New member, lift pump questions.

[24Vdodge]

Hello, new member, 1st post. Long time dodge CTD owner. Have lurked on many of the Diesel forums but never joined one. This one seems more laid back and relaxed then some I read info on.

I just picked up my 3rd 24v 2nd gen truck a few weeks ago. It's a stone stock 98.5 24v, just had a reman IP pump put on it less then 4,000 miles before I bought it. I bought a 1999 brand new in the fall of 1998, I could write a novel about that trucks healthy appetite for lift & IP pumps and my experiences with cummins and dodge about it. But that is not a new story. No one had an aftermarket fix for those trucks back in the day when they were brand new, like a AD/Fass. I sold my 1999 when it was less then two years old B/C of the problems and went back to driving my old dependable roughing riding 1st gen dodge CTD.

Fast forward to 2007. I caught wind of Fass/AD systems as a good fix for 2nd gen 24v trucks and did lots of reading on the subject. I was longing to get back into the cushy seats and smooth ride of a 2nd gen after a few hundred thousand more miles in my old 1st gen. I found a good deal on a 2000 that just had a new IP put on it, I put a AD 100 on the truck the day I bought it. Other than the perpendicular bracket that broke twice, right at the weld (to much deflection IMO) I had no complaints about the AD 100. They sent me the bracket that runs the pump parallel to the frame and was a lot more solid and never had the problem again. Truck always had good fuel pressure and never had one fuel issue with the pump. I owned that 2000 for 4 years and put just over 200,000 trouble free miles on it thanks to the AD 100.

The 1998.5 I just picked up, I was originally going to put another AD 100 or maybe the 165 (kind of like the regulator idea) on it and be done with it. I put a fuel pressure gauge on the truck and it has just over 13 lbs @ idle and gets down to 9-10 ish when you stand on it. Something needs to be done soon. I have been reading about a lot of problems with the AD's now and since a change in ownership the quality has gone down hill. It does not sound like they are what they once were back in 2007 when I put the AD 100 on my 2000.

I came across a thread pertaining to Glacier Diesel Fuel Boss belt driven mechanical pump. They have me very intrigued. I've read several threads about them, don't really see any cons about them, seems to be only pros. The only thing that concerns me is where they are mounted. I live on a gravel road and do quite a bit of gravel back road driving. I'm kind of concerned that dirt or debris might get up in there and chew up the belt. Maybe there is some type of shield that could be built from an old heavy rubber mud flap to lessen the chances of damage from stones and dirt? That is really my only concern about the pump. I sometimes go on long road trips and get to far away places where there is no cell phone reception. I don't want to have a breakdown, been there, did that when I had my 1999 one to many times. I always had faith in my AirDog and was 100 percent comfortable going anywhere, but my faith is now wavering.

I do like the lifetime warranty on the AD vs the warranty on the Fuel Boss. But I dont want to messing with replacements on the AD if/when it goes down either even if they are covered under warranty. I only want to buy one lift pump system, I am really leaning towards the Fuel Boss right now.

Long story short, what would you recommend? The Fuel Boss or the AirDog for reliability and longevity? I pretty much keep my trucks stone stock, and like to put miles on them. I like to either put on a 4" exhaust or a straight pipe stock exhaust. My last truck had a Icebox cold air intake but with this one I am going to do the BHAF. Sounds like the Fuel Boss can keep up with the fuel demands of either stock or mild to wild. So I guess it doesn't really matter if I want to bomb the truck out or not. I'd be very interested to hear your thoughts and opinions. Thank you for your time.

Matt

[dobienut]

Hey Matt, welcome to the forum.I always like to promote the Fuel Boss as i've been running one for hmm.... must be 4-5 years now, can't quite remember. Knock on wood, over that time I have had only one issue, broken belt and that was my own fault from backing in over a large snow bank that was kind of hard left by the snowplow. I bought mine from Richard at Glacier Diesel and remember when i bought it he was top notch, had some questions and called him and he returned my calls very quick. I hold constant 16-18 psi and that can be adjusted by adding or taking away shims from the bypass valve.I often thought of making a small shield type affair for covering where it's mounted but I don't off-road so its not an issue. I definetley would not let that keep me from buying one now that I had one. Only reccomendation I make if you buy one, for the cost, buy an extra belt or two when ordering it, and tell him to throw a couple extra shims in the box so you can adjust it higher or lower if you ever want to.No regrets on mine and if it ever goes to pieces I will buy another from the same place, no question. A buddy of mine put one on his same time I did and has no issues with his yet either. FYI,I carry a spare belt under the seat and with a 1/2 wrench I believe it is you can put a belt on in a few minutes. Remember, if the belt fails it will instantly switch back to your factory LP until you fix the belt.

[thracing]

there seems to be some truble in the airdog camp as of late but there is always fass to turn too good pumps

[98whitelightnin]

If you want mechanical, dont overlook the http://www.cumminsperformanceparts.com/dttasmefupu.html or the original http://www.opieparts.com/Products.htm . I have had a fass hpfp 150 for 5 or 6 trouble free years aswell.

