Oh no I think my lift pump is dead!!!

99 Dodge Quad cab 3500 dualie 5 sp 4.10 gear 105k showing I've owned it for the last 20k and 6 months. I just got a Gale banks lift pump checking gage and fittings. I installed it in about 10 minutes. I started the truck up. D....m no pressure showing at all on either fitting. So I pushed the Schrader valve in on the inlet side thinking some fuel would come out...but nooo...nothing came out. I then pushed in the out let valve...and again nothing came out but the motor did drop about 200-300 rpm. It sounded like the timing had been retarded.
What's the deal??? is the lift pump totally shot??? It just ran out of the warantee too.
This truck runs beautifully. I get 19-20 mpg no load at 65. It just purrs down the road. A bit noisy but no more that other 99's. It doesn't miss, hesitate, smoke or otherwise act up since the day I got it. I was about ready to replace the fuel filter but just haven't got to it yet.
Let me know what you think.

bentwings

if there is no pressure at the outlet side of the pump, you either have no power to the pump, or it is not working. Either way, with a 99, do not run the truck without a working lift pump. THose cheesy VP44 injector pumps don't like to run without a lift pump feeding them. They do not lubricate or cool properly without the steady flow. I have seen some that have lasted a while without the lift pump, but I have also seen them fail within 20 minutes of running time.
Check your power feed and grounds, and if there is nothing wrong with them, I would go with changing the pump. Better safe than sorry.

HI, Finally I've had automotive success after a month of failures!!! I got a new Cummins lift pump yesterday at the local diesel shop. 185 bucks. I probably could have done a bit better but this was in my very neighborhood so with travel shipping etc it was ok.
This one has year warantee unlimited miles. I told the mgr to make sure he had one in May of next year!! LOL He said he would.
Idle pressure is 14 psi inlet
13 psi at the filter outlet should be fine I think.
Here is how I installed it.:
tools:
7/16 ratchet wrench or 7/16 combination wrench
10mm ratchet wrench
11/16 or 17 mm x 3/8 socket
short 3/8 ratchet
long flop head ratchet optional
optional long 3/8 extension +3 inch extension both with wobble end

how to do it:
disconnect wire on pump
open clip on engine dip stick and move the tube over a bit
remove inlet line bracket bolt
loosen 3 pump bracket bolts loosen inlet line banjo fitting
loosen outlet banjo fitting at the top of the filter and at pump
remove 3 pump bracket nuts and washers
remove inlet banjo fitting and washers
remove filter banjo bolt and washers
lower pump away from bracket and lift out. carefull of dirt in the fittings
transfer outlet line from old pump to the new pump careful of washers
leave slightly loose 1/6 turn
install new pump with 2 studs closest to the block
install 2 nuts and washers and tighten
tighten outlet line banjo fittings
install inlet banjo. becarefull of washers and dirt leave loose
rotate inlet line bracket over hole in pump bracket
install bracket bolt
tighten inlet banjo fitting, tighten bracket bolt
install new wire harness (if needed)
install wire harness bracket and tighten 3rd pump nut and washer
reclip the motor dip stick tube
your are done ...easy huh.

ok you need to prime the pump and filter
I installed my pressure gage without the gage and submerged the open end in diesel fuel
turn on the key to on for 30 seconds. this is as long as the lift pump will run turn the key off
wait about 1 minute and repeat
you should have seen a few bubbles this means the pump ran
I pulled the line and closed the filter up
start the motor..it may knock like h..l for a few seconds..normal
the idle will be 200 rpm low for about 1 minute as it purges the air out of the system
turn the motor off and plug in your gages
start it up and check the inlet pressure 10-15 is ok I guess
check outlet..you should have less than 4 psi drop. more replace the filter
Take it for a test drive and kick some a....
flat rate is only about .8 on this and probably is about right
all of the pump bolts on mine had heavy loctite on them and backed out of the pump instead of the nuts coming off. It took a lot of wrenching and swearing around to finally get the studs out of the pump and off the bracket.
the book says you need to remove the starter but the local diesel mech put me on to this. He had 8 of them to do this week.
oh yeah. If you have a big brush guard do yourself a favor and cut a board about 1 foot x 2 feet and lay it across the guard and the radiator. It is much easier on the knees.
I have another story about what was inside the old pump but I'll post that later

bentwings