airplanes172

Hello everyone! This is going to be a little bit difficult to answer, as you all cannot actually see the car/drive it to know what is going on. But I'm going to do my best to describe my issue.

I have a 1982 Collector's Edition Corvette. The CF was replaced by an Edelbrock carburetor, and the transmission was rebuilt around 700 miles ago. After I put an air filter on the carburetor and replaced the waterpump that had busted on me, the car started dying on me. I'm not sure as to why. It had died on me before those issues, but I figured because the waterpump was bad, it wasn't cooling the engine causing it to die. Now, I'm thinking because of the stop/go traffic in my town, it is causing the carburetor to become flooded. From first to second gears, it requires more RPM's needed than the rest of the gears to shift. The guy I purchased the vehicle from said he did this in order to pick up speed quicker and to make it sound nicer. However, I think this is only hurting the car. If anyone has any advice, please let me know! I can take pictures of the car tomorrow and upload what the engine looks like.

toobroketoretire

I'd like to see some pictures of your engine before I can make any guesses about the cause of your engine dying. The '82's have an electric fuel pump in the gas tank that will produce 11 psi for the CrossFire Fuel Injection and if that pump is still being used but without a pressure regulator and return line going back to the tank it could be causing the carburetor to flood. That's just ONE of many possibilities.

airplanes172

Thank you! I'll post a few pictures tomorrow. I could have tonight, but the lighting wouldn't have been all that great. That and it rained.

htown81vette

I had this issue on my '82 not long ago. Turned out to be a bad alternator. The battery had enough juice to turn the motor over and even start. But as the engine runs it drains the battery. The fuel injection system needs 12V+ to operate. Below 12V it just shuts off. I put a new alternator on and been great ever since.

I'm not saying that is what is wrong with yours but it would be the first thing I checked.

GUSTO14

When you say it dies on you, what does that mean?

1. It coughs, quits and you must have it towed back home?
2. It coughs, quits and you have to turn the key and start it back up, and drive home?
3. It coughs, quits and you have to wait a few minutes to get it to restart and then drive home?
4. Does it quit while you are driving, or when you come to a stop?

A little more info on what occurs before and after it quits will help us, help you.

Good luck... GUSTO

hugie82

I hate it when someone take a gorgeous car and hacks it up because they can't figure out the bare bones basic fuel injection but since the damage is done, let's see what you have.
First, water pumps don't make cars die unless you severely overheat.
Second, as mentioned before the fuel pump is electric and pushes 11-18 psi. That must be regulated down to work on a carb.
Third, with the 82 corvettes the fuel pump relay is tied to the oil pressure switch. No oil pressure = no fuel!
We need you to check the basics when it dies. Check if the carb is squirting fuel by pulling the air cleaner and pump the gas while looking down at it. Give us a yes or no
Next would be spark, pull a plug wire and shove a screw driver in the end and hold it near metal on the block about 1/16-1/8 inch should be good. Have someone crank the engine and see if a spark can jump from the metal screwdriver to the metal on the block.

airplanes172

Well, it does 2-4 really. It varies. However, it does more of 3 than the rest. I haven't driven it in over a month to tell the truth. However, I let it idle to make sure everything is still pumping.

@hugie82, whenever I took the car it was working. I didn't have the car long before it started having this problem. I never said that the waterpump had anything to do with anything. I just said that it broke and I replaced it. And yeah, it was causing the car to overheat because it was breaking. Now, it DOES have a regulator. I'm not sure what it is. I am having my girlfriend take pictures of under the hood (it is at her place). I will have more information to give shortly.

When I took it to a shop one time, the carb did shoot oil onto my car when the air cleaner was off. So, the answer is yes.

Basics as to why I purchased this car:

Always wanted a corvette, wanted to learn the mechanics of a vehicle, and I wanted something I could look at and be proud of in the end.

I have always been handed my vehicles, and this is the first one I purchased on my own. I want to make it run without having to take it to a shop. However, I don't have much knowledge. I know how to change my oil, change a tire, and fix a few electronics. That's about it.

airplanes172

Fuel regulator.














Chose this air cleaner because it is the only one that would fit without having to put a cowl'd hood on my car.

GUSTO14

If the engine idles fine once it is running, but then quits after a certain period of time when you take it for a drive, I would be looking at the fuel supply. At idle there is little demand for fuel and the supply is able to keep up with the demand, even fill the float bowls. Then you take if for a drive and the demand increases. The supply has trouble keeping up and finally the engine quits.

What is the time interval between start of the drive and when it quits? Has the time interval changed since the problem surfaced?

