Fuel Filter

Ron,
thanks again of your help. I'll try and get to the carbs on Friday if I can. Unfortunately I'm working in Dublin at the moment so I'm a bit far from the car myself. I just remembered that I have a set of needles (almost new) sitting in the workshop on a set of SUs I removed from another car. I think I might get a full rebuild kit though. A friend of mine has a carb balancer so I'll get my hands on that as well. Will keep you posted.
Thanks again for your help.
Regards,
Dave
 
Dave,
not as far as I remember, but I'll have a look Friday when I get home. Have the day off and herself won't be about so I'm hoping to have the carbs off for a look :D .
Regards,
Dave
 
Lads,
finally got back to the car and had a go. Now it doesn't run on any cylinders! It started first time and ran roughly, then it died and wouldn't restart. I remove the fuel return line, attached a pipe and switched on the electric pump, good supply. Then I took the carsbs off, float chambers were full of fuel. No dirt, float valves work ok, pistons move ok, still no start. I checked the points, checked for a spark (using inline light up testers). I removed a few plugs for a look, no major soot, only a small bit of fuel on them, no obvious signs of problems. Still doesn't even cough. Going to reset the carbs and check the timing again tomorrow. ANy ideas? The only thing I did notice was I left the ignition on for about 10 minutes, and of course ended up with a hot coil. Still sparked after that though.
Regards,
Dave
 
Hello Dave,

Once you have verified the float levels and set them to 50 thou and swapped out the needles for BBG or BBV, then it certainly should (in theory) start and run markedly better.

Hmmmm,...does the coolant level drop quite noticably in a matter of days by any chance?

If the coil didn't get too hot, then it still should be fine. You can check the primary resistance when at room temperature,.. it should be within the range of 1.2 to 1.6 ohms depending on the coil in question.

When you removed the carbs Dave, the swirl devices were still there were they not?

All the best,
Ron.
 
Ron,
thanks for your response. The coolant level has never dropped as long as I've owned the car, i assume you're thinking head gasket. The car suffered unexplained water loss just before i bought it, it got a set of SD1 heads and gaskets, before it was traced to the heater matrix. On the floats, I couldn't find my feeler gauges earlier, but the far side float looked to be as per the manual, however the nearside was sitting a bit low, I made a very quick adjustment but it's probably not spot on, I was working outside and the rain started so I had to close it up in a hurry. I'll take it off again tomorrow and set it properly if it is dry. I swapped the coil out for a spare since i posted with no results. Will set points, timing, mixture and change the condensor in the morning, if the weather allows. By the way, where do the swirl devices live? :?:
Thanks again Ron.
Regards,
Dave
 
Hello Dave,

Yes indeed, I was thinking head gasket, and a possible coolant leak into one or more cylinders, but with the coolant level remaining essentially static, that is not a possiblity. It is very important Dave that the float levels are set perfectly with the feeler gauge, and both must be identical.

When you fitted the SD1 heads, did you use composite or tin gaskets?

The swirl devices of which there are two, are metal tubes that are retained by the phenolic spacers. When you pop either carburettor off and look into the fuel / air mixture tunnel within the tower you should see it. If you lift off the slim gasket that fits between the phenolic spacer and the carburettor you will see the little tags that locate the swirl device into the spacer.

All the best,
Ron.
 
Have you tried pouring some fuel directly into the mainfold and trying?

The jets may still be blocked, also you need some air, are the butterflies opening?

Can you buy or borrow a gunson colourtune? this would allow you to see the spark and the flame.

Has the distributor been disturb? have the plugs been changed. has the rotorarm been fitted correctly.

If the distributor has been out is is easy to re-fit 180* out because the crank rotates twice for every one of the distributor.

I have been there and you need to go back to basics and check every part of the system is set up correclty.

Colin
 
I've seen similar , spark at plugs , fuel flowing , compression and timing Ok and it turend out to be the condensor
Obviously sparking but not enough
 
Gents,
thanks for your responses. I don't think the swirl devices as described are fitted. I haven't tried introducing fuel directly but could give it a go. The butterflies are operating ok and the jets are definately clear, and fuel is being drawn out through them. The distributor/plugs have not been changed/disturbed (and the dizzy is securily fixed, and vac advance free, having been replaced about 18 months ago). I have a colour tune somewhere in my parts stash so i'll dig it out. I don't know what gasket is fitted but i'll ask the previous owner tomorrow as I must drop some parts off for his car. I took a trip out to my workshop yesterday and got a replacement coil and a few condensors so i'll try swapping them out. I think the spark could be weak. I tried the car briefly today and it spluttered and tried to start, then i could smell fuel, as though she flooded. Will replace the ignition components in the morning and try again. I will also recheck the float levels as Ron suggested. Unfortunately a combination of a few pints last night :mrgreen: and a lame horse today kept me away from the car, but hopefully will have more answers tomorrow. Thanks again for your continued help.
Regards,
Dave
 
Hello Dave,

I have never tried running my engine without the swirl devices fitted, so I cannot say if doing so would make a difference, but if I had to make a guess I would be think the outcome would be less than satisfactory.
Dave you may well have found one of the major problems. Do try to obtain a pair of swirl devices and fit them as soon as you can.

