Airtex Fuel Pumps - Buyer Beware

[old_master]

Yup, it's called "marketing strategy".... quantity not quality.

[harvey manwarren]

Companies in China have attempted to copy and are selling fuel pumps stamped with the Walbro® name

[Rick Norwood]

Originally Posted by harvey manwarren

Airtex Fuel Delivery Systems, the world's largest manufacturer of fuel pumps, must do something right

O.K. Let’s be fair.

Please reply back and tell us your experience with Airtex Pumps. How many vehicles have you bought and installed an Airtex Pump into? How long have they been running? Are you a Professional Mechanic, or work in the Automotive Industry?

What makes you qualified, or what data do you have to prove your statement? Do you work for Airtex directly or indirectly?

Please respond back at your leisure, we’re all curious.

[j cAT]

rick how many times do you need to hear on all these forums of owners with these defective pumps...

now if airtex is going to pay to having their defective pumps replaced and also pay to tow the vehicle then some may want to try again.

NOT GOOD WITH A DEAD VEHICLE ON THE HYWY !!!

Most use ac delco or Delphi... these maybe made in china but with better quality controls.

airtex on other vehicles have proven to be 0 to 12months and fail...

[harvey manwarren]

I PUT china made pump on dodge van - they said it was better then mopar pump that was on it for 170,000 miles - it last 8 days - and was full of dirt THE new pump was . how many people are not washing the tanks out and not changing filter -- no filter will stop fine rust - i tested that many times - them tanks got to wash out - i talk to more then service places in this town and there not washing them tanks out . MIGHT BE NOT ALL AIRTEX - THEM CAR SHOPS IN THIS TOWN ARE NOT WASHING THE TANKS OUT . AFTER A NEW ONE PUMP IS PUT IN. I SEEN the dirt in the new pump .

Originally Posted by Rick Norwood

O.K. Let’s be fair.

Please reply back and tell us your experience with Airtex Pumps. How many vehicles have you bought and installed an Airtex Pump into? How long have they been running? Are you a Professional Mechanic, or work in the Automotive Industry?

What makes you qualified, or what data do you have to prove your statement? Do you work for Airtex directly or indirectly?

Please respond back at your leisure, we’re all curious.

I TALK TO MORE THEN ONE Car Mechanic'S - NONE OF THEM ARE WASHING THE TANKS OUT - NO FILTER IN THE WORLD WILL STOP FINE RUST - AND IT KILLS PUMPS FAST. CAN'T SAY IT ALL AIRTEX .

Originally Posted by j cAT

rick how many times do you need to hear on all these forums of owners with these defective pumps...

now if airtex is going to pay to having their defective pumps replaced and also pay to tow the vehicle then some may want to try again.

NOT GOOD WITH A DEAD VEHICLE ON THE HYWY !!!

Most use ac delco or Delphi... these maybe made in china but with better quality controls.

airtex on other vehicles have proven to be 0 to 12months and fail...

HOW do know what your getting in end - when most them companys put other companys pumps in there boxs - i worked at places - i know how to put other companys stuff in our the companys boxs - not all airtex are usa made - i seen that one too.

[j cAT]

most vehicles of the last 20 years or less made by GM have plastic tanks. this will in most cases not be very dirty but it can happen. if you have a vehicle with a metal tank and it is 10 plus years old with high miles you best check for rust. if rusted you must buy new tank.

when the old pump is trashed if the pickup sock has rust you must buy new tank. this is because the metal tank is made with low quality metals ..then the alcohol which creates a perfect world of for the rusting..

pumps that I am familiar with are with GM plastic tanks ,, so rusted metal destroying the pump is not a factor. also the replacing with the ac delco Delphi have had a better longer life ... this is after they changed from airtex to these OEM pumps . so it appears that the pumps of the oem type work perfectly in the same vehicle that had the airtex 3 month failure..

the most common reason the OEM pumps do fail is low fuel supply then the motor over heats and the armature shorts out.................

the other reason would be improper pump connector install. using crimp connections in a corrosive environment.

[harvey manwarren]

GM pump one made in Mexico.
I had to replace 3 in one month.
on a chevy blazer got rid of that chevy . plastic tank on my 2000 dodge the inside of the new china made pump full of black like stuff thick inside that pump lasted 8 days - wash the tank out after that . and there was black comeing out the fuel filter too - change that next . can't really say the pump was the reason it went out.

Originally Posted by j cAT

most vehicles of the last 20 years or less made by GM have plastic tanks. this will in most cases not be very dirty but it can happen. if you have a vehicle with a metal tank and it is 10 plus years old with high miles you best check for rust. if rusted you must buy new tank.

when the old pump is trashed if the pickup sock has rust you must buy new tank. this is because the metal tank is made with low quality metals ..then the alcohol which creates a perfect world of for the rusting..

pumps that I am familiar with are with GM plastic tanks ,, so rusted metal destroying the pump is not a factor. also the replacing with the ac delco Delphi have had a better longer life ... this is after they changed from airtex to these OEM pumps . so it appears that the pumps of the oem type work perfectly in the same vehicle that had the airtex 3 month failure..

the most common reason the OEM pumps do fail is low fuel supply then the motor over heats and the armature shorts out.................

the other reason would be improper pump connector install. using crimp connections in a corrosive environment.

all the tanks should wash out before any pumps put in .