[snowshoveler]

New guy here and trying to pay attention.I have a 99 with a few simple mods and a newish carter pump.I have a juice with edge and bhaf and 4 inch exhaust Holds 12 to 14 lbs fuel pressure most times, but I drive like Granny.I know if I lean on it there will be bad results.I know I need a good pump but really hate to spend 500 bucks on something that I am going to want to throw at someone in 6 months.I will watch this thread and see how things go.I was kind of thinking on the Pureflow FRRP....but and there is always a but I have recently read some not so good things about this pump.I really don't think much of using an electric pump at all. However the belt drive one seems like a good option. A real nice idea would be a mechanical pump like the 12 valve engine. Seems possible but a lot of work and lot of parts. Regards Chris

[diesel4life]

Hey Matt, welcome aboard. Ive also got an AD100, its been good so far, but like you Ive also been eyeballing the mechanical/belt driven pumps. When the day comes, thats probably what I will do. In the meantime, Ive got a healthy carter lift pump in my tool box I carry with me at all times whenever Im venturing far from home. In the event my AD pukes, its a relatively quick swap to install the carter to get me back home.

[dobienut]

Not knocking Cummins Performance Parts, but keep in mind once you click on add the plumbing, the kit costs more then Glacier's kit. I know Glacier's has everything to do the complete install http://www.glacierdieselpower.com/product.aspx?pf_id=FB-98502

[24Vdodge]

Thanks for the all the responses and the welcomes. Good idea about getting a spare belt right away for the fuel boss. I already always carry a spare set of fuel filters, spare serpentine belt, as well as other spare parts, I have needed to use the spares in the past always better to have them them not have them when on a long road trip.

dobienut, do you have any kind of a filter or strainer between the tank and your fuel boss pump?

Decisions, decisions, I really hate making decisions. I just want something I can bolt on the truck and drive and not worry about it, or mess with it much. I dont mind routine maintenance, but I dont like messing with something that is supposed to fix a already existing problem.

I am really leaning more towards the belt driven mechanical one right now. The thing I like about it is the more you step on the fuel the more pressure it puts out, not the less like a electric pump. The other thing I like it's mechanical.

I have owned several hauler/daily driver 1st gen dodges diesel as well, and have hundreds of thousands of miles of windshield time in them combined. I have only ever replaced one lift pump on any of them and it was because it was leaking fuel not that is was putting out low fuel pressure. I know it is not fair to compare a 1st gen truck to a 2nd gen truck, but I am comparing electric lift pumps to mechanical lift pumps.

I was very pleased with my AD100 I had on my 2000 dodge. I just dont like some of the things I currently read about them I know I dont like the quick connectors they switched to. I dont have anything against FASS either they look like a very high quality high end pumps as well and I am doing more reading on them still. The one thing I do like about the AD or the FASS higher end systems with the spin on filters is the air separation on them, I noticed a big difference on my 2000 right away in throttle response and smoother idling once I put the AD on it. That is one thing the mechanical pumps dont offer.

The Opie, Assassin and Fuel Boss from Glacier all seem to be along the same concept and similar designs. I dont really see anything that set any of those three apart. I think I am going to call Glacier since I see that they also sell Airdog's and see if they have more happy customers with the AD's or the Fuel Boss? Or which they seem to have more call backs on. I am looking more for long life and reliability then anything.

Thanks,

Matt

[dobienut]

No I don't have any strainer between, but if memory serves me correctly I think I got Richard to send me one out after the initial purchase but I never did get around to putting it on . I think it's still in my toolbox:lol:As for fuel pressure, when going to WOT you will see the pressure drop some, I don't think I've ever seen it go below 14 psi when really stomping on it, then soon as I shift or slack out of it it starts to rise. Normal highway driving it's constantly hovering between 16-18 psi (Edge Attitude gauge)Another thing I liked about this pump is like I mentioned previously, if it fails it automatically reverts back to the stock lift pump instead of leaving you strandedI too don't like messing with stuff all the time and I looked quite a while before I bought this pump.At the time, I read about FASS, Airdog, etc but in my head I was still thinking...electric , and I just got done replacing 3 electric pumps and a IP, so electric wasn't winning any votes in my book. I just happened to stumble upon Glacier's site when I was trying to figure out a solution. I kept looking at them, told a buddy about them and he didn't ponder at all, he called and ordered one the next day. I waited until he got his, liked what I saw and ordered it. I figured the mechanical pump was pretty simple, didn't think there was much to wear out and I wouldn't know if it was good until I took a chance.Glacier was the only site I stumbled upon back then that sold a mechanical set up,now I see more as you said. I don't know if it's changed or not but at the time, one thing I found nice about buying from Richard was that when i had a question I spoke to him, the owner of the company. He told me he didn't care what time of the day it was, if I needed help to call and he stuck to his word on that. I'm not pushing him on anyone because thing may change since my purchase, I can only say what my experience was like buying form there. 5 Star for service no question

[CUMMINSDIESELPWR]

i like these mech lift pumps, i may pick one up next year and extend the life of my raptor.