just got me a '67 Barracuda

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1967cuda

1967cuda

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Portland, Oregon
So, I'm having a lot of trouble getting my 225 /6 to run properly. Here are the symptoms:

Only stays running in park or neutral when idle speed is cranked up, or when engine is cold and choke is closed.
Does not run smoothly, misses unevenly.
Dies when put into gear (automatic), so I have to throw it in neutral when I come to a stop and feather the gas.
Dies when coming to a stop.
Dies when driving slow (5-15 mph).
Runs normal at higher speeds.

Have replaced:
Holley-remanufactured carb. Fuel and air filters.
Spark plugs (0.035), wires, distributor cap and rotor.
Distributor (new points (0.020) & condenser).
I've checked with starting fluid for vacuum leaks all around the intake manifold and carb, as well as the brake-boost vacuum line, and distributor vacuum line.

The old carb was falling apart anyways, so it needed to be replaced regardless. (The brass choke valve shaft broke in half, among other issues).

The old distributor shaft had a lot of side-to-side play, and the cam was well worn, so I was really hoping that was the source of the problem...it was not. I have to adjust the timing to about 20 degrees BTDC for it to even run with the new distributor; it totally dies when I adjust it to 15 or so. I rotated the crank shaft to 0 on the compression stroke of piston #1, and the distributor rotor is pointing at #1 spark plug. I tried removing the distributor and adjusting the rotor to different positions, one spline or two clockwise and counter-clockwise. Nothing.
:sad7:

Any thoughts? The timing chain is the only other thing I can think of that needs attention.

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I had a car that acted just as yours is - it ended up being a bad TQ converter. You kind of have to either be rolling to pop into gear or almost neutral drop from a stop to get it going without stalling?
 
Almost sounds like the chain. How many miles are on it? Does it run better if you bump the timing way up?
 
The odometer reads 84,200; there's no 100,000s on the dial.

It ONLY runs if I have the timing jacked way up, to about 20 or 25 degrees BTDC. If I try to turn the distributor so the timing mark approaches 0, it dies at what looks to be about 15 degrees BTDC.

Another guy suggested I do a thorough check for vacuum leaks, first. Reason being is that if I close the choke valve when the engine is warm, instead of dying, it revs up and smooths out. I've sprayed around the intake manifold, but not very thoroughly, 'cause I didn't want to ignite the stuff. But would a vacuum leak account for the bad timing?
 
Thanks 65barracudadude, back at ya. I used to have a '66 Barracuda, about 16 years ago...I was young and a bit foolish--I let it go. I like that funky old body style.
 
Nice find, it looks like there`s a lot of miles left in her. Do you have a nice stream of fuel leaving the fuel pump? Try disconnecting the line after the fuel pump and run the line into a can. Crank over the engine and see what kind of fuel flow you get. The stream should be full and strong. You can check the slack in the chain by rotating the crank back and forth and watching your rotor. If the crank moves 10 degrees or more without movement in the rotor then it might be time for a new chain. Keep us posted on what you find.
 
Longgone said:
Nice find, it looks like there`s a lot of miles left in her. Do you have a nice stream of fuel leaving the fuel pump? Try disconnecting the line after the fuel pump and run the line into a can. Crank over the engine and see what kind of fuel flow you get. The stream should be full and strong. You can check the slack in the chain by rotating the crank back and forth and watching your rotor. If the crank moves 10 degrees or more without movement in the rotor then it might be time for a new chain. Keep us posted on what you find.
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Thanks for reminding me about the chain slack test; I did that before I replaced the distributor, but the distributor shaft had so much side-play that I assumed it was not the chain, but the distributor. Now that I've replaced the distributor, I'll rock the crank shaft back and forth again to see if there is a lag in the rotor response. And I'll check that fuel pump; sounds like an easy test to eliminate a possible cause, though there seems to be a steady stream of gas being sucked into that giant 1-barrel.

I got the car for $2000; there's 84,000 miles registered on the odometer, but only reads up to the 10,000s. My mother acquired the car via her now-ex-boyfriend, and since they are no longer together, she wanted to sell it...yeah.
 
1967cuda said:
Thanks for reminding me about the chain slack test; I did that before I replaced the distributor, but the distributor shaft had so much side-play that I assumed it was not the chain, but the distributor. Now that I've replaced the distributor, I'll rock the crank shaft back and forth again to see if there is a lag in the rotor response. And I'll check that fuel pump; sounds like an easy test to eliminate a possible cause, though there seems to be a steady stream of gas being sucked into that giant 1-barrel.

I got the car for $2000; there's 84,000 miles registered on the odometer, but only reads up to the 10,000s. My mother acquired the car via her now-ex-boyfriend, and since they are no longer together, she wanted to sell it...yeah.
Click to expand...

