Runs 15 minutes then dies and won't start

[davids2toys]

Hi Tom,
I went to VT the end of Dec. I brought along two 5 gallon gas cans. I filled them with premium 91 octane non ethanol gas. Still sitting on the floor in back of the Cobra. I have not been able to do anything on the car due the weather and my garage in Winter configuration with snowblowers, shovels, plow truck, etc, etc. I also will need to get the present gas level down to the pick up so I will have minimum dilution of the new non ethanol gas. Right now I have about 1/4 tank of 93 octane ethanol fuel.If I drain the tank I will be way below the pickup level which the require a ton of gas just to regain the prime. When I first got the car I was running out of gas so I was heading to the nearest gas station about 4 miles down the road. The gauge was reading E. All of a sudden the car started exhibiting all the symptoms of fuel starvation. I started weaving back and forth to keep the fuel going in the pickup.Made it about a mile like this and then it finally died.Big mistake because it took many hitchhiking trips to the gas station and filling a 1 gallon anti freeze which they had lying around.I think it took about 4 gallons before the gas level came up before it would start. Will never do that again. If anybody ends up in this situation, dont try to keep the car alive unless you can actually see the gas station!!! Now I always fill up around the 1/4 mark.

[mrmustang]

Originally Posted by davids2toys

Hi Tom,
I went to VT the end of Dec. I brought along two 5 gallon gas cans. I filled them with premium 91 octane non ethanol gas. Still sitting on the floor in back of the Cobra. I have not been able to do anything on the car due the weather and my garage in Winter configuration with snowblowers, shovels, plow truck, etc, etc. I also will need to get the present gas level down to the pick up so I will have minimum dilution of the new non ethanol gas. Right now I have about 1/4 tank of 93 octane ethanol fuel.If I drain the tank I will be way below the pickup level which the require a ton of gas just to regain the prime. When I first got the car I was running out of gas so I was heading to the nearest gas station about 4 miles down the road. The gauge was reading E. All of a sudden the car started exhibiting all the symptoms of fuel starvation. I started weaving back and forth to keep the fuel going in the pickup.Made it about a mile like this and then it finally died.Big mistake because it took many hitchhiking trips to the gas station and filling a 1 gallon anti freeze which they had lying around.I think it took about 4 gallons before the gas level came up before it would start. Will never do that again. If anybody ends up in this situation, dont try to keep the car alive unless you can actually see the gas station!!! Now I always fill up around the 1/4 mark.

So are you saying you ran out of gas and that was the cause of the car not running for more than a few minutes?

[davids2toys]

Originally Posted by mrmustang

So are you saying you ran out of gas and that was the cause of the car not running for more than a few minutes?

NO, I said in the post when I first got the car. That was over 10 years ago. I was giving the reason why now I want to get the fuel level as low as possible before adding the non ethanol gas

[mrmustang]

Originally Posted by davids2toys

NO, I said in the post when I first got the car. That was over 10 years ago. I was giving the reason why now I want to get the fuel level as low as possible before adding the non ethanol gas

Honestly, if you are adding 10 gallons to a tank that is currently 1/4 full, you have diluted the ethanol based fuel farther than you would need to be concerned about.
If you have concerns about ethanol, then rebuilding your fuel pump and carburetor, along with replacing your fuel filter (do you have more than one?) would need to be accomplished beforehand. In addition, pulling your fuel pickup out of the tank and checking and more than likely replacing the sock would also be high on my to do list.


Bill S.

[davids2toys]

Originally Posted by mrmustang

Honestly, if you are adding 10 gallons to a tank that is currently 1/4 full, you have diluted the ethanol based fuel farther than you would need to be concerned about.
If you have concerns about ethanol, then rebuilding your fuel pump and carburetor, along with replacing your fuel filter (do you have more than one?) would need to be accomplished beforehand. In addition, pulling your fuel pickup out of the tank and checking and more than likely replacing the sock would also be high on my to do list.


Bill S.

Bill,
This is a heat induced issue. The non ethanol gas experiment was to rule out vapor lock due to lower boiling point of ethanol fuel. That is why I want to get the level as low as possible so as to limit dilution for accuracy in the test. I highly doubt this is vapor lock though. If I totally drain tank, does anybody know how much gas it will take to reach the level of the pick up?

