1979 GL1000 - Fuel Pump Seeping Oil

[William Ennis]

I am posting a photo or two of my fuel pump to show the "leak" or oozing of oil from what appears to be a weep hole under the diaphragm. I am not familiar with these bikes and common ailments. Also, did not uncover a previous thread in this forum about this problem (?). Is this a problem? Can I just expect to rack up some miles and possibly this will stop? Or should I remove and replace the pump? The Japanese manual says it is not to be repaired (which runs contrary to my sense of American individualism). I'm reluctant to send any more money overseas

[1grouch2u]

Yeah, mine looks the same way- I've been a car mechanic most of my life so I've seen enough of this to for sure condemn the fuel pump- even though it's still pumping it's not right, a safety hazard, and likely to leave you stranded. -I've got to do something with mine but haven't decided on going electric, trying to rig/repair the one that's on there, or buy a NOS one smewhere (I do see em on Ebay occasionally )

Look around on Steve Saunders page, or NGW - I'm not sure, but somewhere on here there's a couple of write ups on how folks have rebuilt them- just a pain in the ass - only problem a new old pump is near a hundred bucks-

But yeah, that there's a bad fuel pump alright. Bon chance ami

[William Ennis]

Someone in this forum claimed to have installed a GL1100 fuel pump successfully. Has that been done by more than one GL1000 owner? I'm willing to try if that is a direct bolt-on match.

[1grouch2u]

Someone in this forum claimed to have installed a GL1100 fuel pump successfully. Has that been done by more than one GL1000 owner? I'm willing to try if that is a direct bolt-on match.

Looks like it'll work. Heck, might can go with that price too- whadda ya think?

http://www.partzilla.com/parts/search/H ... parts.html

http://www.partzilla.com/parts/search/H ... parts.html

(One's for a '76 GL1000, the other's for a '80 GL1100)

[William Ennis]

Well, I think differences in part numbers matter. And I've spent a lot of time over the years matching aircraft to spare parts, and qualified parts suppliers. And I've been burned from time to time because I didn't ask the right questions, or find the people who had direct experience with the particular spare I was seeking. I also used to work for the Japanese (cold forged components) and I watched them change part dimensions by 1 mm from one year to the next, and it drove American dealers crazy because it forced them to stock too many replacement parts. So, maybe I'm hyper cautious. I'm going to experiment by making the best p/n selection I can and we'll find out if I "chose poorly" (reminds me of the knight in Indiana Jones while referring to the Nazi who drank from the jeweled cup he thought was the Holy Grail )

[Placerville]

Bill,

With all due respect, you're making this more difficult than it needs to be. Your pump is leaking fuel (not oil). The fuel is leaking from the weep hole because the internal diaphragm is breaking down. It will eventually fail and leave you stranded. (The fuel mixes with road crud and looks like oil.) Rebuilding a pump is possible but, the diaphragm material is difficult to source. My advise is to buy a new one. SouthSound Honda has the best price for a new pump for your '79 at $68.88. The part # is 16700-371-014. (The same pump fits several model years.) Their contact number is 306-357-9633. Their Web site is: http://www.southsoundhonda.com/ however, they are currently having some work done on their 'parts' data base and it's not available. FYI, I consistently find that SouthSound Honda has the best prices of any Honda dealer that participates in the 'Honda Parts On-Line' program.

[William Ennis]

Thanks for the advice. I had already ordered the 16700-371-014 from a different source this morning.
Actually I read SouthSound Honda's on-line price as $71.25 + shipping which totals to over $86 and I found three other sources with similar prices.

I know road grime. Also, I know clean oil. And I wiped oil off this fuel pump. But the stain does appear to be fuel varnish and that is what shows contrast in the photos of the fuel pump. It is very tenacious to dissolve that stain. Bottom line is the fuel pump is almost kaput, and remove and replace is the only sound solution. So, I'm following your advice. I do not want the grief of being stranded during a 2,000 mile journey.

[JellyBelly]

I just replaced the fuel pump on my 77. Was going to swtitch to electric but was afraid to install one that varied from 2-3.5 OSI. So went with the $89 eBay own replacement.

[blaffoon]

I know this is an older post, but just a thought. Has the carbs or throttle cables been worked on lately? The left side crankcase/breather hose going to the air filter can get kinked in the process and cause positive pressure to the crankcase and the fuel pump is typically the first place the oil shows up. Yes that weep hole can leak oil not fuel in that case. Just FYI.

[spookytooth]

Going electric is an interesting option... What do you do with the big hole on the back of the head where the mechanical pump used to be?

[Fred Camper]

Most put a plate on there and mount the pump to the close off plate.