Impending diesel pump failure - indicators?

[0191mark]

Diesel pumps - is it possible to tell that they're going to fail? Any particular sound to listen out for, or any other characteristic? Specifically I'm referring to a BoschVP44 type.

[GavinPearson]

With these pumps there isn't a great deal to indicate that the electronics may be on their way out (a known weak point) but there is some preventative maintenance you can do.

1)drain the fuel system of water regularly

2) fit new fuel filters regularly

3) use real diesel, not biodiesel.

[0191mark]

Thanks Gavin - what about lifespan of this pump? How long would you expect it to last?

[Jack_and_MLE]

Apparently it is the heat cycle that kills the electronic, which cannot do anything about it
They also don't like to run "dry" so don't run out of diesel

Jack

[Petemate]

Agreed on all the advice given. My Rover 45 TDi has the same type pump, and while I do change the filter regularly and only use proper fuel, I still wonder about how long it will last (132k+ miles so far and counting...), even though fellow MG-Rover members claim mieages of 250k and more.
Pete

[0191mark]

Jack_and_MLE said:

Apparently it is the heat cycle that kills the electronic, which cannot do anything about it
They also don't like to run "dry" so don't run out of diesel

Jack

I wonder if having some sort of heatsink on the ECU would help - in an attempt to stabilise or make heat transfer consistent or slower... perhaps academic, just a thought.

[0191mark]

Petemate said:

Agreed on all the advice given. My Rover 45 TDi has the same type pump, and while I do change the filter regularly and only use proper fuel, I still wonder about how long it will last (132k+ miles so far and counting...), even though fellow MG-Rover members claim mieages of 250k and more.
Pete

Good to hear, I thought they may have been something which would definitely need replacing under normal use, like a clutch.

[GavinPearson]

0191mark said:

Jack_and_MLE said:

Apparently it is the heat cycle that kills the electronic, which cannot do anything about it
They also don't like to run "dry" so don't run out of diesel

Jack

I wonder if having some sort of heatsink on the ECU would help - in an attempt to stabilise or make heat transfer consistent or slower... perhaps academic, just a thought.

If the engine bay is roasting hot - not untypical on turbo diesels - a heat sink will do nothing.

The only way to fix the problem is to cool the unit.

Having had a bit of experience with engine bay electronics it could be a thermal cycling problem and you can get a board to fail without it ever passing current - just heating up and cooling down the unit will fatigue the solder joints on the components.

[Mr2Mike]

GavinPearson said:

Having had a bit of experience with engine bay electronics it could be a thermal cycling problem and you can get a board to fail without it ever passing current - just heating up and cooling down the unit will fatigue the solder joints on the components.

And running at elevated temperatures will reduce the reliability of electronic components even without the heat cycling.