Cool, used the ex-boyfriend thing to get a good deal. Lol! It won`t be long and you`ll get the bugs worked out. Looks like a great car. Congratulations!
 
So, I'm a bit naive to the whole rear end swap. I know that I'd like to have higher performance equipment on my car. It currently has the 7.25 inch rear end. All engine and transmission related issues aside, I'm just wondering what it takes to replace the rear end with a 8.75 inch pumpkin? Do I change out the leaf springs, too? What about my wheels; they are currently the 4-inch lug pattern. Will that change with new axles on a 8.75 rear end?

I'm just making a shopping/laundry list at this point.

Thanks!
Thomas
 
1967cuda said:
So, I'm a bit naive to the whole rear end swap. I know that I'd like to have higher performance equipment on my car. It currently has the 7.25 inch rear end. All engine and transmission related issues aside, I'm just wondering what it takes to replace the rear end with a 8.75 inch pumpkin? Do I change out the leaf springs, too? What about my wheels; they are currently the 4-inch lug pattern. Will that change with new axles on a 8.75 rear end?

I'm just making a shopping/laundry list at this point.

Thanks!
Thomas
Click to expand...

You`ll have to find the housing with it`s backing plates, axles ,shockplates with u-bolts, 3rd member and a driveshaft. It`s not that much work, your best bet is to find a donor car in the boneyard that you can harvest the parts from for the swap. If I were you I`d simply drive the wheels off that great little car.
 
IF blocking the air horn makes it run better you definately have a vacuum leak.
A bad PCV valve can cause all the symptoms you described also since it works on vacuum. If you have vacuum operated choke breakers , or spark advance, or power brakes, start pinching rubber hoses with pliers to rule them out or discover the culprit. Good luck
Also... IF the fuel air mixture is wrong ( vacuum leak ) there will be a timming place where it will run
but poorly.
 
RedFish said:
IF blocking the air horn makes it run better you definately have a vacuum leak.
A bad PCV valve can cause all the symptoms you described also since it works on vacuum. If you have vacuum operated choke breakers , or spark advance, or power brakes, start pinching rubber hoses with pliers to rule them out or discover the culprit. Good luck
Also... IF the fuel air mixture is wrong ( vacuum leak ) there will be a timming place where it will run
but poorly.
Click to expand...
So if I close the choke valve a bit when it's running warm, the idle does smooth out, but not 100%; still kind of has a hiccup, but very subtle. I replaced the PCV valve, and cleaned out the oil breather really well. I've tried pinching off every hose I can find (vacuum advance, brake boost, PCV), and the engine dies when I plug any one of those. The carb gasket is brand new, and tight. I think if it is an air leak, it has to be in the manifold or gasket...:scratch:
 
When you pinch the booster vacuum line the engine dies ? Thats not right.
One of those rubber lines may be cracked too. Usually right where the metal tube inside it ends. Vacuum leaks can be hard to find.
 
1967cuda said:
The odometer reads 84,200; there's no 100,000s on the dial.

It ONLY runs if I have the timing jacked way up, to about 20 or 25 degrees BTDC. If I try to turn the distributor so the timing mark approaches 0, it dies at what looks to be about 15 degrees BTDC.

Another guy suggested I do a thorough check for vacuum leaks, first. Reason being is that if I close the choke valve when the engine is warm, instead of dying, it revs up and smooths out. I've sprayed around the intake manifold, but not very thoroughly, 'cause I didn't want to ignite the stuff. But would a vacuum leak account for the bad timing?
Click to expand...



Nice car!

All most sounds like the dist cam drive is not in right and your tming is off. It has to be put in just right. If it is a few teeth off it will make timing impossible.

Good luck on your build.
 
Burntorange70 said:
Nice car!

All most sounds like the dist cam drive is not in right and your tming is off. It has to be put in just right. If it is a few teeth off it will make timing impossible.

Good luck on your build.
Click to expand...

I spent a good hour or so taking the distributor out, rotating the shaft one spline at a time in both directions, and re-installing it. There was only one position where the engine would run at all.
 
When you are adjusting timing, do you disconnect and cap the vacuum to the advance ? Do you have a service manual ? Do you have a vacuum gauge ?
I wish I could be more helpful. Good luck
 
It certainly sounds like a vacuum leak but as Redfish stated " when you set the timing do you remove and plug the vacuum line going to the distributor" The mechanical advance will pull in about 20 degree of timing by itself, your intial timing should probably be about 7.5-10 giving you around 30 degrees total at 3000 rpm. These are just ball park numbers to start from but the car should run without any problems with these. When you changed the distributor did you check the vacuum advance, the diaphragm could be torn-vacuum leak. Also rather than clamping off different hoses, remove them at the source and plug the port ruling out a bad hose. Good luck.
 
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