Help on HWY 15

unthinkablecreation

unthinkablecreation

New member
Jun 4, 2018
37
6
3
San Jose, CA
Hey Everyone,

So in an effort to get back from a weekend in Las Vegas I think my fuel pump has called it quits. I'm currently stranded on HWY 15 between baker and
Barstow California. Any advice on how to get some help?

Feel free to call me if you happen to be around here 408 775 5569
--
Angel Rodriguez
San Jose, CA
1978 23' Birchhaven
 
Well that was an adventure I did not sign up for. For context this is my first car/house and I never worked on engines before. I had spent the weekend
in Las Vegas with old friends and needed to be back in San Francisco for a flight Monday afternoon.

I spent the night in the Mojave desert and enjoyed a beautiful sunrise before getting towed into Barstow. I get my flight changed to Tuesday
afternoon.

At Barstow the a local mechanic looked it over and agreed the fuel pump needed to be replaced. A special thanks to Bob who sent me over the Napa part
numbers for the pump replacement. The mechanic calls NAPA anyway to confirm they do have the pump in stock. They say they do and can get it over to us
by 3 pm.

For some reason the mechanic did not trust me or this great forum for part numbers and insisted on taking the pump off the engine before ordering the
parts.

Four hours later and I'm getting impatient. So I have a look and notice the fuel line fittings are being rounded so I was not happy. I give Manuel a
call at MGM GMC and he fills me in on what needs to be done. I relay the advice to the shop and they become defensive. Eventually we come to an
agreement of cutting the fuel line at the pump and making a small union using a rubber hose and pipe clamps. It's 2 pm now and we finally get the pump
off. The mechanic heads over the NAPA and of course they don't have this part in stock. The local shop says they have exhausted all their resources
and I'm SOL. So I call Manuel again and decided to rent a car a make the 80 mile drive to his shop. Manuel was a great help giving me all the correct
fittings and advice I need to get the job done.

On the way back to Barstow the manager of the shop calls me and tells me his closing up shop keep in mind its only 5pm. I am livid as I just spend my
whole day here only to be let down again. I offer to pay over time so I can get out of here. No offer changes their mind and sure enough I get to the
shop and see my GMC outside with parts on the ground and a closed up shop. The manager tries to convince me that this is a piece of shit and
unreliable and even if they stayed late it would breakdown before I got to San Francisco.

Well at this point my only option is to fix it or abandon my GMC to make my flight. I decided to fix it while the sun was still out. I managed to get
everything together right before sunset. As I went to crank the engine the battery dies. I literally run to the nearest auto store and pick up a new
battery. Once I hook everything up it it finally starts and what a satisfying feeling that was. As I'm getting ready to head out someone steps out of
the shop with the manager on the phone. He was surprised I got it together and tried to up charge for the lack of work they did. It was satisfying to
argue with them knowing how they have failed in so many ways. Ended up paying $300 for the tow and two hours of labor.

This forum has been invaluable and I am so grateful for this community.

While it wasn't an ideal situation it finally got me to work on the engine and feel more comfortable getting this beast of a vehicle running.
--
Angel Rodriguez
San Jose, CA
1978 23' Birchhaven
 
