[UsedF10M5]

Don't take this the wrong way,

What is the Fuel-It stage 2? It replaces the stock pump with a Walbro 450, a tee off to the Venturi at the bottom of the bucket, using factory wiring and connectors. So what's the difference between my DIY assembly and the stage 2? Please, enlighten me. I understand Fuel-It is a off the shelf option but I've been running E85 on a Walbro since Terry posted the DIY years ago. No offense to Steve.

I'm not trying to be rude and I apologize if I come across that way but I posted here hoping to gain some knowledge and get this ongoing issue sorted out. I only post when I think others might be running into this issue now or in the future and a search will lead them to the answers they're looking for.

[Chris@BoostConcepts]

Originally Posted by Milan

But putting in a fuel pump that has the ability to draw more current than the factory wires/fuse support IS good practice?

I'm willing to bet more people are having fuel pump issues than what is apparent on the forums.

I think you are answering your own question. If the factory fuse is in place then the amperage draw will be limited to the fuse size. So the conducting wires remain protected to stay below their rating. If you blow the factory size fuse I would install the same size fuse and put an ammeter on it. If it appears to stay within spec and not blow a fuse I investigate what may have caused it. If you change the fuse size because it blew without upgrading the wires then you are removing the wire protection. Most fuses will allow short spikes of higher amperage draw before blowing so it is most likely a poor connection. It may be that it is in the harness connectors or spliced connection to the Walbro pump. Both are a good starting point investigate as harness connections are failure prone with age and connection cycles. They use a spring tension type of connection and it can become fatigued and cause a poor connection which will increase amperage draw at the connection and heat buildup.

OP,

I would clean the harness plug terminals, look and see if they are discolored from corrosion, then gently add some tension back by closing the opening with a fine tipped flat head electronic screwdriver. Then retest to see if the current draw and wire temperature changes, if so you may have discovered the issue. If not continue searching, If the wires at the splice are not sealed with a glue type heat shrink tube corrosion can spread under the sheathed portion of the wire and degrade its ability to conduct increasing heat in the affected area. This happens a lot especially in harsh environments.
If you find the wiring is being affected, replace it with approved fuel tank submersible Teflon coated wiring and use higher quality 3M heat shrink butt connectors. Be sure to inspect any butt connector you use as cheaper connectors skimp on the compression thickness of the material used. High quality connector will have a much thicker wall and remain well connected and able to carry the current of the device better. Hope this helps!!

Chris

[UsedF10M5]

Thanks a lot Lcvette, you were spot on about discoloration of the wires. It never crossed my mind, I went through and checked all of my connections, the connector at the top hat from the vehicle harness was pretty bad. The wires were corroded, the coating was peeling off from heat and corrosion getting further up the wires.

I got on real oem and the connector and pigtail are not available, however looks like the terminals are, I cut off the connector about 10 inches up and soldered in 10ga wire. I temporarily rigged some terminals to the pins on the top hat and took it for a little drive and the wires aren't getting hot anymore. Usually after a few miles of driving the wires are hot to the touch, now they're not even warm.

The terminals can be found on real oem in Vehicle Electrical System>SINGLE COMPONENTS WIRING HARNESS REPAIR>Single Components Wiring Harness Repair>Circular connector / D 2,5 mm System. Unfortunately with it being Sunday I wasn't able to check availability or get them but I'll get them this week and rig up my own connector, seal it up and use dielectric grease.

Hope this helps anyone who runs into this in the future. It's only a matter of time.

On a side note, Lcvette I think I discovered your product on Instagram and I'm very impressed with the mount you came up with for inside the bucket.

[Chris@BoostConcepts]

Glad to here that! Hope it was the issue for you. Keep is postd if it remains fixed, and Thanks for kind words!

Chris

[UsedF10M5]

It's been a few weeks, a few hundred miles driven and it seems to have fixed the issue for the time being.

[Chris@BoostConcepts]

Originally Posted by Sikh335xi

It's been a few weeks, a few hundred miles driven and it seems to have fixed the issue for the time being.

That is great News!! Please update if things change!

