Engine wont stay running.

[tbh726]

All,

it as been a trip trying to get this A2 running after it has been sitting for the last 17 years... I have ran into the next thing... little back ground, it was pulled into a garage in 2005 and parked. i bought it and have done the following: gas tank professional cleaned and sealed, all new fuel lines from gas tank to carb replaced, new fuel mech fuel pump, took carb completely apart and cleaned it and replaced all the gaskets and diaphragm, all emissions lines cleaned or replaced, new water pump, oil replaced, plugs cleaned, rotor cleaned.

The engine will start up and it sounds i am guessing ok, but it will not stay running. i have a video of what it is doing in the link below. I have read a bunch in the forums and not sure is it the coil? only other thing i have not done that it could be is i have not clean the air cleaner yet or the connections and hoses to the emission container. I did pull the air cleaner hose from the carb, and that did seem to help in restarting(however still dies), but just not sure where to go from here..


engine running and dying
https://youtu.be/bPvaOXJaubk


thoughts

tim

[m3a1]

Fuel
Air
Spark

My first question to you is - Will it restart immediately after dying?
My second question is - What is your ignition type (points or electronic ign)?

If it can be restarted immediately, that pretty much rules out coil or electronic ignition. If it only restarts after a very long spell, it may well be coil or electronic ignition (ask me how I know).

[tbh726]

to answer your questions. it is electronic ign swiss setup... sometimes yes will start back up as quick as stepping on the starter button again. Some times i have to play with the choke but can get it to start back up. will clean the air filter setup tomorrow, i was leaning towards fuel, just not sure if too much or too lean or not enough. Was wondering if it also could be the return gas line, not sure if it is visible in the video, but it is a little tight with a kink in the line. was going to put a longer one on tomorrow.

tim

[rickf]

The return line is for vapor, it is not a "fuel return" line. Fuel will go through it since there is a tiny hole in the fitting but it's purpose it to prevent vapor lock. You could run with it blocked or even eliminated. There is a 151A2 running the current convoy that has run every convoy so far on a carb I built with the vapor return blocked. Probably close to 30,000 miles now, desert weather in below sea level Death Valley all the way to the mountain passes in the Rockies and never had any issues. So forget the return as the problem. I could see gas running into the filter as it died so would need to look into that further. It is not dying due to too much gas or it would stumble and belch black smoke. In your case it simply appears to shut off. So I would be looking at coil or ignition module. Another place to look is the input capacitor where the wire enters the distributor. These usually just die and that is the end but I have seen a few do what you are experiencing.

[m3a1]

The power lead to the coil usually takes a beating at the big knurled nut at the filter (right where it goes into the distributor). Any chance you're power is shorting out there?

I'm kinda leaning away from suggesting it is a matter of interrupted fuel supply because the engine runs well and then shuts off so suddenly (per the video anyway). Your fuel supply looks adequate to the filter as well.

[Lou]

If you look close you will see the fuel filter is running out of fuel! The fuel filter should be completely full of fuel with a slight air bubble inside. Check in tank filter, pick up, lines and fuel pump. Good luck!

[m3a1]

Well, now....these old eyes!

Did look low but at idle, that ought to have been enough to keep it running dontcha think?

[Lou]

Well, now....these old eyes!

Did look low but at idle, that ought to have been enough to keep it running dontcha think?

I can take a video of my mutt when running once I get the alternator back in. Owned our mutt for 18 years, even at idle the filter is full!

[rickf]

Different filters have the internal tubes in different spots so they can look like they are empty but still be working just fine. But I see a couple things there that make me wonder, one is it looks like it may be pumping air with the fuel which would mean a cracked line from the tank to the pump and the other is that the gas looks milky, like it has water in it. May just be the angle of the filter. I would bet that if you reposition that filter so that one end or the other is facing up it will mostly fill up. The fact that it is shutting of so quickly it still sounds like it is electrical to me. Does it ever stumble before quitting or it just quits like the switch was turned off? If that is the case then the switch may be a place to look.

[tbh726]

wow some great info.. to answer a couple questions. yes the wire at the connection nut was a little beat up, so i used some liquid electric tape on it to give it back some insulation. is there a single wire there or is there more than one? on the filter it did seem like it was not filling up as much as it was before i fixed a gas leak on the gas return from the carb... it was leaking bad at the nut/valve. i replaced the valve and it is no longer leaking. the filter sock in the tank is brand new and this is the first gas in the tank (about 5 gals) since i had the tank professionally cleaned and sealed. the fuel lines are all new and at any splice they are not leaking so i have to think no air is getting in there(maybe air is getting in at the sock in the tank?). the clear filter is from the cilvian list from this site, and the one in the carb is NOS. it just quits like you turned the switch off.

thanks

tim

[lpcoating]

Just for the heck of it, check that filter and make sure the inlet / outlet are not blocked. I had one that was partially blocked by plastic that happened during the manufacturing process. As most of us know on here, Ken hates those filters!

Guy

[rickf]

When it quits check your gauges and see if the water temp, gas gauge and volt meter are still working. If not jiggle the ignition switch without turning it off and see if the gauges pop back up. If they do you have found your problem. Could also be a loose connection if you have done wiring work, make sure all the plugs are all the way on the ignition switch.

[tbh726]

will check the oil filter, i know the big hose that connect to carb is clear since i had that off. on the Gauges when the engine stops they are still working, showing green for voltage and some low temp for temp gauge.

tim

[tbh726]

ok i am feeling stupid... when i made new fuel lines, i originally, cut out the rubber one on the fuel tank to the fuel pump... but then i decide well maybe it was there for vibrations so i cut the line back and put in just a short rubber hose section. well some where in the process i must have twisted and it was starving the jeep.. i kept thinking when i first started it up it looked like it was a fire hose in the clear filter, however now it was not. marked it down that maybe it had something to do with the return line since it was leaking at the tank so bad. i am guessing i twisted it looking for fuel leaks and did not realize i had almost completely choked it off.

now it is running so much better, and when i give it gas from the pedal it roars and keeps running.

thanks all for the help would not get there if not for you all..

tim

[lpcoating]

No reason to feel stupid. Glad you got it figured out.

Guy