DDK - Die Deutschen Klassiker

engine only runs for matter of seconds then stops , as i am a novice and working only with help from posts on here or advice from people i could do with some help , i have been advised(by someone who knows his way round cars...but not 914's) that i need a new fuel pump , but when it was garaged goin on 20 years ago everything was ok , is there a checklist of things to look for before i go for a new pump ? , i have looked on the old posts but didnt really find anything , which is unusual because i have found this forum more than helpful , thanks.

have you checked the fuel pump to see if there i sfuel being pumped? Have you checked the fuel pressure at the carbs? When the engine stops have you opened up the carbs to see if their reservouirs are full of fuel?

i have not , novice following directions , how can i check these?

On carbs or original fuel injection ?
Can you hear the fuel pump running with the ignition on ?
Without the engine running it may well start and then stop fairly soon once the pressure has built up

If on carbs :
disconnect the fuel line at the carbs
divert it into a suitable container
turn on the ignition
If you have a continuous supply of fuel then it's not your pump.

If you dont have continuous supply then it may be the pump or it may just be a blockage . In line fuel filter ? Or maybe in the tank itself ?
( there is a small mesh filter above the fuel out line )

thanks for replys , its on original fuel injectors , the pump makes a very faint noise , will have another look tonight and see if i can suss anything or follow advice here...cheers again for replys...much appreciated

I had a similar problem with my 912e, although I had converted to carbs at the time but retained the existing loom and relay for the fuel pump. Not sure how the relay works but basically I could start the car and then it would stop within a few moments. Turned out a signal is sent from the dissy/coil to the relay to tell it that the engine is running, else its cuts the power to the fuel pump. The relay allows momentary running of the fuel pump to get the engine started and as mentioned the signal from the dissy/coil tells it that the engine is running or not. So check your connections at the dissy and coil. I may be wrong but its what I figured out rightly or wrongly, plus mine was running L Jet, I guess your is D jet.

cheers for that nige , will check tonight