nobody knows it's there. What I don't understand is why anybody believes gravity is ever going to fail. If there is a problem in a gravity fed system, it's not the gravity part that fails. A fuel pump just masks the need to find and sort the real problem. This does not necessarily apply if your T no longer conforms to factory norms.

Allan from down under.

Not so sure that gravity is a constant. The more I age, the more I'm convinced that gravity is increasing. Much harder to get off the floor for one thing. Of course this only helps a Model T fuel system.

It's just a built in safety. If the hill is steep enough, the oil line stops flowing, so the fuel stops flowing.

If I was going to do this I would install a “swing check” (no springs) in parallel to the pump. Then I would probably have the best of both options!!