Starting issue...

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MrJLR

MrJLR

Built, not bought
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Menifee, California
2 days in a row now, it seems flooded...
I have to crank and crank and crank the starter - opened the hood and a strong smell of gas.
It eventually does start and runs great!

318 with an Edelbrock 1407

Stuck float or ?????

Jeff
 
Are you pumping the pedal? If so that could create the strong smell AND flood the engine. Without more info I'd take a gander at the choke and make sure it's working correctly.
 
dart_68 said:
Are you pumping the pedal? If so that could create the strong smell AND flood the engine. Without more info I'd take a gander at the choke and make sure it's working correctly.
Click to expand...
One pump to the floor as always when cold....
The choke is a good starting point .....thanks.


Jeff
 
do you have a choke? and is it cable or electric? and what is you idle set at? is it to low?
 
MrJLR said:
Electric choke...yes.
Idle about 850 - 900...

Jeff
Click to expand...
ok idle is right about where mine is and i like it there and it likes it there so, have you checked the adjustment on your choke? i have a manual on my dart but on my ramcharger i have an electric and it has 3 small torx screws loosen them and roll it around till there is just barley a gap between butterfly and carb wall, do it when it is cold
 
MrJLR said:
2 days in a row now, it seems flooded...
I have to crank and crank and crank the starter - opened the hood and a strong smell of gas.
It eventually does start and runs great!

318 with an Edelbrock 1407

Stuck float or ?????

Jeff
Click to expand...
Should be pretty easy to see if it's dripping fuel in the venturi after it's shut off. That's where I would be looking.
 
MrJLR, choke is what I would check first, may be sticking. When you have the air cleaner off, start the car and take a look see in the carb throat to check for gas dripping. And while your there, take your screw driver and check the carb body screws are tight, but do not over torque.......
 
1969moparDART said:
ok idle is right about where mine is and i like it there and it likes it there so, have you checked the adjustment on your choke? i have a manual on my dart but on my ramcharger i have an electric and it has 3 small torx screws loosen them and roll it around till there is just barley a gap between butterfly and carb wall, do it when it is cold
Click to expand...
Will do...gotta let it cool.....


THIS is another reason I want to go sequential port fuel injection!

Jeff
 
Here are the things I'd check, in no particular order:
Electric choke adjustment.
Initial timing may have moved.
Mechanical fuel pump pressure - the Eddy carbs won't tolerate much more than 7 - 7.5 psi.
If the float is stuck open, fuel will form in the vents on either side of the carb body.
 
Everything and everyone is pointing to the choke....
I'm gonna let her cool down and turn some screws!
 
MrJLR said:
P.S. - Thanks guys!!!


Jeff
Click to expand...


If the engine is flooded, just hold the gas pedal to the floor and crank the engine until it starts... The extra fuel will eventually get sucked in or evaporate until it gets to an acceptable air/fuel mixture... Don't pump the gas pedal as that will make it worse... Holding it open will let the excess get out either with the engine cranking or evaporation through the carb...


Having to wait 10 - 20 minutes for the fuel to evaporate in a flooded engine is an old wives tale...

Or is it wives tail???? :rolleyes:
 
Don’t go to crazy checking things. The cars are old and much the way they were. Can’t be that cold in southern California. Like suggested put the pedal down when cranking. Go EFI if you want one or two turn starts. I prefer the way it was and carbs are just fine for me! Never have had to readjust my Eddy once set.
 
MrJLR said:
One pump to the floor as always when cold....
The choke is a good starting point .....thanks.


Jeff
Click to expand...

I always used two pumps of the pedal to start a cold engine...

I had a 318 with a holley 600 vacuum secondary as a daily driver for years and once you get the choke hooked up to a proper 12 volt source and adjust it properly, you should be able to pump the pedal twice and crank it until it starts, then as soon as the oil pressure is up, put it in gear and drive away without any hiccups or stalling... Even in cold weather 20° or colder it would still work nice...

I drove it in winter in Detroit and Chicago, so your California weather should not be a problem... No need for fuel injection, make sure the choke is properly hooked up and adjusted...
 
After work today I'm going to have some time to look at it....dang this time of year is busy.....ugh!


Jeff
 
Just a heads up. If it is a stuck float, dont run the engine. If its dribbling fuel after shut down, dont run the engine.

I ruined my last engine due to a stuck float causing fuel to dribble into the engine.

Pull the dipstick as soon as you can and smell it. If it smells like gas, fix the float and change the oil.

Being stupid cost be big time... all for the time it would have taken to pull the air cleaner, see the problem, adjust the float and change the oil....
 
Update

I smelled the dipstick, didn't really smell like gas...

Choke adjustment seemed fine to me.
I moved the throttle linkage and watched gas squirting in...

Same issue trying to start it though... so, with it still not wanting to start, I pumped the gas pedal 7 or 8 times and it almost started...5 more pumps and I got it to start with a big puff of unburned fuel out the exhaust. ....

Ran great after that...but restart, same issue.

Ugh...any ideas?

Jeff
 
Timing is off.

You have air, you got fuel, so your spark is off.

Timing is bad or your box is bad or your distributer is bad or points are bad.

It's in your ignition.
 
Cope said:
Timing is off.

You have air, you got fuel, so your spark is off.

Timing is bad or your box is bad or your distributer is bad or points are bad.

It's in your ignition.
Click to expand...
Makes sense....thank you.
Would you guess it's advanced or retarded?
My timing light is capped out so I'll adjust manually. ...

Jeff
 
That does not help! No sense guessing! Get or borrow one and get it right.
 
Grab the distributor and twist it, is it loose at all?

Is the cap loose?

Is the rotor burnt? Is the cap new? Even new ones can be crap. The distance between the terminals and rotor is off on some.

The reluctor can be rusty?


If so , turn it till it pops out the carb and back it down.
If not, start at the points, then the resistor, then the box, and the distributor.

I went threw 3 new, non rebuilt mopar SB distributors before I threw them all in the trash and went MSD pro billet.

Everyone says the mopar ignition system is great and it is, until it's not and you gotta chase gremlins in old junk and new overseas garbage...
 
1969383S said:
That does not help! No sense guessing! Get or borrow one and get it right.
Click to expand...
Money is a little tight at the moment (Christmas and all), and I don't want a POS .....maybe I can try to borrow one but I'd like to work it out "close" in the mean time. ....

Jeff
 
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