Posted By: Anonymous
starts but dies when driving troubleshooting - 09/08/08 05:05 PM
almost since i bought my car I've been struggling with a problem.
I'll be driving along and when I go to give it gas it will bog down instead of going. (still running) then it will die. when I pull over I wont be able to keep it running. it will start and then die 15 to 30 sec later. sometimes i could get about 1/8 a mile before dieing. the last few times this happened I was able to get it going again simply by disconnecting the fuel filter right before the carb and then reconnecting it. at first I'd run the electric fuel pump for a sec and then reconnect. I hear a little pressure being released when i disconnect. just doing this would get me on my way and let me drive just fine the rest of the day. though the last time this happened i had to do this 3 times in about 4 miles to limp home. It's never needed it that often. This seems to happen the most when it's warm and when I've had to idle a lot in stop and go traffic but it's not limited to that situation. for example it's never happened on my way into work but has a few times getting home but the traffic is worse going home.
I didn't figure out this trick for a while and so I used to end up stranded and needing a tow. At first I thought it was a vapor lock problem and have put insulation on the fuel lines by the engine. I also switched to an electric fuel pump back by the tank. we've bypassed the manual one in an attempt to troubleshoot this. We've replaced the coil in case it was going out. The distributor has an ignitor. all the spark plug lines have been tested. the fuel tank seems to be venting correctly.
The bigest problem is that this doesn't happen consistently so I can't reproduce it for the mechanic. He's looked at it a few times and can't find the source of the problem. his best guess's are that maybe the ignitor is overheating or possibly one of the fuel lines is having a problem. mabye even a small flap of fuel sometimes blocking things. the ruber fuel lines have almost all been replaced though and I can run the electric pump and get plenty of gas when this occurs. right up to the carb. I don't think it's necessarily a heat thing because once when it did this i waited a few hours and when it finally got towed to the mechanic it still did it that night. of course it worked fine in the morning when the mechanic got there. since the mechanic doesn't know what's wrong I don't want to just pay and throw parts at it.
At the moment I'm thinking it's a stuck or slightly sticking needle valve in the carb. I'd like to try rebuilding it. any ideas beyond that?
I'll be driving along and when I go to give it gas it will bog down instead of going. (still running) then it will die. when I pull over I wont be able to keep it running. it will start and then die 15 to 30 sec later. sometimes i could get about 1/8 a mile before dieing. the last few times this happened I was able to get it going again simply by disconnecting the fuel filter right before the carb and then reconnecting it. at first I'd run the electric fuel pump for a sec and then reconnect. I hear a little pressure being released when i disconnect. just doing this would get me on my way and let me drive just fine the rest of the day. though the last time this happened i had to do this 3 times in about 4 miles to limp home. It's never needed it that often. This seems to happen the most when it's warm and when I've had to idle a lot in stop and go traffic but it's not limited to that situation. for example it's never happened on my way into work but has a few times getting home but the traffic is worse going home.
I didn't figure out this trick for a while and so I used to end up stranded and needing a tow. At first I thought it was a vapor lock problem and have put insulation on the fuel lines by the engine. I also switched to an electric fuel pump back by the tank. we've bypassed the manual one in an attempt to troubleshoot this. We've replaced the coil in case it was going out. The distributor has an ignitor. all the spark plug lines have been tested. the fuel tank seems to be venting correctly.
The bigest problem is that this doesn't happen consistently so I can't reproduce it for the mechanic. He's looked at it a few times and can't find the source of the problem. his best guess's are that maybe the ignitor is overheating or possibly one of the fuel lines is having a problem. mabye even a small flap of fuel sometimes blocking things. the ruber fuel lines have almost all been replaced though and I can run the electric pump and get plenty of gas when this occurs. right up to the carb. I don't think it's necessarily a heat thing because once when it did this i waited a few hours and when it finally got towed to the mechanic it still did it that night. of course it worked fine in the morning when the mechanic got there. since the mechanic doesn't know what's wrong I don't want to just pay and throw parts at it.
At the moment I'm thinking it's a stuck or slightly sticking needle valve in the carb. I'd like to try rebuilding it. any ideas beyond that?