Club Cobra

Club Cobra (http://www.clubcobra.com/forums/)
-   ALL COBRA TALK (http://www.clubcobra.com/forums/all-cobra-talk/)
-   -   Might be stupid question , but here goes (http://www.clubcobra.com/forums/all-cobra-talk/110279-might-stupid-question-but-here-goes.html)

cobrarob 04-22-2011 10:39 PM

Might be stupid question , but here goes
 
I have a small fuel leak in the rear carb feed of my 351 in my SPF cobra , opposite end of the enngine from the distributor , the leak has been very difficult to isolate

The leak falls directly on to the intake manifold and as we all know the manifold gets pretty hot , I have been driving the car like this for quite sometime and it just dawned on me that gas and heat might cause a fire , but to date it hasnt , good for me

I intend to have this fixed immeditely if not sooner but for now am I crazy to drive the car or is a fire unlikely

Told you it was a stupid question

tcrist 04-22-2011 11:06 PM

If you have a fuel leak, do not drive it until it is fixed. You have been lucky so far.
But that is just my opinion.

mdross1 04-23-2011 06:11 AM

You are one lucky cat,get the leak fixed asap.If a fire does erupt you will not be a happy camper.

Bill Bess 04-23-2011 07:12 AM

Some very small leaks are hard to find, especially if the leak is a "seeper' and doesn't appear while the engine is running, but shows up on the manifold after the motor have cooled down.

Spray the area with carb or choke cleaner after the motor has cooled and is off, wipe up any tracies of gas residue and then start the motor and look for the source. It's most likely a gasket or something on the carb. Take your time, once you find it...fix it.

Good Luck ,Bill

DSM351 04-23-2011 07:35 AM

If it is a Holley, replace those little white circle gaskets Nylon) under the float bowl bolts. You might as well do the paper gaskets while you are at it. I would use the blue ones for replacement.

redmt 04-23-2011 08:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cobrarob (Post 1124592)
I intend to have this fixed immeditely if not sooner but for now am I crazy to drive the car or is a fire unlikely

Told you it was a stupid question

I agree. It was a stupid question.:eek:

Kramer 04-23-2011 08:17 AM

The only stupid part of that post is that you are driving that car with a fuel leal. PLEASE _ TAKE IT FROM SOMEONE WHO HAS SEEN A COBRA FIRE, get this fixed before you drive the car again..!!

DAVID GAGNARD 04-23-2011 08:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cobrarob (Post 1124592)
I have a small fuel leak in the rear carb feed of my 351 in my SPF cobra , opposite end of the enngine from the distributor , the leak has been very difficult to isolate

The leak falls directly on to the intake manifold and as we all know the manifold gets pretty hot , I have been driving the car like this for quite sometime and it just dawned on me that gas and heat might cause a fire , but to date it hasnt , good for me

I intend to have this fixed immeditely if not sooner but for now am I crazy to drive the car or is a fire unlikely

Told you it was a stupid question

Depends how much you like your car, if you really like and want to keep it, your crazy to drive it that way another mile.......
Years ago, my wife's car developed a fuel leak at the carb on her way to work,all of 8 minutes away, as she pulled into the parking lot,it caught on fire, luckily another employee saw the smoke as she pulled in and got a fire extinquisher and put it out,saving the car with very minimal damage..........


Pull the carb off and go thru it with new gaskets and then try it again.....fuel leaks on any car is just a accident waiting to happen.....

David

ZOERA-SC7XX 04-23-2011 09:17 AM

There are no stupid questions, just stupid answers (not in this case). As stated above, clean the area and start the car, check for the leak with your hand...feel around all the fuel line fittings, as that's where you'll most likely find the leak. If so, just shut it down and tighten these or this fitting. I had this issue myself and had to really tighten the crap out of the fitting between the fuel pump line and the two-way splitter (some aftermarket parts are not the best quality these days). Also the two carb inlets have a tendency to leak if not tightened properly. Tough to get to if you have a turkey pan. Good luck.

Sawdust 04-23-2011 01:20 PM

Cobrarob
DON'T take a chance of a fire! I've seen a fire under the hood and it's not pretty!!

Sawdust

BAsque1 04-23-2011 01:34 PM

I had a Volvo 123 GT which develop exactly the same problem, don't even think about continuing the driving. If your insurance investigates the possible fire you miht end up with no pay. Lets hope that you don't get to that point. Get it fixed ASAP ,man.
Good luck!

anchor2 04-23-2011 01:46 PM

I recently had a small fire due to a leak. Cobrarob take a look at this thread it my help you.

http://www.clubcobra.com/forums/all-...yesterday.html

cobrarob 04-23-2011 03:10 PM

Thanks for all the responses guys and the information

I fixed the problem today , just a misaligned gasket where the fuel line connected to the carb

Then I went for a long drive

Jamo 04-23-2011 03:55 PM

Glad you had the guts to ask and it was an easy fix. Much better than reading the following on your gravestone:

"I meant to ask..."

Sawdust 04-23-2011 05:18 PM

Excellent Cobrarob!
Glad to hear the problem is fixed!!

Sawdust

Roscoe 04-24-2011 07:36 AM

http://www.priveye.com/images/speedster.jpg

crASH 04-24-2011 09:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roscoe (Post 1124800)

Roscoe's photo reminds me of an engine fire we tried to extinguish a long time ago with an extinguisher that was "mostly" fully charged. The fire had just started, so it was barely visible when we arrived. The "mostly" full extinguisher gave up before the fire did... and the car looked like this Porsche before the fire department finally arrived.

Roscoe 04-24-2011 09:08 AM

That's why a fire system is mandatory. Little extinguishers only go so far. After that it's hot dogs and marshmallows.

Roscoe

crASH 04-24-2011 11:14 AM

Amen to that. Now that I think about it (30 years ago) it WAS one of those flashlight sized extinguishers. Those things might've cooled off our shorts if we dropped a lit Marlboro in our lap while driving, but forget about snuffing out an engine fire.

Ash

"crASH"

Rich_ACC 04-24-2011 01:36 PM

Dodged another bullet, glad to here it's fixed. do you carry a fire extingusher?? If not its a cheap investment.

Rich


All times are GMT -7. The time now is 01:52 PM.

Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.0
Copyright ©2000 - 2025, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Search Engine Friendly URLs by vBSEO 3.6.0
The representations expressed are the representations and opinions of the clubcobra.com forum members and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and viewpoints of the site owners, moderators, Shelby American, any other replica manufacturer, Ford Motor Company. This website has been planned and developed by clubcobra.com and its forum members and should not be construed as being endorsed by Ford Motor Company, or Shelby American or any other manufacturer unless expressly noted by that entity. "Cobra" and the Cobra logo are registered trademarks for Ford Motor Co., Inc. clubcobra.com forum members agree not to post any copyrighted material unless the copyrighted material is owned by you. Although we do not and cannot review the messages posted and are not responsible for the content of any of these messages, we reserve the right to delete any message for any reason whatsoever. You remain solely responsible for the content of your messages, and you agree to indemnify and hold us harmless with respect to any claim based upon transmission of your message(s). Thank you for visiting clubcobra.com. For full policy documentation refer to the following link: