A couple of bugs to work out

[hoppy]

This weekend had first chance to put a few miles on my new (to me) ERA 377 with 428SCJ. It runs great and is a thrill a second.

I have found a couple of bugs however and maybe you can save me some headaches.

The car is leaving an oil puddle on the garage floor. I put it up on ramps and did not find any obvious source of the leak. The pan bolts near the rear, bell housing and transmission all had a bit of oil on them. There was no indication of a leak from up high, like valve covers or anything. I snugged up the pan bolts which were a bit on the loose side, but that did not solve anything. I hate to think that its a rear main seal (only 2600 miles on the car/engine) but don't really know where to look further.

Another anomoly is that the car was running fine, cruising the freeway at about 3500 RPM and after about 15 miles it started to cut out badly. I switched on the electric fuel pump which had been unnecessary prior and the problem disappeared. The next day, same thing, after about 15 or 20 miles, it cut out and adding the electric pump solved it. The inline fuel pressure gauge indicates about 4 lbs with or without the electric pump on. Now I am wondering if the mechanical pump has a bad diaphram or something, or maybe I just need to plan to keep the electric pump running all the time.

My instincts are to replace the mechanical pump and keep a spare electic pump on board, just in case.

I also need a lead hammer, saftey wire and wire installation pliars. I heard that Snap-On had the best pliars but I can't find them or a lead hammer in their on line catalog.

Also looking for floor mats with the Cobra logo. ERA parts guy Fernando said they are out of stock on all mats at the moment and they are only expecting some with ERA logos. I don't want to go with the generic square pads. Does anyone supply mats that fit the ERA foot boxes?

Suggestings on any of the above are much appreciated.

[hoppy]

With all of the questions posed I'm a little surprised that no one has any suggestions.

This is usually a pretty opinionated group. Maybe I should have started the thread by stating that my car is better, more beautiful and faster than yours.

Come on guys, throw me a bone or two.

[Rick Parker]

Contact Lynn Park at Trigo International, in La Canada he has nice lead hammers. Wire pliers are available at Harbour tools for about $15.00.

Regarding your fuel issue. Are you sure the fuel pickup in the tank is clean?? Should have minimum of 3/8" diameter line from tank to mechanical pump.

Good luck
Just try'n to help

Rick

[HighPlainsDrifter]

Hi,
The fuel tank may not be vented properly;
Do you have a vent? rollover valve working?
How about checking the gas cap if you have one.
Perry.

[John Poling]

Are you sure that you only have 4psi of fuel pressure? If so that may not be enough, typically you should run between 5 and 7 psi for street non-injected motors. Do you have an inline pressure regulator that is adjustable? BTW how are you running an electric and mechanical pump together?

John

[Tinker51]

Everyone has already suggested what I can think of about the fuel thing. As for the required tools Aircraft spruce and Aircraft tool both carry the safety wire and pliers. I would suggest getting the kind of pliers with the auto return spring and using at least .032 or .040 stainless wire. The lead hammer (wire and pliers too) can be found at Finish Line. They advertise on the forum.

Aircraft Spruce

Aircraft Tool

Here is my unsolicited .02 worth about lead hammers and how to use them. Do not use the lead hammer to install the spinner. Use a dead blow hammer for instalation. Use the lead hammer or dead blow for removal. Don't keep wacking the same ear either. Hit one, then the next etc. etc. When putting the spinner on, keep going until the spinner stops moving then stop, don't keep beating the crap out of it. Congrats on the car, enjoy the summer.

[Clois Harlan]

Check your fuel filter or replace it and then check your fuel pressure again. If you don't have a fuel filter take yours off and use a straight conn to check you fuel press w/o a filter. John is correct your fuel press should be about 5.5 to 6 psi.

Also, another source for Cobra floor mats is Tony Branda Shelby and Mustang parts at:

http://www.cobranda.com

Clois

[hoppy]

Thanks so much for the input.
Hope to get time Sat. to check the spin-on fuel filter and adjust the fuel pressue up a bit.

I have the wire and pliars on order with Snap-On and if they have a lead hammer, I'll get that at the same time. What is a dead blow hammer?

The oil leak is still a mystery. Will try again Sat. to get it up on ramps and look more closely for the source.

I'll check Tony Branda's site to see if he has proper fitting mats for the ERA foot box.