The next time the car quits, I would immediately remove the air filter and see if the accelerator pump is able to deliver a steady stream of fuel. If it does not, that is a sure sign that the fuel supply is not keeping up with demand... for some reason.

Does the fuel system have a fuel filter anywhere? I would probably look at that first.

Good luck and let us know of your progress.

GUSTO

454Luvr

One problem troubleshooting this remotely is that no one knows exactly what the previous owner did when the EFI was replaced with the carb. Does it even still have the EFI fuel pump in the tank?

Can you explain what this means? Do you mean gas? And do you mean that it actually squirted out of the carb and onto the motor? What did the mechanic say?

Kacyc3

Does it do it randomly, when you try to accelerate or after? When it starts to die have you tried putting it in neutral and stepping on the gas?Does it do this after it warms up or cold?

toobroketoretire

If your '82 has anywhere near 100,000 miles on it the fuel pump relay that is mounted in front of the ECM is certainly going bad. With a carburetor you would be much better off running a mechanical pump (with a return line to the tank) to eliminate any possibility of it quitting on you over an electrical issue. You would have to buy a fuel pump push rod because the '82's didn't come with one.

The fuel pump relays are easy to recondition as they only require a double-sided piece of 600 grit wet-or-dry sandpaper to be drug repeatedly thru the points to remove the carbon buildup. New relays are getting almost impossible to find but here's the part number:

454Luvr

I've worked in electronics my entire life, and I can tell you that if relay contacts need sandpaper, they're already ruined. The anti-oxidation plating (gold, silver, tin, etc.) is gone, and nothing you can do will restore it to good electrical functionality except on a very temporary basis. Besides, why bother? Replacement relays for the '84 plug right in, are functionally identical, and are available everywhere.

68blvert

Are you sure it's a fuel problem and not an HEI module getting ready to die. From your description, sound like it dies after running for a while and then you can get it started running again after waiting for a while. i.e. the module cools. This was a common occurence with HEI modules, so much so that it was common practice to keep a spare module in the glove box to change out on the road. Also, even if the fuel pump relay is going bad as long as the engine is running and the oil pressure switch is good there will still be power to run the pump. It is a VERY common misunderstanding of how the oil pressure switch and fuel pump relay work together to power the fuel pump. Many people think the switch is a used as a safety device designed to kill power to the pump in the event of an accident. Not true. How it works: you try to start the car, the relay fails, you continue to crank the engine, the engine builds oil pressure, the switch closes at about 10-15 psi, power is applied to the fuel pump through the switch. The switch and the relay are wired in parallel not in series.

fishslayer143

I was thinking the very same thing.. A module Failure can do all kinds of squirrely things. Run 5 minutes , die, start right back up or wait half hour and then it starts, .. pain in the azz .. I used to carry a spare before I went to all MSD

airplanes172

So, part of the problem was that the idiot who sold me the car did not have the idle screwed in at all. So, I fiddled with that until I got the park/drive idle where I wanted. It seems to be doing fine now. I appreciate any comments! I will need to check to see if any of your comments are still valuable (though I assume most are). Thank you all!

454Luvr

Doesn't this imply that the car can't die while running, as long as oil pressure is good? Mine did, and it turned out to be the relay. Does that mean the oil switch is defective (open)?

hugie82

It's a gorgeous car and this is a minor problem that needs to be hunted down. The fuel pump relay makes a lot of sense and I would replace it whether it's the problem or not.

Your biggest problem is finding the exact cause when the motor dies. Fuel will make the motor sputter and surge before it completely dies. Electrical will kill it instantly, like you turned the key off. Narrow down those two problems and the we can get your car fixed.

From what I see, I can only nit pick your fuel regulator positioning. The electronic is to hard to see but I'm assuming someone chopped most of the CFI wiring out. That always adds a degree of difficulty if this turns out to be electrical.

The fancy chrome fuel pressure regulator looks like it will do the job but there was s two schools of thought. One is the way you have it installed with the carb- regulator- return- supply. Others and I would say to place the regulator in the return line and then T it into the supply but if it's working fine, leave it.

454Luvr

That's why I asked earlier if it still has the EFI pump. That pump is designed to have a regulator upstream that acts as a relief valve at 11-13 psi. It's not designed to push fuel against a regulator that pinches off the flow. The latter would cause pump outlet pressure to rise well above the original 11-13 psi that it (and the fuel line system) were designed to work with. If this vehicle still has the EFI pump, and the OP wants to keep it, he needs to install something like the Holley bypass regulator.

https://www.holley.com/products/fuel...parts/12-803BP

68blvert

Either bad switch, no power to switch, no power beyond switch or bad splice on pump power feed wire.