SU Carburettors are very precise instruments, with just the smallest variation turning what could be a perfectly running engine into one that won't run at all.

The swirl devices would be from memory at least an inch or more in length, so they extend into the tower. I imagine that they aid in channelling and expediating the air fuel mixture into the manifold in an efficient way where as without them, the effect would be lost.

Ron.
 
Thanks Ron,
I have a spare set of SUs which I can rob for parts. The previous owner has asked me to drop the car off at his place so he can take a look as well. I'm currently away working all week so I'm not getting enough time to fix it. I'll try to get her to run on Friday when I get home and failing that I'll trailer it to his house on saturday, where at least it can be worked on indoors. He has decided to start from scratch with both the fuel and ignition systems and rebuild/reset the lot. Given the weather we are having here recently I think I'll put her into my own workshop for a few weeks after that to keep her dry. I'll pass on all the replies i've had here to him to help him in the right direction. We'll hopefully find the problem by next saturday evening so i'll keep you posted.
Regards,
Dave
 
Hi all,
I'm feeling a little stupid today :oops: . The root of all my problems (well, with this car anyway!) has has been found. Our regional organiser, the cars previous owner, took the car off me a few weeks ago to have a look at my ongoing problem. He stripped the carbs and ignition, reset them and the car ran perfectly. Then as he tried to move it out of his garage it dropped to 4 cylinders again. He stuck a dwell angle meter on it and found it was all over the place again. He stripped the distributer down and found the treads on the adjuster were stipped! One minute the car would be fine, then the adjuster would move and she'd run like a pig. I can't believe i missed it. Every time I checked the electrics all seemed fine. Doesn't inspire confidence knowing that I'm an electrical engineer by trade!! Thanks to all of you who helped on this, especially Ron. Sorry if I wasted members time :oops: on my silly mistake. Now that the distributer has been rebuilt all should be well.
Regards,
Dave
 
dmcsweeney said:
Hi all,
I'm feeling a little stupid today :oops: . The root of all my problems (well, with this car anyway!) has has been found. Our regional organiser, the cars previous owner, took the car off me a few weeks ago to have a look at my ongoing problem. He stripped the carbs and ignition, reset them and the car ran perfectly. Then as he tried to move it out of his garage it dropped to 4 cylinders again. He stuck a dwell angle meter on it and found it was all over the place again. He stripped the distributer down and found the treads on the adjuster were stipped! One minute the car would be fine, then the adjuster would move and she'd run like a pig. I can't believe i missed it. Every time I checked the electrics all seemed fine. Doesn't inspire confidence knowing that I'm an electrical engineer by trade!! Thanks to all of you who helped on this, especially Ron. Sorry if I wasted members time :oops: on my silly mistake. Now that the distributer has been rebuilt all should be well.
Regards,
Dave
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Dont feel bad, a second set of fresh eyes is often all that is needed, as your recent experience has shown this is the reason corporations do so well all the other individuals colaborating makes for fast solutions. Now for another bit of extra positivity, we are all great when we stand on the shoulders of others.

Graeme
 
Hello Dave,

As Graeme says,..don't feel bad. Life is a learning experience, and certainly owning a Rover is, so I am just really pleased to hear that the cause has been found and corrected.

It was a pleasure Dave to be able to help where ever I could.

Ron.
 
Thanks lads! I've been chasing this problem since I bought the car. Looking forward to using her over christmas, and the other 2 of course. The car is in excellent condition, but up to know I was always nervous about using it, knowing it could breakdown without warning. The guy who fixed it is doing some work on his own car at the moment so I'll leave him run it for the next week or two while his own is in the workshop. I called to his house last night and started her up and she sounded better than ever. Idles far better than it did even when running correctly and the choke seems to work properly now. Will have to get cracking on my other 2 now over the christmas break and get the fleet out for a run!
Regards,
Dave
 
Normally the act of tightening the nuts over the olives distorts them to make them seal which means you can't get the olives off.
 
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