Hi Peter,

             To prove the issue is a defunct fuel pump, simply remove it, put a piece of tube on the inlet; put it in a can of petrol, & work the lever by hand, & see if anything comes out.

If it doesn't, then you've solved your problem.  If it does work, then look for a blocked fuel filter, or a blocked fuel line from the tank.  I think you are nearly there !

To check the fuel line, remove petrol cap, and get someone to listen at the tank filler, while you blowing back down the line.  Do not use compressed air.  If there are any rubber sections in the fuel line, then these can break down inside & block completely, even if the line looks OK on the outside.

Good luck !

Cheers Banjo.

Edited April 4, 20179 yr by Banjo

10 hours ago, rebuilder86 said:

i have an electronic pump still located in the engine bay and sometimes have this issue because of ethanol content.
What sort of fuel are you running?

E85(common over east) will effectively start giving vapour lock issues when the fuel is more than 4 weeks old. Fuel pump may be fine.
 

I've put 98 Octane in it (that's what the owners manual suggests), and it's a mechanical pump
I think I'll just replace it with a new one

Ah, I didn't see Banjo's post, try that first

Edit: I looked at the pump and there is no lever to pump by hand

Edited April 4, 20179 yr by Peter52

Pull the pump off the block, the lever is on the back side and runs off the camshaft 

Ah thanks

12 hours ago, rebuilder86 said:

i have an electronic pump still located in the engine bay and sometimes have this issue because of ethanol content.
What sort of fuel are you running?

E85(common over east) will effectively start giving vapour lock issues when the fuel is more than 4 weeks old. Fuel pump may be fine.
 

Most electronic pumps are pusher pumps, not puller pumps like a mechanical one.  You may want to consider relocating your pump next to the fuel tank

 

I was just considering the quality of the replys on this post compared to what you would get on a facebook post.

Go Rolla club forum.

By the way, you can use regular or 95 ULP.  No need for 98 octane

 

I agree Parrot, i would have never gotten this far on the facebook group (as good as it is),

Anyway, so I tested the fuel pump and it seems to be working fine, i checked the fuel filter and it has a fair bit of crap in it so i might replace that anyway, and I blew down the fuel line and had my brother listen at the fuel tank, it was very difficult at first but suddenly got easy as if i had dislodged something that was clogging the line, so i connected it all back up and pumped the fuel pump by hand and fuel is now coming out (hopefully this is the good news I need). Unfortunately, thanks to turning over the engine so much the battery is now flat so i'll have to wait till tonight to charge it and see if the engine works.

Good going, may want to look at the fuel pump eventually. Hopefully you've diagnosed the problem!

Take the fuel level float out of the tank, a 2minute job, and look inside the hole with a good torch.

You might decide to drop the tank out and clean it out, also not a big job & it saves any blockages re-occuring.

Good idea Altezzaclub, i need to take the tank out eventually anyway as it's in the way of some rust repair I need to do, so I'll be sure to do that aswell

It's... ALIVE!!

So I charged the battery and gave it a start, after a few disheartening tries it spluttered into life. I guess it was just that the fuel line was clogged but i'm sure the new distributor doesn't hurt. It idles a bit rough but i haven't timed it with a timing light yet (as i don't have one) so that will happen in the near future and will hopefully clear that up. I've also turned it off and on again just to make sure and will again tomorrow from cold start.

Thanks everyone so much for your awesome help! I'd still be scratching my head wondering whats wrong if it weren't for the expert guide and suggestions on here

Good news, love that feeling when it finally works!

Good work Peter !  I just love stories with a happy ending !

Cheers Banjo

how much rubber hose do you have between the tank and the pump?
Was the gunk in the filer black?
If you have lots of hose and the gunk was black, its likely hose breakdown. 
It swells up inside the hose and chunks shear off and act like valves that intermittently block the hose.
this is really most likely if there is lots of hose,

Also, with relation to pusher or puller pumps, the only difference is that
1. an electronic pump has a piston which moves back and forth between to non return valves and has a clearance between the piston and walls and this is why it s considered better at pushing than it is pulling

2. a mechanical pump is completely sealed using a rubber diaphragm, and is therefor able to deal with air better than an electronic pump.

Both of these pumps can cause vapour locks if the fuel tank is not vented and the pump is at the front of the car; especially if ethanol fuel is used.
Yes the electronic pump should be mounted near the tank, but if the mechanical fuel pump design could be also mounted near the tank, that would be perfect.
My point: mechanical fuel pumps are just as prone to vapour lock as electronic plunger types.