I just sent a customer who was getting a 2AAE high amperage draw code some information about this thread. I have been finding that about 20% of the core return buckets being sent in have various degrees of pitting on the plastic top hat. I am guessing this is from harsh environmental conditions such as salted roads, salt air in coastal regions etc.. It may be that a lot of these issues with the random and inconsistent codes for the fuel pump upgrades are related to the same situation you have found in your harness wires. Poor conductivity that pops up as an issue once more load is demanded through the circuit. very interesting.. will have to monitor this to see if the theory has any foundation.

Chris

[FRMTL2_335i]

Bump, anyone else with this or Similar issue

[Chris@BoostConcepts]

Are you having a similar issue with your car FRMTL2_335i? We have found that good clean wiring and clean connections from the EKP to the pump makes a big difference in performance of the system with an upgraded pump. also be sure there are no leaks internally with fittings etc as that can cause additional loading on the pump.

Chris

[Julian2485]

I had similar issue but for me it was the ekp itself. Got a used one and codes it all is well. I found out it was ekp when the car would shut off, it wouldn't start again for a while unless i unplugged ekp and plugged it back then it would start right away.

[FRMTL2_335i]

Originally Posted by Chris@BoostConcepts

Are you having a similar issue with your car FRMTL2_335i? We have found that good clean wiring and clean connections from the EKP to the pump makes a big difference in performance of the system with an upgraded pump. also be sure there are no leaks internally with fittings etc as that can cause additional loading on the pump.

Chris

Yes I am. The LP fuel readings started getting weaker as the boost went up. Now, at 30psi fuel pump takes a dump... for example on a pull my pump reading would go

68
70
71
69
73
70
"34"
72
69
70
"40"
68
72
73
Etc.... I've replaced lpfs, dme, ekpm3, fuel pump relay, then went ahead and threw the stock bucket in it and it was still crashing at very low boost.. Then I replaced the drivers side stock fpr and filter assembly and it didn't help either.

Wires coming off the pump are getting hot going to the EKP, and wires from ekp to relay by dme are getting warm also.
A visual check on harness from ekp to pump and it looks good, no melting, no corrosion.
I had to replace the fuel pump wire that connects the pump to the bottom of the top hat. I almost couldn't get it off. The connector melted into the top hat. I had to use a flathead and pry out the connector. At that point I also changed my top hat with a used one I had. Still no change. Not getting as hot as before but issue still there...

Im out of ideas at this point. I dont think it is the pump since it is also doing it with the stock pump..... I've covered everything I can think of so far.

[Julian2485]

Originally Posted by FRMTL2_335i

Yes I am. The LP fuel readings started getting weaker as the boost went up. Now, at 30psi fuel pump takes a dump... for example on a pull my pump reading would go

68
70
71
69
73
70
"34"
72
69
70
"40"
68
72
73
Etc.... I've replaced lpfs, dme, ekpm3, fuel pump relay, then went ahead and threw the stock bucket in it and it was still crashing at very low boost.. Then I replaced the drivers side stock fpr and filter assembly and it didn't help either.

Wires coming off the pump are getting hot going to the EKP, and wires from ekp to relay by dme are getting warm also.
A visual check on harness from ekp to pump and it looks good, no melting, no corrosion.
I had to replace the fuel pump wire that connects the pump to the bottom of the top hat. I almost couldn't get it off. The connector melted into the top hat. I had to use a flathead and pry out the connector. At that point I also changed my top hat with a used one I had. Still no change. Not getting as hot as before but issue still there...

Im out of ideas at this point. I dont think it is the pump since it is also doing it with the stock pump..... I've covered everything I can think of so far.

Did you code ekp to car when you installed it ?

[FRMTL2_335i]

Originally Posted by Julian2485

Did you code ekp to car when you installed it ?

Did not

[Julian2485]

Originally Posted by FRMTL2_335i

Did not

Has to be coded to car

[dmorrell]

If your wires going to your LPFP are getting hot, may want to check for corroded wire harness connections. My LPFP (stage 2 w/ Walbro 450) stopped working the other day. The issue was with corrosion on the connector that connects the pump to the bottom of the cover. The corrosion caused a bad connection and the plug to start to get hot and melt (see attached picture). I was able to replace the plug (with OEM part) and the pump works fine now. I also used a anti-oxidant on the connection. Hopefully this will help prevent this from happening again.



FUEL PUMP CONNECTOR (Item #: 501-0025) from Precision Works. If anyone needs to replace.
https://www.precisionraceworks.com/b...terminals.aspx