you said -pumps that I am familiar with are with GM plastic tanks ,, so rusted metal destroying the pump is not a factor. yaa a lot farm tanks out there in heart land with lots of rust in them !!!- after the truck fills gas stations tanks - im sure you can get some mixed rust at old gas stations too. most of the repete fails .i read online are on chevys and gm models

YOU SEE ABOUT 15 TO 20 complants about air tex online . out millions if not billions of them sold over 80 years in time . Most Reliable cars and trucks out there are honda and toyota - Most Reliable and thay have most usa made parts on them out of all the cars and trucks being made any where in the world . Most Reliable honda

[Rick Norwood]

I replaced my original OEM fuel pump when it stopped working with an Airtex Pump. My fuel Filter was pretty well plugged up. It in all probability was the excessive back pressure that killed it. Anyway, A professional mechanic installed the first Airtex pump that lasted 6 months, the second one, installed by the same mechanic lasted 6 months, the third one, again installed by the same mechanic lasted 22 months. A new Fuel filter was installed every time and changed every 6 months, religiously. Now, here is the funny thing, this same Truck, with the same Tank, with the new AC Delco pump in it lasted over 4 years and was stilll going strong. Again, I changed the fuel filter every 6 months. So if my Plastic Tank had rust in it, which I doubt, the AC Delco Pump didn't seem to have any issues with it.

The poor quality of the Airtex pumps was not just because it stopped pumping fuel. In fact, only one of the three actually stopped pumping fuel. They also had issues with the Gas Gage sending unit causing the fuel gage to stop working, loose connections and fittings inside the fuel tank that caused internal leaks, the check valve allowed all the fuel to drain back causing long cranking time on start up, and one time, the bearings went bad and the pump was screaming so loud that you could not hear the engine noise at idle.

Cleaning the tank and removing the dirt, rust etc. is always a must, but if you want to risk putting an Airtex Piece of Crap Pump in your vehicle, in the end it is your vehicle, do what you wish, but don't say you weren't warned.

[j cAT]

Originally Posted by harvey manwarren

GM pump one made in Mexico.
I had to replace 3 in one month.
on a chevy blazer got rid of that chevy . plastic tank on my 2000 dodge the inside of the new china made pump full of black like stuff thick inside that pump lasted 8 days - wash the tank out after that . and there was black comeing out the fuel filter too - change that next . can't really say the pump was the reason it went out.

when the fuel pump is replaced the filter is replaced that is the proper procedure.

on the fuel filter inspection with a failure you should cut the filter open and inspect. a plugged filter with black goo is from the fuel station or supplier doing something wrong with the fuel handling.

I always cut open the filters to see what kind of debris is picked up ... with the fuel tanks around the north east these are all non metal tanks. this is because of alcohol reacting with the metal..

the fuel suppliers DO NOT ALLOW alcohol to be used in their pipes.

perhaps in farm [alcohol] country like IOWA these fuel separations are a bigger problem ..

vehicles unused for a few months or fuel stored too long [suppliers] will absorb the moisture, the fuel separation and then the goo/varnish being created.. not good for pumps or injectors...

[Rick Norwood]

Originally Posted by j cAT

rick how many times do you need to hear on all these forums of owners with these defective pumps...

It never ends. As long as people are not willing to listen, Airtex will continue to thrive, churning out more bad garbage pumps, laughing all the way to the bank.

[harvey manwarren]

i read some say AC-Delco/ has big fail rate .- and there fake Walbro pump out there .

[rkvons]

Originally Posted by Rick Norwood

It never ends. As long as people are not willing to listen, Airtex will continue to thrive, churning out more bad garbage pumps, laughing all the way to the bank.

I bought a '98 Monte Carlo that had a defective fuel gauge. I dropped the tank and pulled the fuel pump out to see what was wrong. The fuel level sender was warn out. Original pump still worked. 193K miles. I decided that I needed to get this back together and I was going to replace the pump also. I bought an Airtex from a local auto parts store. It is still working fine after 3 years. I don't drive the car every day.

[Rick Norwood]

Originally Posted by rkvons

I bought a '98 Monte Carlo that had a defective fuel gauge. I dropped the tank and pulled the fuel pump out to see what was wrong. The fuel level sender was warn out. Original pump still worked. 193K miles. I decided that I needed to get this back together and I was going to replace the pump also. I bought an Airtex from a local auto parts store. It is still working fine after 3 years. I don't drive the car every day.

You are probably the exception not the rule. Based upon my personal experience, you got lucky.

[Rick Norwood]

Originally Posted by harvey manwarren

i read some say AC-Delco/ has big fail rate .- and there fake Walbro pump out there .

I can't talk about the AC-Delco failure rate except for the one that failed in My Jimmy after 105,000 miles. the only other one I owned was in the Jimmy for 4 years and had approximately 80,000+ miles on it when I traded it in.

The subject of this thread is the Junk Airtex Pumps, other Manufacturers may indeed have bad pumps, I'll say it again, AIRTEX PUMPS - BUYER BEWARE!

[old_master]

There are several members here on the forum that work on these fuel delivery systems at a professional level, on a daily basis, myself included. We know which manufacturers consistently produce quality parts, (and which ones don't). When members ask our advice on which brand of parts to install, we give it to them. It's up to them to make the ultimate decision. As for the GM Vortec engines, (4.3L, 5.3L, & 5.7L) Airtex pumps don't make the grade.... Buyer beware.