Have a 1974 SB (everything stock), After I'm running for a while (no time frame) could be 15 minutes, could be 45 minutes, the gas in the fuel filter starts to bubble (like there's air in the line), and the engine dies.
If I pump the peddle (many times) it will turn over, but stall again.
I have checked for any air holes in the fuel line to no avail!
If I run the engine with the gas cap off, same problem.
If I were to install an electric fuel pump, would this solve the problem? Will have to put a toggle switch on the dash to start and stop the pump when I start the car?
I don't want to drive it very far, and this problem has made me start to loose interest on working to restore it!
Just a question - are you sure it doesn't usually have bubbles in it when it's running? Maybe you just see the bubbles when you look, and you only look when it's having troubles.
It's pretty normal to have bubbles in the filter when at operating temperature.
Something else is happening with your engine, I'm sure. Maybe it's overheating the carb - vapor lock. Others can help you more with that. Never happened to me.
On Sun, 10 Aug 2003 01:40:52 GMT, "Steve Evans" left Mt Vesuvius in a state of jealous awe as he began spewing from the mouth thusly:
I once read a website that said something like this:
Time to take it out for a test drive!!! Carb rebuilt and brakes redone... Time to test it out! I took off down the road and pulled onto hwy 540 which is about two miles from my house. Began to accelerate when... AGGGGG!!!!
*sputter sputter sputter*!!!!! The car started running like crap again! Wouldn't idle! Cut out on me and left me on the side of the road again!!! Why!?!?!? What did I do to deserve this!?!?!? What could it be now?
Whew! So... I made it home. Got in the garage. Car was running like crap. I had the idea to look under the car quickly at the fuel filter just after it died on me again. I saw bubbles floating up through the filter... AH HAH!!!! There's got to be something clogging my fuel line somewhere!!! I quickly took the cap off of the gas tank (I'd done that earlier thinking maybe I was building up a vacuum in the tank...not the problem) and then removed the fuel line where it connected to the fuel pump and shot 90 PSI of compressed air through the entire line. I heard the gas bubble in the tank. Reconnected the fuel line and got back in the car. Turned the key... Engine had to turn over a few times to get gas back to the carb... It fired up! And ran. Very smoothly.... So... I drained the tank, washed it out with my garden hose, and sat it in front of a fan in the garage to dry out. I blew the line out again...
I was having the *exact* same problem you describe. Once I blew out the fuel line and cleaned out the gas tank the problem went away and has never come back. That was last summer. Good luck!
Same type, year, problem with mine. Have had it for years and now seems fixed thanks to group. I installed an electric fuel pump under the gas tank and new rubber hoses. I tried the pump in two areas in the rear and it still didn't work all the time, so don't waste your time with that idea. I used a toggle switch to turn the pump on/off and no more problems. Dennis
On Sun, 10 Aug 2003 11:11:47 -0500 (CDT), snipped-for-privacy@webtv.net (Dennis Wik) ran around screaming and yelling:
a good idea to add a relay(see speedy i *do* like relays...LOL_) on an electric pump....that way if an accident happens and the engine stalls(which it does in most hard hits due to fuel slosh in the carb) the pump won't continue pumping...could save your life in a rear collision that ignites gas from a broken fuel line...Speedy Jim has a diagram on his site...i will let him step in and post the link, because i am lazy today...hehe.....i have also installed an "inertia" switch from a ford truck inline on electric pumps before... J
I'll add these questions: Is this a new fuel pump? New hoses that are clamped to the lines? No debris inside of the gas tank? Is that screen still on the gas tank outlet? Is the pushrod moving inside the fuel pump block very nicely?
I have had to polish up the pushrod and cylinder it rides in on some vehicles.
later, dave Reminder........ Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way, when you criticize them, you are a mile away from them, and you have their shoes. Frieda Norris
On Sun, 10 Aug 2003 13:20:47 -0400, Joey Tribiani left Mt Vesuvius in a state of jealous awe as he began spewing from the mouth thusly:
But before you do all of the stuff that costs $$$ at least try blowing the fuel line out and cleaning the gas tank. I'm telling you, I was seeing practically the exact same thing you're seeing and blowing out the lines and cleaning the tank fixed the problem. I didn't imagine the problem. When your car just stops running it's pretty real. I'd replaced the fuel pump less than 5000 miles before that so I "knew" that wasn't the problem and I'd also rebuilt the carb. You may just have some trash in the tank or in the line somewhere that's floating around and getting stuck and blocking the fuel. You stop and let it sit a few minutes and that trash floats back out of the way and things work again for a short while. Hell, replace the stock pump with an electric one and a toggle switch and airbag in the car if it makes you feel better. :-) I'm just a cheap bastard. Again, good luck with it.
Travis, it didn't cost that much. Auto Zone listed an electric pump for my 74. It was rated at 3 to 4 lbs pressure I believe, made in Mexico and cost about $34.00 if I remember right. The rubber line and clamps were another ten bucks at the most. Best of all, it works. My line was open to the tank and the bubbles and no gas problem happened at engine temps over 210 degrees, so I blamed vapor lock.
No wars here. You tell what worked for you. I tried what you did but it did not work for me. I also tried different fuel pumps including an electric. When I still had the problem I posted it a while back and many here especially Speedy Jim gave me the solution that works. When I read the post today with the same problem, same year and model I thought maybe he could use the same solution. Maybe I assume to much. As far as being cheap, I would win that war. Dennis
On Sun, 10 Aug 2003 17:51:26 -0400, travis ran around screaming and yelling:
hey i'm with ya shag...even if it does not fix the OP's problem it is a great "maintenance" procedure...
now what if the OP does your procedure and then his car dies while entering an intersection...then a traffic camera snaps a pic of him
*IN* the act of running the light, even though he was actually broken down? then it will be your fault that he got judged by a friggin machine...(hows that for gasoline on a fire?LOLOLOLOL_) J
Ok Travis, I don't know how you did it but after my last post last night I drove to get some ice cream and the electric fuel pump quit pumping. I had to leave the bug by the side of the road, walk home and I jumped into my "westy" (see my last thread), started it up, pulled on the lights and lost all lights quit. I hope it is just fuses but after experiencing the "Shaggy Shock" in two vehicles, I wish to say I'm sorry for not following your advise in the first place and keep my mouth shut. I will not question your views for a long time. Now, I will click my heels together three times and see if I can fix my problems. Dennis
Crap! Which pump are you using, Dennis? Let me know what made it quit. I have a very long trip to make with my new pump and can't afford to be broken down. Maybe I should buy a spare.
John, it is a Mexican in line from auto zone and I don't know why it quit but after a new fuse, it works fine again this morning. I put in an inline fuse when I did the toggle switch and maybe I left it on or else it was the "Shag". Don't worry.
Shaggie, The pump works again like magic. Thank you. As far as the "Westy", I think I will take out the new engine and put a used one back in it that I have here, play with it a little and sell it. What do you think?
MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here.
All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.