SU fuel pump rebuild kit

Last Friday I received a box from Burlen SU company, which is the sole provider of SU original carbs and fuel pumps and their parts. I wanted to restore a spare AUF 214 fuel pump I had, and also needed 2 banjos for the pump actually fitted on the car as it has cracks and is loosing some fuel. So I made an internet order for a full rebuild kit, 4 banjos (for both pumps) and the banjo rubber gaskets.

Buying from Burlen is the best choice as they only stock new original parts, which should ensure a trouble free rebuild.

But after inspecting the parts I received, and the instructions provided, I soon realized I had made an error. To rebuild a pump you need 2 banjos, and not 2 rubber seals but 3 (one side will need 2 seals because there is a filter). But when making the order, the web site said nothing about how many rubber seals are required, so I just ordered 2 rubber seals….. 2 banjos=2 rubber seals, no??? well… no

Furthermore, I noticed that I was missing a nut, that I supposed was included on the kit, but it was not…. My fault.

No problem, yesterday I call them, and spoke with a sales person and asked if they could send me in a flat envelope both the seal and the nut (about 80p) by normal mail, and he said he was very sorry, but he would charge me 7 pounds because its their standard for small boxes. So I asked him how can it be possible that I order less than one pound, and he wont send it in a normal envelope which should cost 1.5-2 pounds and he said he could not help…..

I then remembered some years ago, when I made an order at AutoSparks for a complete wiring harness for a land lover, and forgot to order 2 grommets. When I call them, the nice lady said: “don’t worry Sir, today I will send you those 2 grommets in an envelope at no cost”. That is a very customer service orientated company, sadly, I cant say the same for Burlen.   

Furthermore…. Before making the order, I found on the internet a post mentioning that all new SU rebuild kits come along with some sort of diode necessary to minimize sparks at the contact points, so gave Burlen a call to confirm, and they said it was true and that all their kits some with the diode. My kit had no diode, so I also asked for it and he said he had no idea about that, but if I wanted it, I had to pay 5 pounds for it…… Just an other good example of customer satisfaction service.

Lastly, and other word of warning, nearly 3 weeks ago, I sent two email (hey, phone calls to UK are expensive!) to the company asking for some technical details, and never got an answer….

So, if you need parts or rebuild kits for your SU carbs or pumps, Burlen is the place to go, but be warned about the customer service and do think twice all the parts you really need, because they wont help much….