[ERA 626]

Is your mech fuel pump a holly? I had problems with my holly then I bought a Carter and problems solved. Thake the fuel pump apart and give it a through re-build I accually found a piece of gasket material in my brand new fuel pump out of the box!!!
They are right 5-6lbs is about rigt, 4lbs is too low.

[John Poling]

hoppy,

I feel your pain on the oil leak issue. My engine only has about 1000 miles on it and has the same problem. I, like you will be raising it on ramps and try to pin down exactly where it is coming from. Hopefully I can repair the leak without any major work. I already have the Milodon 1-piece pan gasket I just hope it's not the rear main seal.

John

[REDSC400]

Hi:
Lets start with the simple stuff... for the lead hammer I would highly reccomend this guy on ebay... I have a 3 and 5 pound hammer from him. He is honest and the hammers are great and not expensive... I have two of these in 3 pound weight, one in the car boot and one in the shop.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...category=31483

The brand of pliers that I have are MILBAR and are the best made. Snap-On and MAC resell this brand under their names at a premium. You can find these on ebay also but they are not cheap.
I have 2 of these now, one in the car and one in the shop.

I would suggest the 9" size.

The first thing I would do is change your fuel filter on your ERA which is usually located near the tank on the drivers side. You will have to remove the rear wheel if you are on jackstands.

I am running without an electric fuel pump with my 428 with a double pumper 780 and have no problems. This sounds like a starvation problem OR a heat problem causing perhaps some vapor lock and cavitation?

Get yourself an inspection mirror and take a look at the back of the intake manifold near the fire wall. This is often a common area for leaks on the FE.

Run the car and put it on jack stands and then watch what goes on underneat. While watching, you can clean and buff stuff.

These are great cars eh?
Enjoy... you have minor issues in the big picture perspective.

[hoppy]

Hi Red,
Thanks for the thoughtful response. I have a remote fuel filter on the front of the engine above the mechanical pump. It's a Fram spin-on and I will change it just for saftey sake. The pressure control valve is adjacent to that with an inline fuel pressure gauge, so I will "turn it up" to about 6-7 lbs as well.

I am a little more concerned about the oil drip, but I'm convinced that I'll find it soon.

In the big picture, I got a temporary operating permit from CA DMV which is renewable till I can apply for SB-100 status and fully insured without restrictions and the car runs GREAT!

Life doesn't get much better.

[ERA 626]

Terry,
7lbs is a little too high. Keep it at 5-6lbs

[REDSC400]

Hi Hoppy:
Even though you have a fuel filter up in the engine bay, do an investigation to see if there is or is not another one back in the "normal" spot just near the output hookup of the gas tank in the rear of the ERA. Pehaps you have 2 filters? If so, the one in the rear is doing most of the work.

Where is the electric fule pump located BTW? Do you have ONE fuel line or two? When the electric fuel pump is OFF (not powered on), are you asking the mechanical pump to suck fuel THROUGH the non-powered electrical pump? If so, I would imagine that the fluid dynamics would not be good at all.

I am so glad you have your car and that you are now enjoying it and it is usable. That is a nice feeling and it does not diminish. A used ERA that was cherished and well taken car of is a great buy in my opinion. We are both lucky to have them.

Frankly, it is fun to make a punch list of things that you want to address, fix, enhance and otherwise upgrade or change. I have been doing this with #375 for 6 months now as time and money allow.

I use a spreadsheet, and fill in a description and assign a priority code to each item. This allows me to sort the list it by priority. I now have no #1 or #2 priority items as they are taken care of. I am now working on having some black rear wheel spats fabricated and having the Tonneue cover fitted correctly. These are minor nits.

[hoppy]

Boy, you sure do know how to ask the tough (obvious) questions. The electric pump is located at and below the fuel tank in the rear. Not sure if there is a filter between the tank and that pump and I don't know if there are separate fuel lines. I guess I will have to crawl under the car to see, but gee, can't you get your shirt dirty doing that?

I admire your organizational skills. I have had good intentions of using an excell spread sheet for the last two projects (67 Triumph Bonneville and "80 Vette) but my computer skills combined with an incredible capacity to procrastinate have precluded this kind of documentation. However, hope springs eternal.

[REDSC400]

Hummm...

Yes, I guess one of the attributes of diagnosis is to ask the right questions. So, if you do get dirty, and get down under the car, it would be good to figure out just how the electric fuel pump is plumbed into the fuel delivery system.

If I were you, I would kindly ask the former owner if the electric pump was added as a "cure" to a problem and if he "normally" ran the car with the electric pump off or on.

It may just be that he ran the car with the pump ON all the time.

