74 FJ40 Died at Driveway. (2 Viewers)

[follyfj40]

Hello All,

Hoping you can all help me out. Am a newbie and you all helped with some steering wandering issues last year. I have a 74 FJ40 which has been our weekend dirver for the last 2 years. Have not had any problems until about 2 weeks ago.

Was out returning home from beach and noticed the fj40 would "sputter" upon acceleration. Just a quick "mis step" but seemed to calm down after a couple minutes. We made it all the way home and then, while stopped waiting for the garage door to open, the fj died adn could not be restarted. Engine turns over, but does not catch.

Pushed into the garage and so far have have replaced coil, dist cap and rotor, and new points. (thinking it might be electrical) Have confirmed spark from coil and between points.

I have tried pouring a small amount of gas into the top of the carb and while turining egine over, it almost seems to catch, but quickly dies out.

Any ideas or thoughts on where I should trouble-shoot this? I'm a one banna guy and any suggestions are welcomed.

Thanks,
John

 

[calstyl2]

fuel filter???? are you getting fuel to the carb? is the bowl of the carb filled, sounds like a fuel issue not spark

 

[follyfj40]

yes. I took the fuel line to the carb and placed into beer bottle (have plenty of empties laying around after trying to figure this out).....fuel does spit into the bottle when turning the key.

 

[calstyl2]

does it have a return line? and does the return line return fuel? if its trying to run with gas into the intake, then it may be a carb issue

 

[Bluzer]

I try to focus on the basics: electrical or mechanical.......spark and fuel.
If you know you're getting spark to the plugs, then I would proced with fuel. You say,

have tried pouring a small amount of gas into the top of the carb and while turining egine over, it almost seems to catch, but quickly dies out.

If it starts after pouring gas into the carb, you know it's a fuel delivery issue. Pour some more gas in the carb.....don't be afraid to put a good dose in there. She'll/he'll start and run until the gas burns.

The "sputter" upon acceleration is exemplary of a fuel pump going bad. A seach for threads on the issue will give guidance for testing output of a fuel pump.

At this point, that's what my bet would be......and an easy fix.....even for a one banana guy.......soon to be a two banana guy!

Good luck!

 

[follyfj40]

Not Sure, (am new at this), Carb is a Weber. Will check under the hood again.

 

[follyfj40]

Thanks for the tips...Bluzer...when you mention a "good amount" to pour in, you mean about a 1/2 cup (more / less?)

 

[brian]

what kind of pressure is the FP making? a vacuum guage can be used for testing....most times.
just because it spits a bit does not mean it's moving enough gas.

 

[Rocky_LC]

I had a similar problem which turned out to be carb float adjustment - but it could be something jammed in the carb filter basket, float needle valve, etc. (I don't know anything about webers, but you get the idea)...

I agree you need to be sure if it is gas or spark. Once you know that for sure, then you can work the right side of the problem.

Rocky

 

[Bluzer]

By a good dose, I mean a couple of ounces. But you've probably already done that, at it starts and runs a bit, right? So you know it's a fuel delivery issue.

So, my next step would be to check for correct fuel output volumn from the pump. Somewhere in these threads I've seen volume stated. The official spec. is 146.5 cu. in./min. at 2000rpm. But I think someone in the thread said something like a cup/min.

Having said this, please consider what others are saying about carb issues. I have a weber carb and have had no problems with it. People have different experiences. If you fuel pump checks out, seems the next logical step is the carb.

 

[follyfj40]

thanks guys....I will open up the carb and make sure the float is not stuck or debris in the way...saw a couple other threads that mentioned this as a good place to start for trouble-shooting carb problems.

 

[blemarr]

Kit is $20 from JTO, may as well do it while you have it apart. I put one in my 77 that had been sitting a while as well as cleaning the jets out and the rest of the carb and now mine runs like a dream. Good Luck!

 

[FineWynsFJ40]

Do what I did. Pop the top off, hose with cleaner, then put back together. Try starting it probably 30 times, get pissed off, get a 19mm wrench and beat the carburetor on all sides fairly equally while shouting obscenities at the top of your lungs. Low and behold, when I tripped the key the damn thing ran!! The key is shouting obscenities at the top of your lungs. There really is something to be said for "when in doubt, get a bigger hammer"

 

[follyfj40]

I took off the top of the carb last night and inspected the float. It seems to move easily (not jammed) and there was a little crud in the bowl which I cleaned out. In the process, I managed to loose a little clamp shaped like the letter "C" that hold the arm in place for opening/closing the carb flaps. It shot off and is no MIA in the garage (plenty of obscenities shouted then)...If anyone know of a replacement ot substitute, please let me know,

Otherwise, when inspecting the float, the action seem fine. Is there anything else I should check out before putting this back together?

Thanks,
John

 

[Bluzer]

You can get those clips at your local auto store. They're very common.

Now that you believe your carb is OK, I'm going to bring this issue up again: How do you know it's not your fuel pump? How did you eliminate that from the equation?

 

[follyfj40]

Thanks Bluzer....will check at auto-shop tonight...for the fuel pump, have only disconnected the "input" tube to the carb and with key turned, watched it spit gas into beer bottle. Have not yet meaured output level from your specs (average cup/min), but will do so first thing when I get off work.

Will also pick up some carb cleaner and shoot into carb before reassembling (just in case)

 

[Bluzer]

It's like brian say's, "just because it spits a bit does not mean it's moving enough gas"
I've had this happen before.....not on LC but on GM. Looks like the pump is working OK because you see gas coming out. But when you put a weak diaphram under pressure, it doesn't deliver the amount of fuel required. Consequently, sputtering occurs.
Anyway, for what it's worth, I think I would want to make sure the pump is performing the way it should before anything else.

 

[brian]

It's like brian say's, "just because it spits a bit does not mean it's moving enough gas"
I've had this happen before.....not on LC but on GM. Looks like the pump is working OK because you see gas coming out. But when you put a weak diaphram under pressure, it doesn't deliver the amount of fuel required. Consequently, sputtering occurs.
Anyway, for what it's worth, I think I would want to make sure the pump is performing the way it should before anything else.

i've had it happen on a cruiser before.

the pump was able to flow a full pipe worth of fuel when the line was disconected from teh carb, but was not able to flow enough gas to keep the motor running at anything above an idle.

 

[follyfj40]

ok...quick update.....I put the carb back together tonight. Hooked everything back up (for one last try before attempting to test the fuel pump output Bluzer mentioned)...poured a little gas down the carb.....turn key with felt a little catch (as before) and floored the **** out of the gas pedal. She sputtered and then caught...revved right up and sounded like old times.

Not one to rush to a celebratory beer. I went inside and waited...gave it about 15 mins and tryed again. Battery was a little slow but sure enough...caught again and has been ideling with out problem.

Too soon for a beer? She sounds the same at idle. No backfire when I acellerate (have not "driven" yet...just revving in garage). Only difference is a lot of "smoke" (exhaust) from tail pipe.

Am happy starts now...but should I be worried?

Anyhow.....thanks for all the help guys!

John