Hey there guys... I'm one of the dudes from the states and I'm an MSF member. I can personally testify that the physical hardware of the pumps is what fails. We haven't had too many people who have blown because of the fuel pump recently. Back in the day, there were probably more because we couldn't monitor fuel pressure. Since then, we usually catch the pump before it goes to hell.
I can show you logs from our users where fuel pressure is dropping.
The gen2 fuel pumps do fail more frequently and sooner because of the ECU logic (that seems to be the theory, anyway), but the hardware is still what's failing.
It's got nothing to do with leaning out. The pumps don't fail when the car gets leaned out. They typically fail when you start upping the boost. Our AP maps target higher boost than most you guys are running (I think), so that's probably a contributing factor to the failure. I can assure you that we're well aware of tuning limitations, and we know how to tune safely.
Eh... Conjecture.
A few things... These cars run like shit rich... Anything richer than an 11.5 is way too rich and the car runs like dick. Cold climate contributes to the issue (mostly because of increased boost pressure due to denser air), but we've had people from warm areas (Texas, California, Florida, etc...) with failed fuel pumps.
Second thing... We have very few people running VTA. There's plenty of failed fuel pumps that ran recirc the whole time. Also on this note... How does VTA result in unmetered air in the system?
Third, I'm using 5w-40 for my oil and I've been through several pumps. I also fail to see why the oil contributes to failed fuel pumps (maybe the cam follower on the fuel pump?)
Fourth... These motors hold a hell of a lot more than 300
Bottom line is that it is a problem in the states. It's not a made up pandemic or anything like that. Here, if you modify your car, your fuel pump will fail eventually. It's inevitable.
It's not just our cars either. The VW crowd (who uses the same fuel pump) have the same issues.
Oh, and for giggles, my mod list
Mod 1: ATP GT3076R
Mod 2: Mideival Exhaust Manifold
Mod 4: Ported Intake Manifold
Mod 5: Corksport TBE (Catless)
Mod 6: Custom 3.5" Intake/Inlet and MAF Housing
Mod 7: TurboXS FMIC
Mod 8: TurboSmart Dual Port BOV
Mod 9: Denso ITV22s
Mod 10: Devil's Own Water Meth Injection
Mod 11: Custom PCV System
Mod 12: COBB Accessport With Custom Map
New Fuel Pump: Y
Fuel Pump Type: CPE HPFP
How old are your mods? 7 Months
Any Zoom Zoom Boom: No Boom
Boost: 25 psi street/27 psi track
Power: 450ish whp