Changing Gears....

Think twice about the Cobra logo floor mats. You and your feet know it is a Cobra. My advice is ... Always err on the Less is More side. Fitment on the ERA matts is interesting as the matts are NOT symmetric, the passenger side being narrower than the driver side. So no matter what you do, your old matts should be used as a template if ERA is not supplying them.

I saw some firm that made matts in an old SAAC magazine that I have but for the life of me, I cannot remember who that was. There have been alot of small firms that have come and gone over the years it appears.

Does your car have the SW Gauges? How are they working? Is your car equipped with an oil cooler up front?

[ERA Chas]

Hoppy,
Your oil leak is most likley from the oil galley plugs at the rear of the block, on either side of the cam plug. This is also under the block cover plate of your scattershield. Bummer. This is the same leak I have.
I also have the same fuel system as you and the electric must run full time to feed the mechanical. I have the Carter on the block and a Holley orange [7 psi] electric. The system works fine full-time and cold starts don't kill your battery after a long no-start period when you lose the fuel head. You also won't need a tank return line if your floats are set correctly. Don't think you want to drill the tank and weld a bung. You also don't want to plumb it to the fill pipe vent lne.
Put a cat pan under the motor until teardown time, [I did] and drive the a$$ off it, [I do]
Best luck,

[hoppy]

Wow, I knew you guys would come through.
This evening I jacked up the rear of the car and found:
1. There is an inline filter between the tank and the electric pump
2. The electric pump is a Holley blue pump.
3. There is only one line from the tank through the filter, electric pump, mechanical pump, fuel regulator, inline pressure gauge to the double pumper.
4. No return line
5. I turned up to pressure to 6 psi.
6. I ran the car a few miles keeping the electric pump running with no signs of cut out. I think maybe I should plan on keeping the electric pump on.
7. No place open to buy a new spin on fuel filter, but will replace it soon.
8. No sign of a leak around the manifold or rocker covers so maybe the gallery plug is the culprit. In that case, I think I'll enjoy the car a while and keep parking it over an oil drip tray.
9. Gauges are SW. The tach occasionally fails to fall back below 4500 but a tap on the glass seems to be the fix. Fuel gauge is a little nervous but seems to be mostly ok. I think the fact that it goes towards empty kind of quickly is more related to my right foot.

Thanks again ever so much for the input, it is always interesting and appreciated.

[REDSC400]

Hi Hoppy:

I do like the oil pan idea. All of the alternatives are much more costly.

Ok, so you have two fuel filters AND an electric filter in line. That amount of hydro dynamic resistance is asking alot of your mechanical fuel pump alone. I am still perplexed as to why it runs fine initially and then after 20 or so minutes it then gets cranky. It may be that the mechanial pump gets hot.

The first thing I would do would be to change the rear most filter inline as it is doing the yeoman's amount of work and is most likely to be clogged or restriced in the big scheme of things. The part number for that on the ERA is the WIX 33033 or equivalent. It is directional and usually there is an arrow pointing in the direction of flow.

I too have the ERA SW gauges. My gas gauge is likewise jittery and fickle. In fact my wife gave the car its name due to the apparent normally common reading condition of the gas gauge... "Half Full".

My SW Tach was very very bobbly and jittery and giving false readings. There is a lengthy discussion of this here on the board with how I eventually solved the bobble. Yours does not appear to bobble.

I hope your clothes did not get too dirty...

[hoppy]

Good Morning Red,

Actually getting dirty is very theraputic. I don't know why the problem shows up after some run time, especially since the water and oil temp remained at or near the thermostat. It's still to be seen if on a longer run the problem will re-occur, but I am now thinking that pushing the fuel through the mechanical pump with the electric running is going to be more effective than asking the mechanical pump to pull the fuel through everything by itself. I don't know if boosting the fuel pressure made any difference but most posters seem to think that 4 lbs. was too low.

Tomorrow I may be able to get the car up on a lift at my friends shop and look a little harder for the oil leak. Unfortunately, I am almost sure it is somewhere behind the scattershield.

I am also finding that after runing the car up to speed, hard braking is a little disappointing. I have the stock 4 wheel discs with the rears being inboard. The car only has 2600 miles total, so I doubt anything is worn out. Is there an upgraded caliper or pads I should look at? I don't think I can put much bigger rotors in the 15 inch wheels and don't have the funds right now for any big modification. None the less, I don't consider brakes to be a minor issue.

Keep smiling!