Oliver Fuel Fun

Boo had to work on Easter, so I had a Sunday to work with. Knowing others around the neighborhood were celebrating Easter with their families, I wanted to keep my noise and smoke to a minimum. So, I started slow, throwing Oliver onto a charger and then doing inside stuff. By 11, I was mowing the front lawn with the electric mower. With hand tools, I fixed the gates to the fence by lowering the little swivel wheels and re-setting the patio block they set on. Now, the gates sit mostly level and mostly vertical. By 2PM, most of the family gatherings were breaking up, so I felt I could make engine noises and such. So, I headed out to the shop. Engine noises. Ha. Such optimism.

 

No Start

fuel works

I am sure this comes as no surprise, but my first attempt to start Oliver was not successful. I really didn't expect it to, tho. I had a little over a gallon of gas in a jug that I poured into the tank, but I noticed that the fuel pump noise never lessened. So, as I walked to the rear of the car, I expected there would be no fuel in the filter. And there wasn't. The series of things the fuel needs to pass through before arriving at the pump is: fuel level sender / pick up tube -> flexible fuel line -> clear plastic fuel filter -> flexible fuel line -> fuel pump. From there, it travels, at pressure, thru another flexible line, through a short section of 90* hard line, more flexible line and then to the hard line that runs along the frame to the engine compartment. That's a lot of junctions. I started at the pump, testing with a MityVac vacuum pump, working my way back towards the tank. In retrospect, it would have been smarter to work my way forward from the tank all the way to the carb. Lesson learned.

 

Fuel Shower

upper one is bad

One of the short hoses was bad, but there was nothing visibly wrong with it. The picture on the right here is of those 2 lines. The top one cannot hold vacuum; the lower one can. This serves as a great reminder for those driving gravity-fed fuel system'd vehicles like the old VW bus. Fuel lines fail, sometimes not that long after you've installed it and sometimes you can't tell from looking at them. For a gravity feed system, you discover the leak after you've filled your tank, and it gushes onto the ground it you're lucky. Onto your hot exhaust if you're not.

 

While looking for the cause, I cracked the fuel level sender on the tank to confirm that I had enough fuel. I did. Once the one short line was replaced, I went up front, turned the key and started looking for another leak. I did not have to look very far. Immediately forward of the fuel pump, I had fuel going everywhere, running down the rear differential.

 

I concluded that it was another short hose, but noticed that the combination of short hose, weird 90* hard line, longer hose made little sense. I think I did that when I installed the fuel pump because the outlet of the new fuel pump was not clocked the same as the original and I didn't want a kink in the hose. If I remember correctly, I had already cut that longer hose, and solved the wrong problem. Or solved the right problem the wrong way. I think, that 90* bend was from the original system to go from the sender to the pump, and in this installation, I have a clear plastic fuel filter serving that function. Regardless, I corrected this time with a longer hose that runs from the pump to the long hard line. The longer hose was long enough to have a gentle arc, preventing a pinch in the line I was probably trying to avoid with the weird combo of parts. In the bottom picture, you can see that I have a small fuse for the fuel pump. This was not there stock, but I felt that with so many things living on the switched circuit, having a fuse around the fuel pump was probably a good idea.

 

Still No Start 

fuel pump

With the rear end lines set, I turned the key again, and the fuel pump quieted down after a few seconds. I looked under the car and no puddle was forming. There was not a drip at all. I went to the engine compartment, and there were no leaks there either. So, I tried to start it. No love. By now, it was approaching 5PM, and I had to get dinner started. But first, I wanted to know if the hard line was blocked or if there was fuel at the inlet on the carb. I removed the fuel line and gasoline dribbled out. Win. We have fuel at the carb. I put everything back together. Before heading inside, I checked the lights and hazards to give myself a little "well that works" energy before calling it a day.

 

Wrap Up

That's as far as I got on Sunday. After the random home-repairs, I had left myself more than enough time, had Oliver actually started, to give him a deep cleaning. That still needs doing, but first I need for him to run. I rebuilt the carb a couple of years ago, and the engine ran with it on there, so I don't think the issue is fueling, but it still could be. I will start with the spark plugs next time, and confirm I have spark. It is absolutely possible that something worked free during the move into the shop. If that does not bring me the start I am seeking then I will re-examine the carb. Maybe some gas residue became a thin varnish holding the bowl float, or is clogging a jet or something. 

 

That's all for now. Thanks, as always, for following along-