[Tom Wells]

David,

Understood! Been there....

We'll do a dance for good weather so you can see if it changes anything ;-)

Tom

[tboneheller]

I had a similar issue with mine about 25 years ago. It ended up being a large gauge wire behind the center of the dash that had started melting in the connector. I believe it was one of the wires from the AMP gauge in a 4-wire connector. If I recall correctly, this wire supplies power to the under hood fuse panel. I cut the wire out of the connector, and spliced the two together. Problem solved.

[davids2toys]

That is crazy, how in the world did you find this? I will explore this when I get back to it. Just thinking about this, I have a volt gauge, not an amp gauge.

[Tom Wells]

David,

Just curious: did you get a chance to try the no-alcohol gasoline yet?

Tom

[davids2toys]

No Tom,
Have not got near the car yet. It is buried in the garage at the moment.
Dealing with a bunch of Winter issues. my plow truck blew out the brakes the last snowstorm. Had to replace a bunch of parts. also need to fix the snowblower before putting it away, running like crap! numerous other things to take care of, then the cobra

[davids2toys]

Double post

[twobjshelbys]

Non-alcohol gas locations can be found at www.pure-gas.org. They are pretty sparse, often at small airports or marinas. In Nevada it is only available 1-Apr -- 30-Sep.

[CHANMADD]

Hi, So after all this. Does the Carb have a pholic spacer under it?

[davids2toys]

Originally Posted by CHANMADD

Hi, So after all this. Does the Carb have a pholic spacer under it?

No it does not, I have a turkey pan which protects the carb from the engine heat. I even put heat shield on the bottom of the turkey pan! It has been this way for years with no issues

[767Jockey]

The MSD box is prone to insidious issues that are difficult to impossible to detect even for MSD. I bought a second hand MSD box at a swap meet, hooked it up temporarily to the car to make sure it works, and I carry it as a spare. I've installed weatherpack plugs at the main and spare box so swapping it in and out is a very quick affair. I'd suggest that you do the same. Find a cheap second hand MSD box that you can confirm works and swap it in. You'll need a spare eventually anyway. If that cures your issue you know what the problem was. If not you have the spare that you'll eventually need anyway.

[davids2toys]

Originally Posted by 767Jockey

The MSD box is prone to insidious issues that are difficult to impossible to detect even for MSD. I bought a second hand MSD box at a swap meet, hooked it up temporarily to the car to make sure it works, and I carry it as a spare. I've installed weatherpack plugs at the main and spare box so swapping it in and out is a very quick affair. I'd suggest that you do the same. Find a cheap second hand MSD box that you can confirm works and swap it in. You'll need a spare eventually anyway. If that cures your issue you know what the problem was. If not you have the spare that you'll eventually need anyway.

I hear you loud and clear. i actually bought a new one off eBay many years ago for a spare. I have never tested it and I would not even know how to do this except to put it in the car it self. My present MSD box tests perfect so that does not mean much. When I start working on it again I will run a few more tests that have been suggested and then maybe change out the box. that will not be easy because it is wired right in with no disconnects. It is also mounted upside down/ behind under the dashboard. I am older and have had many significant surgeries so my flexibility sucks. If I end up having to do this, I will definately use quick connections as you describe. i also may consider finding a more accessible place to mount it. Of coarse if it works, I will have to buy another one as a backup. Thank you

[kevins2]

I invested in a spare MSD box because I don't trust it. Mine is mounted under the glove box and I use a velcro strap to strap the spare to the main box when I want to test it. I can simply move the connection to the spare box and leave the main box in place.

[davids2toys]

That is an awesome idea, I love it! Just need to change all the connections to quick disconnect...Thanks
What type of connections would you recommend?

[davids2toys]

That is an awesome idea, I love it! Just need to change all the connections to quick disconnect...Thanks
What type of connections would you recommend?

[kevins2]

I didn't change the connection. Just unplug the original box and plug in the spare that I strap to it with a velcro strap. The few times I've had a problem I was able to eliminate the MSD box as the cause by simply switching to the spare box.