I just finished my interior today so I took my 72 SB out for a ride. Its was running great..when I went around a turn it felt like I was running out of gas the motor cut in and out, then it ran perfect for 2 miles. Later I was going up a hill and the motor start cutting out and I had to feather the pedal to get to a side road. I pulled to the side of the road and I shut the car off for 5 minutes, started it up and had no problems for about a half hour of driving. I went and got sea foam as well as a new fuel filter, the fuel filter did nothing and now when I start it, its running very rough until I'm able to feather the rpms up to 3k. I later started it now and it ran perfect for about 5 minutes and the started idling really bad and stalled. Could this be my coil? Any other options. I did notice a slight kink in the rubber hose going from the solid fuel line to the fuel pump but its not kinked but maybe 30% and its not the recomended s shaped hose, its just standard hose.

What I did so far.

Checked for vacuum leaks
Changed the fuel filter

Please help me save my car from getting snowed on, as Its too far away from my garage to push it in...........

 

After the car dies, try looking into the carb while you move the accelerator, look for gas getting pumped in. If no gas, you may be onto the problem with the fuel hose or it could be a problem with the "sock" in the tank being clogged.
If there is still gas when you pump the accellerator, it may be a coil issue. Have you checked for spark?

 

Thanks Aktbird, I'm getting fuel. Is it possible for the coil to be temperamental?

 

Sounds like there's not enough fuel in your bowls. Have you checked your fuel pump lately? Is it an old one?

 

The engine was rebuilt 5k miles ago in 99, I think they would have put a new fuel pump on. The reason I think it could be the coil is because the change is so abrupt. When the car is running rough I smell gas.

 

Hey there,
It sounds like your haveing the same problem i was. After she would warm up she would backfire then stall. I replaced all kinds of stuff but at last i replaced the ignition module in the distributor and she ran great today. I add the link to my original post.
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c3-t...ough-carb.html

 

Hamin.... Yeah, but now the problem has progressed to happening when the cars cold too, it has gotten worse. I was able to limp it in to my garage. Also I don't have an HEI Dist. I think I'll start with the coil and then install some new s hoses to the fuel pump.

 

Do you have points? You might check the dwell.

 

Yes I have points, How do I check the dwell?

 

You use a dwell meter. And no, this isn't a smart *** response.

Do you know how to check the gap on the points? I believe it's supposed to be .025, but I changed from points to electronic about ten years ago.

 

Haha....no idea

 

If you are running pionts, checking the dwell is a good place to start as suggested by rcread. Usually the ignition coil fails totally when bad. That's not to say there isn't a loose wire or faulty ground somewhere. The kink in the fuel line could possibly restrict flow at high rpm's but that would only cause a lean fuel mix, not stalling. Checking the float level is aanother great suggestion as a low float level would totally starve the engine during high demand causing the motor to cut out like you have described (i've had this happen on motorcycles). Check all connections in the ignition circuit, even the ignition switch if none of these other ideas works. If you have a timing light you can check for spark, wich may help identify if the problem is electrical or fuel related. You could also give the spark plugs a look over right after the problem appears to see if they are wet, indicating a possible electrical problem. These are just some ideas off the top of my head.

Kelly

 

Update:
I changed the coil. Same thing happens.
I checked the vacuum lines all looked good.
I am getting plenty of gas.
I did take the dist cap off and did notice a small amount of what looked like oil along the rim thats on the dist.
Also when I start the car the wiper door jumps, not sure if that could be a vacuum mystery.
The points and distributor look brand new, I've only owned the car for 4 months.

 

Hello Sidepiper,
I have a 1973 with the same problem. It will run for about 2 miles, and then die like it is out of gas. My problem is not fixed either, but you did rule out one of my ideas.

I thought it might be my coil, and I have not replaced that yet. I see that you did and it did not help, so that can save me some time.

I am now going to replace the sock in the fuel tank. I will probably take out the fuel pickup unit itself, since it is at the bottom of the tank and easy to get to. ( Before 74 the pickup unit should be on the bottom, after 74 it should be on the top, and you need to take out the gas tank to change it)

You can see the sock in the tank if you look though the openining with a flashlight. If you have someone with small hands they may be able to get thier hands in the tank to replace this. I am opting for the other way and taking the unit out from the bottom.

Here are some of the things I have done with no help.
1. Replace the carb from a holley to a q-jet. No improvement.
2. Replace the fuel pump. - no improvement
3. replace the s hoses- no improvement
4. replaced the points to a Petronix unit. - no improvement.
5. replaced the plugs and plug wires- no improvement.

So you see, if you start throwing money at this problem, you just end up with a lot of new parts, but still have the problem.

I bought the fuel sock online, it is about $10. If you take out the fuel pickup/sending unit you will need a rubber o ring gasket, about 8 bucks.

I plan on doing this in a couple of months. I have other projects going on now.

kdf

 

KDF, Thanks. Ill see if I can get a look at the sock tomorrow. I will update. Thanks for the info.