Wow wish had been there to help

On Thu, Jul 18, 2019 at 1:14 AM Angel Rodriguez via Gmclist <

> Well that was an adventure I did not sign up for. For context this is my
> first car/house and I never worked on engines before. I had spent the
> weekend
> in Las Vegas with old friends and needed to be back in San Francisco for a
> flight Monday afternoon.
>
> I spent the night in the Mojave desert and enjoyed a beautiful sunrise
> before getting towed into Barstow. I get my flight changed to Tuesday
> afternoon.
>
> At Barstow the a local mechanic looked it over and agreed the fuel pump
> needed to be replaced. A special thanks to Bob who sent me over the Napa
> part
> numbers for the pump replacement. The mechanic calls NAPA anyway to
> confirm they do have the pump in stock. They say they do and can get it
> over to us
> by 3 pm.
>
> For some reason the mechanic did not trust me or this great forum for part
> numbers and insisted on taking the pump off the engine before ordering the
> parts.
>
> Four hours later and I'm getting impatient. So I have a look and notice
> the fuel line fittings are being rounded so I was not happy. I give Manuel a
> call at MGM GMC and he fills me in on what needs to be done. I relay the
> advice to the shop and they become defensive. Eventually we come to an
> agreement of cutting the fuel line at the pump and making a small union
> using a rubber hose and pipe clamps. It's 2 pm now and we finally get the
> pump
> off. The mechanic heads over the NAPA and of course they don't have this
> part in stock. The local shop says they have exhausted all their resources
> and I'm SOL. So I call Manuel again and decided to rent a car a make the
> 80 mile drive to his shop. Manuel was a great help giving me all the correct
> fittings and advice I need to get the job done.
>
> On the way back to Barstow the manager of the shop calls me and tells me
> his closing up shop keep in mind its only 5pm. I am livid as I just spend my
> whole day here only to be let down again. I offer to pay over time so I
> can get out of here. No offer changes their mind and sure enough I get to
> the
> shop and see my GMC outside with parts on the ground and a closed up shop.
> The manager tries to convince me that this is a piece of shit and
> unreliable and even if they stayed late it would breakdown before I got to
> San Francisco.
>
> Well at this point my only option is to fix it or abandon my GMC to make
> my flight. I decided to fix it while the sun was still out. I managed to get
> everything together right before sunset. As I went to crank the engine the
> battery dies. I literally run to the nearest auto store and pick up a new
> battery. Once I hook everything up it it finally starts and what a
> satisfying feeling that was. As I'm getting ready to head out someone steps
> out of
> the shop with the manager on the phone. He was surprised I got it together
> and tried to up charge for the lack of work they did. It was satisfying to
> argue with them knowing how they have failed in so many ways. Ended up
> paying $300 for the tow and two hours of labor.
>
> This forum has been invaluable and I am so grateful for this community.
>
> While it wasn't an ideal situation it finally got me to work on the engine
> and feel more comfortable getting this beast of a vehicle running.
> --
> Angel Rodriguez
> San Jose, CA
> 1978 23' Birchhaven
>
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
>
--
Gene Fisher -- 74-23,77PB/ore/ca
“Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today --- give him a URL and
-------
http://bdub.net/gmcmotorhome.info/
Alternator Protection Cable
http://bdub.net/gmcmotorhome.info/APC.html
 
Angel,

Sorry to hear of your annoying adventure. But at least you finally got
your hands greasy and learned the source of my, and many others' motto:
"If I didn't do it, it ain't been done." :-)

EVERYTHING on my GMC has been touched at least once in the past 20 years.
Manny rebuilt the transmission. I've done all the rest except paint.

May your future travels be less trouble!

Ken H.
Americus, GA
'76 X-Birchaven w/Cad500/Howell EFI & EBL,
Manny Brakes & 1-Ton, Troy-Bilt APU, etc., etc., etc.
www.gmcwipersetc.com

On Thu, Jul 18, 2019 at 5:56 AM gene Fisher via Gmclist <

> Wow wish had been there to help
>
>
>
> On Thu, Jul 18, 2019 at 1:14 AM Angel Rodriguez via Gmclist <

