Kenne Bell's Boost-a-Pump

You'll often see bolt-on cars, in particular, cruising around with stock fuel pumps, big injectors and adjustable fuel pressure regulators cranked up to diving-bell pressures. More is better, right? When supercharging enters the fray, the EEC's precious quest for balance is washed away by the flow of Old Faithful in-line pumps and the arbitrary pressure of dumbbell fuel management units. Adding a high-flow fuel pump will help the naturally-aspirated crowd by giving the injectors proper flow with stock pressure. The supercharged crowd, however, needs some adjustability to get the most bang from forced induction. According to Kenne Bell, they have a solution for both - the Boost-a-Pump.

Kenne Bell is best known as a bolt-on provider, to the 5.0 world, of their Whipplchargers, Switch Chips and ram air kits. Their latest offering, the BAP, delivers extra fuel volume by increasing voltage to the fuel pump. It also maintains consistency by leveling fuel pump voltage, which can vary by 10 percent, as it is sometimes lost to other electric accessories like the headlights. By increasing pump voltage by up to 5 volts, the BAP allows you to increase fuel pump flow by 50 percent. Therefore, the BAP can supplant a fuel pump swap by increasing the volume of your existing pump, stock or aftermarket; plus it offers adjustability. That adjustability is what Kenne Bell says makes the BAP a natural for forced-induction applications. In fact they have two versions, one that engages at wide open throttle for normally-aspirated cars and one that clicks on at 3 1/2 lbs of boost. In fact, Kenne Bell eschews traditional in-line booster pumps with FMUs due to their noisy operation, "excessive" pressure and nonadjustability.

Kenne Bell asserts you can use the BAP to adjust the fuel volume and, therefore, FMU pressure anywhere from 55 to 90 psi. This will allow you to optimize the A/F ratio even with a fixed FMU, though a bigger in-tank pump will likely be necessary for high-powered applications. BAPs shift the popular pump paradigms as follows: 88 lph to 132 lph, 110 lph to 165 lph, 155 lph to 232 lph, 190 lph to 285 lph and 220 lph to 330 lph.

BAP installations simply splice into the fuel pump's power wiring and snake wires to the boost or vacuum switch and control knob. With easy installation, a $199 price tag and adjustability on their side, Boost-a-Pump knobs should soon be popping up in many cars, right next to boost retard knobs. - Steve Turner

Source: Kenne Bell 10743 Bell Court Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730 (909) 941-0985 (909) 944-4883 fax