The fuel pump on my '86 did the same thing when the inlet port became
clogged with rust and other debris. It also affected the acceleration
to the point where I could not make it up some hills. Removing the tank
and cleaning out the scale and frequent changing of the fuel filter
seems to be the solution. It has been a few months since it last made
noise, and it runs great! Good luck.
Neal Barrentine
Bloomington, Indiana
1986 GL
1960 Baja Bug

On Mar 30, 2006, at 1:44 PM, Automatic digest processor wrote:

> Subject: fuel pump noise
>
> The fuel pump on my 1986  Vanagon seems to be making a louder noise and
> running  constantly. I plan on leaving on a lengthy trip tomorrow but
> am
> getting increasingly uneasy about the state of the device. Any advice
> on
> whether the noise means an impending breakdown. Thanks. David
>