>
> > Well that was an adventure I did not sign up for. For context this is my
> > first car/house and I never worked on engines before. I had spent the
> > weekend
> > in Las Vegas with old friends and needed to be back in San Francisco for
> a
> > flight Monday afternoon.
> >
> > I spent the night in the Mojave desert and enjoyed a beautiful sunrise
> > before getting towed into Barstow. I get my flight changed to Tuesday
> > afternoon.
> >
> > At Barstow the a local mechanic looked it over and agreed the fuel pump
> > needed to be replaced. A special thanks to Bob who sent me over the Napa
> > part
> > numbers for the pump replacement. The mechanic calls NAPA anyway to
> > confirm they do have the pump in stock. They say they do and can get it
> > over to us
> > by 3 pm.
> >
> > For some reason the mechanic did not trust me or this great forum for
> part
> > numbers and insisted on taking the pump off the engine before ordering
> the
> > parts.
> >
> > Four hours later and I'm getting impatient. So I have a look and notice
> > the fuel line fittings are being rounded so I was not happy. I give
> Manuel a
> > call at MGM GMC and he fills me in on what needs to be done. I relay the
> > advice to the shop and they become defensive. Eventually we come to an
> > agreement of cutting the fuel line at the pump and making a small union
> > using a rubber hose and pipe clamps. It's 2 pm now and we finally get the
> > pump
> > off. The mechanic heads over the NAPA and of course they don't have this
> > part in stock. The local shop says they have exhausted all their
> resources
> > and I'm SOL. So I call Manuel again and decided to rent a car a make the
> > 80 mile drive to his shop. Manuel was a great help giving me all the
> correct
> > fittings and advice I need to get the job done.
> >
> > On the way back to Barstow the manager of the shop calls me and tells me
> > his closing up shop keep in mind its only 5pm. I am livid as I just
> spend my
> > whole day here only to be let down again. I offer to pay over time so I
> > can get out of here. No offer changes their mind and sure enough I get to
> > the
> > shop and see my GMC outside with parts on the ground and a closed up
> shop.
> > The manager tries to convince me that this is a piece of shit and
> > unreliable and even if they stayed late it would breakdown before I got
> to
> > San Francisco.
> >
> > Well at this point my only option is to fix it or abandon my GMC to make
> > my flight. I decided to fix it while the sun was still out. I managed to
> get
> > everything together right before sunset. As I went to crank the engine
> the
> > battery dies. I literally run to the nearest auto store and pick up a new
> > battery. Once I hook everything up it it finally starts and what a
> > satisfying feeling that was. As I'm getting ready to head out someone
> steps
> > out of
> > the shop with the manager on the phone. He was surprised I got it
> together
> > and tried to up charge for the lack of work they did. It was satisfying
> to
> > argue with them knowing how they have failed in so many ways. Ended up
> > paying $300 for the tow and two hours of labor.
> >
> > This forum has been invaluable and I am so grateful for this community.
> >
> > While it wasn't an ideal situation it finally got me to work on the
> engine
> > and feel more comfortable getting this beast of a vehicle running.
> > --
> > Angel Rodriguez
> > San Jose, CA
> > 1978 23' Birchhaven
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > GMCnet mailing list
> > Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> > http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
> >
> --
> Gene Fisher -- 74-23,77PB/ore/ca
> “Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today --- give him a URL and
> -------
> http://bdub.net/gmcmotorhome.info/
> Alternator Protection Cable
> http://bdub.net/gmcmotorhome.info/APC.html
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
>
 
Good on you for getting it done!! Sadly you have experienced something I hate to hear as a mechanic....

As my wife keeps saying to me when I have to fix something on our coach "this is supposed to be relaxing"....so hopefully your next adventure will
be....lol.

--
Rich Mondor,

Brockville, ON

77 Hughes 2600
 
This sounds like one of my days.

jofarr
Soddy daisy tn
74, 76, 78 26'

----- Original Message -----
From: Angel Rodriguez via Gmclist
Reply-To:
To:
Cc: Angel Rodriguez
Sent: 7/18/2019 4:13:53 AM
Subject: Re: [GMCnet] Help on HWY 15
________________________________________________________________________________

Well that was an adventure I did not sign up for. For context this is my first car/house and I never worked on engines before. I had spent the weekend
in Las Vegas with old friends and needed to be back in San Francisco for a flight Monday afternoon.

I spent the night in the Mojave desert and enjoyed a beautiful sunrise before getting towed into Barstow. I get my flight changed to Tuesday
afternoon.

At Barstow the a local mechanic looked it over and agreed the fuel pump needed to be replaced. A special thanks to Bob who sent me over the Napa part
numbers for the pump replacement. The mechanic calls NAPA anyway to confirm they do have the pump in stock. They say they do and can get it over to us
by 3 pm.

For some reason the mechanic did not trust me or this great forum for part numbers and insisted on taking the pump off the engine before ordering the
parts.

Four hours later and I'm getting impatient. So I have a look and notice the fuel line fittings are being rounded so I was not happy. I give Manuel a
call at MGM GMC and he fills me in on what needs to be done. I relay the advice to the shop and they become defensive. Eventually we come to an
agreement of cutting the fuel line at the pump and making a small union using a rubber hose and pipe clamps. It's 2 pm now and we finally get the pump
off. The mechanic heads over the NAPA and of course they don't have this part in stock. The local shop says they have exhausted all their resources
and I'm SOL. So I call Manuel again and decided to rent a car a make the 80 mile drive to his shop. Manuel was a great help giving me all the correct
fittings and advice I need to get the job done.

On the way back to Barstow the manager of the shop calls me and tells me his closing up shop keep in mind its only 5pm. I am livid as I just spend my
whole day here only to be let down again. I offer to pay over time so I can get out of here. No offer changes their mind and sure enough I get to the
shop and see my GMC outside with parts on the ground and a closed up shop. The manager tries to convince me that this is a piece of shit and
unreliable and even if they stayed late it would breakdown before I got to San Francisco.

