I gassed up my 71 Cutlass and noticed a gas smell. The inline Wix fuel filter was leaking so I swapped it with a spare I had in the trunk in the plastic bin I keep for parts. The filter was used, but not really dirty from visual inspection. On the way home it stalled at a stop sign. The car was running fine at speed, but couldn't maintain idle. I couldn't get it started again and call Hagerty roadside assistance but got an answering service, they still haven't called back. Not impressed. Anyway, after about 15 minutes, I got it started and used neutral to keep the RPM above idle and got home. The car runs fine except it won't stay running at idle. I'm thinking there may have been some contamination in the filter, but I could not see anything looking at it. Any idea what the issue might be?

 

If the last thing changed prior to the occurrence was adding gasoline I'd sample the gasoline for water.

Good luck!!!

 

If therel is water, do I need to drain the tank or is there a treatment/additive?

 

It depends on how much water is in the fuel. If it's just a little, then a bottle of gas line antifreeze will mix it in. If it's a lot of water, it needs to be drained.

 

I topped it off about half a tank, so it may not be that bad assuming that's the problem. It's cold here, so not sure if that makes thing worse. I saw Heet advertised online.

 

Is the choke pull off working?

 

Is it flooding or starving? I’ve had this happen once or twice due to flooding. Once was after pulling a U turn to enter the New England Olds Club show in CT. Car was running fine but immediately after the U turn, it began stumbling & didn’t want to idle due to flooding. Had been at the track a few days prior, swapping carbs and doing some makeshift lines. I pulled the carb in the show field (hotel parking lot), popped the top, found a tiny metal shard in the needle/seat, cleared it and solved the issue.

IF you’re flooding, a little piece of hose or something may have found it’s way to the carb while swapping filter. If starving, I would replace the filter and see if that straightens things out. If still an issue, I would suspect water in fuel.

​​​​​​….

 

Have re-read the original post and it seems like the first problem immediately before the symptom was a leaking fuel filter, not the new gas. The leaking filter is why it was changed and a used filter installed. The used filter and the process of changing it may have broken a piece of dirt loose which may be causing the carb to flood.

I'd suggest replacing the filter with a new one, sample the gasoline at the same time and pinch off the rubber hose to the fuel pump to run the carb out off gas. After the carb runs out of gas release the pinch on the hose and restart the car. This process causes a rush of fuel from the fuel pump to wash debris of the needle and seat in the carb.

If working inside be cautious for backfires etc. have a fire extinguisher ready when working with gasoline.

Good luck!!!

 

I will give that a try this weekend and let you know if it works. Too cold here now, in the 20s for a high. It will be warmer on Saturday.

 

I would certainly change the filter, and add the HEET. If there is water in the fuel, that is bad enough but the temps you described, it will certainly freeze the water.

 

Agree with adding some HEET either way if for nothing other than maintenance.

Good luck!!!

 

https://www.theautochannel.com/news/...ion%20process.
I thought ethanol was evil? You really can't make this stuff up.

 

Must be true

 

That's a bummer that Hagerty didn't answer their Roadside Assistance hotline. I left them due to poor service. Good luck repairing the carburetor.

 

I think adding Heet is where I will start. Saturday will be in the 40s or 50s. That may help if the line/carb are iced up from bad gas. The car didn't have problems until after I got it on open stretches of road where the heat of the engine may not have been able to overcome the 20 degree air flowing through the system. After I let it sit for a few I was able to get it started.

 

....and, just like that, alcohol is fine in your gasoline.



Amazing

 

How ironic. I'm going to add alcohol to gas i paid $6/gal to have no alcohol in my gas🤔

 

That's my point. Ethanol isn't as big of a boogeyman as most think.

 

Except potentially the lean running conditions it can cause. In addition, ethanol is purported to degrade nonmetallic parts on older vehicle fuel systems.

 

I checked the plugs and they are covered with black soot. Normally the car run lean. So it's probably dirt in the carb. I will give the process above a shot.

 

With the onset of winter, it would be a good time to pull the carb and send it to Ken at Everyday Performance for a rebuild. Then, put some new plugs in.

 

Then change your oil!

 

Hopefully the carb won't need rebuilding it's less than 2 years old and always worked well. The plugs are recent when the head gaskets were replaced I'm May and the carbon wipes off easily since the rich condition only happened during the last 20 mile trip to and from the gas station. I've been checking them regularly since running non ethanol gas to see if it is helping with the lean condition. I can't get to the passenger rear plug without removing the nonfunctional ac box so I'm hoping to clear it running the car.

 

It must have been ice in the carburetor. I changed the filter and it started right up. I let it run for 15 minutes and got it up to temperature. It idles so smooth you could put a martini on the air cleaner and it wouldn't spill.

 

It was almost certainly ice in the fuel system and probably in the carburetor.

This plug was completely black after crippling the car home on 12/21. I took it out for about 30 miles last night and pulled the plug today. It was gray before I started running non-ethanol gas. Now it's a light brown color.

 

I'll put my money on the used fuel filter not passing enough fuel because it had hardened on the inside.

 

Wouldn't starving the motor of gas from a restrictive filter have caused a lean condition? The plugs where black the next day when I checked them. That's never happened before. They usually showed a lean condition prior to that night.

 

The black could have been caused when you couldn't keep the engine running or kept trying to get it started.