Peter---You covered a lot of possibilities on why the fuel pump might
appear to leak oil. Let's go over a few. First, it's good that some of
the major parts suppliers have a service that offers advice. TRF Dave is
a nice guy, but I'm surprised that he took you in the direction of
checking for crankcase blowby pressure, before offering some of the more
likely causes of oil in this area.
You started with "...ever since I installed my current engine..." which
I take to mean that this pump didn't leak oil before. One (re)assembly
that can cause this would be the way the fuel pump mounting studs are
screwed into the block. If these studs are 'backward' there won't be
enough threads before the nuts bottom out. These nuts will feel tight
but won't crush the gasket enough to seal the pump body to the engine.
Take a look here, if you haven't already checked this.
Another possibility that can make it look like the pump is leaking oil
is the oil gallery plug directly under it. When this plug seeps, oil
will run down the back side of the block, and for all the world look as
if it's coming from the pump. Blocks that were acid dipped can cause
these aluminum plugs to seep. Plugs are under full oil pressure, whereas
the fuel pump only gets oil splashed from the cam.
These plugs can be a real chore to seal. Holler back, if this happens to
be so.
If you still find it's the pump body where oil is coming out, there are
several clear but nasty sealants you can spread over all the orifaces.
The pump really shouldn't leak, given the little bit of oil it sees.
Dick Taylor
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