Well at this point my only option is to fix it or abandon my GMC to make my flight. I decided to fix it while the sun was still out. I managed to get
everything together right before sunset. As I went to crank the engine the battery dies. I literally run to the nearest auto store and pick up a new
battery. Once I hook everything up it it finally starts and what a satisfying feeling that was. As I'm getting ready to head out someone steps out of
the shop with the manager on the phone. He was surprised I got it together and tried to up charge for the lack of work they did. It was satisfying to
argue with them knowing how they have failed in so many ways. Ended up paying $300 for the tow and two hours of labor.

This forum has been invaluable and I am so grateful for this community.

While it wasn't an ideal situation it finally got me to work on the engine and feel more comfortable getting this beast of a vehicle running.
--
Angel Rodriguez
San Jose, CA
1978 23' Birchhaven

_______________________________________________
GMCnet mailing list
Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
 
Name of the shop and location?

Glad you got going.
--
Larry Nelson Springfield, MO
Ex GMC'er, then GM Busnut
now '77 Eleganza ARS WB0JOT
 
I have changed or helped change a couple of those in the past on the 403 and 455 engines. It is not a difficult job except working around that
radiator hose. Those pumps are cheap and I have never changed mine so I bought a spare figuring someday I will need to change mine change mine. for
a mechanic to wound off the fittings, he must have been totally inept. He probably was trying to use metric wrenches on them. If there is now any
rubber hose between the pump and the carb, replace it with the correct steel line. If not some day it will leak and bring on the pressure side of the
pump it will spray gasoline all over the place. That is an instant fire danger.

Jim K. has pre-bent steel replacement lines:
https://www.gmcrvparts.com/product-p/gm12-007.5.htm
and also a flexible insulated line:
https://www.gmcrvparts.com/product-p/gm12-007.4.htm

On the few I have done on the road for people, NAPA and Carquest has always had a replacement pump in stock. You never know for sure.

So it might be worth the effort to carry your own spare. If you do carry a spare, you know that the installed one will never fail.

The only spares that I carried and really used is a belt and an ignition module and coil.

Since I have an added electric boost pump, I did make up an adapter to enable me to remove the two fuel lines at the pump and join them together to
bypass a defective pump. It was a great idea but I have never needed it.

I am glad to hear that you are back on the road. It is too bad that you ran into an inept mechanic / shop.
--
Ken Burton - N9KB
76 Palm Beach
Hebron, Indiana
 
One tool you need to purchase is the 5/8" Line Wrench. It grabs all the
edges ad prevent rounding of the nut as they tend to bind. Also a cresent
wrech to hold the housing .
Also to speed up and ease changing the Small carb filter is to remove the 4
bolts that hold the carb down, then slide the carb back about 1/2" to allow
the housing to move forward and change the filter.
Break loose the fitting and the housing before removing the 4 bolts.
Seen lot of people removing the thermostat housing and making a mess.

On Thu, Jul 18, 2019 at 8:52 AM Ken Burton via Gmclist <

> I have changed or helped change a couple of those in the past on the 403
> and 455 engines. It is not a difficult job except working around that
> radiator hose. Those pumps are cheap and I have never changed mine so I
> bought a spare figuring someday I will need to change mine change mine. for
> a mechanic to wound off the fittings, he must have been totally inept. He
> probably was trying to use metric wrenches on them. If there is now any
> rubber hose between the pump and the carb, replace it with the correct
> steel line. If not some day it will leak and bring on the pressure side of
> the
> pump it will spray gasoline all over the place. That is an instant fire
> danger.
>
> Jim K. has pre-bent steel replacement lines:
> https://www.gmcrvparts.com/product-p/gm12-007.5.htm
> and also a flexible insulated line:
> https://www.gmcrvparts.com/product-p/gm12-007.4.htm
>
> On the few I have done on the road for people, NAPA and Carquest has
> always had a replacement pump in stock. You never know for sure.
>
> So it might be worth the effort to carry your own spare. If you do carry
> a spare, you know that the installed one will never fail.
>
> The only spares that I carried and really used is a belt and an ignition
> module and coil.
>
> Since I have an added electric boost pump, I did make up an adapter to
> enable me to remove the two fuel lines at the pump and join them together to
> bypass a defective pump. It was a great idea but I have never needed it.
>
> I am glad to hear that you are back on the road. It is too bad that you
> ran into an inept mechanic / shop.
> --
> Ken Burton - N9KB
> 76 Palm Beach
> Hebron, Indiana
>
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
>

--
Jim Kanomata
Applied/GMC, Newark,CA
jimk
http://www.appliedgmc.com
1-800-752-7502
 
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