Hot Rods Confidence in your Ride??

Have you ever lost your confidence in your ride? How did you regain it?
Recently I’ve been having some terrible times with the 33 in that I just can’t seem to get the bugs out of the carburetor, yea, yea, I could just go buy a new one, but that’s not really the issue.

It just seems that I’ve lost confidence in the car, that sooner or later it’s just going to leave me stranded out in the middle of nowhere and I’ll have to walk home. It’s not the walk. I’m to the point where I almost dread driving the car and I don’t like this……..how do you overcome this?

 

on a O/T DD when the rear end exploded ( 14 bolt G-80) not once, not twice, but 3 times , one time by lead foot of the driver and on Ice , the others in non abusive or hard service ( just driving to work ) , the first 2 times the dealer fixed it ( should have known ) the third time I fixed it myself and by using parts that I was reccommended by people ( non g-80 style locker) . after the first 500 miles I was concerned, after that no more worrying about it .

as for cars I built or rebuilt , I always understood shit breaks and its beyond my control , and if you cut corners you have to worry about it more , so I took my time and spent some good money to insure that it was capable of doing what I asked it too . and many of my vehicles have gone there distance , but when I have work done by others I do not know , recently I have questioned it .

 

Been a long time now since i had an issue, but still have my phone with me and a card of a guy i know that can pick me up with a flatbed.
As my dad would say, "better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it". Also like to keep a small tool box in the back.

 

I can be there Saturday morning and take it off your hands if you like.

Been there done that. I just keep plugging away until I find the problem and fix it. Once I get to driving again, I have to much fun to let any doubts hold me back.

 

That's why I have free towing on the 56 buick wagon and the Olds station wagon on my insurance. LOL.Bruce.

 

AND the Olds wagon.Bruce.

 

Well, I cured that by signing up for the Haggerty road assistance with my insurance renewal..........I don't worried about a thing now!

 

My wife knows the first name of every tow truck driver in a 3 county area. AAA for 25 yrs.

 

While I have never been stranded, I have been on the side of the road a few times for repairs. What rebuilds my confidence is time and driving the offending vehicle. I did Hot Rod Drag Week a few years ago in a truck that I had only a couple of hundred miles on when I started. The first day I was so nervous I couldn't eat. And it left me on the side of the road a couple of times- and I fixed it and kept going. By the last day of the week, I was ready to go another 1000 in it. I had no qualms about driving it anywhere and everywhere.

 

Sit out there with your coffee one morning and talk really nice to it. Ok, as silly as that sounds it might expand your thought process so YOU can sort out the issue. "...forest for the trees..."?

Spill it, what's the issue, what carb, symptom, inquiring minds wanna help.

 

Life is a journey. Enjoy your car and have fun. If it breaks ,you can always get it towed. What's the worst that can happen.

 

Never worried about it. Always carry tools and any extra parts i think we might need. Fixed a blown radiator hose once with a sock and hose clamp. We stilll laugh about it.

 

On my '59, I've taken great strides along the way to make it as reliable as possible. New harness, front discs, dual master, largely a new engine, no used components and so on. Rebuilt starter converted to hi-torque, rebuilt 63 amp alternator, new gas tank, all new switches. The other trick is to assemble it correctly and make sure any wires that pass through metal have grommets and don't flap in the wind. I try to think of any scenario that can leave me stranded.

 

Drive local, then drive further and further. Mine stars running weak after an hour better than it was before... Slow and steady

 

Revived 265: To answer your question do this. First, keep a positive attitude and remember you will, in time, solve the carb problem or what ever else it might be. Then, methodically follow a step by step, part by part repair procedure starting with making sure that your gas tank is clean and you have excellent, unobstructed gas flow to the carb. Also double check to make sure your condenser and/or coil is not overheating causing misfiring. Is your distributer functioning properly? It's probably something very simple. You will prevail.

 

I don't know. I just keep on truckin', and if it dies, I fix it.

the last confidence shaker was a bad condenser that caused me grief for five months, I finally figure it out (with the help of an old guy who knew right away what the problem was by the sound of the car).

So maybe you need to get someone to go for a ride with you, and help you sort it out.

 

Ironically the times I had to have a tow/flatbed was with new/late model cars/trucks/suvs. Any of my hot rods have never left me stranded yet and as somebody pointed out, the worst is a tow bill and a delay, not that big of a deal. If you need a new carb, buy one, if you have problems beyond your skills, buy some help, if your avatar is your ride/problem, looks like it's worth some $$$ input. Used to tow racers all over, many, many miles/years, had a few break downs, always found help and got back on road, never a bad experience. All problems can be fixed, all it takes is some $$$ and skills. To answer your question, No, always try to fix problems as they arise and try my best to make things right ASAP. Good Luck !

 

1. Drive car. 2. Turn up music. 3. Car break, you fix. 4.repeat
The more you fix, the more you learn.
If you get disillusioned driving an old car , and are not prepared to get your knuckles skinned every now and then, then it's time to give up and go straight to the (insert new car brand here) dealer.

 

Roger,I had a problem with my Deuce sedan a few years ago and it was fuel related,I drove to the starting point of the All Deuce Run with no problems and that night we went out for dinner and the car stumbled and quit running on the way back to the motel.

Ken towed me back to the motel and we took the carburetor apart,cleaned it and reassembled it and the car ran perfect from Charlotte to Boone,N.C.

We ate lunch in Boone and then headed back home,about 350 trouble free miles.

A week later I was driving the sedan and taking my bride to breakfast,about 7 miles from home the engine quit running,I tried every thing I could with no tools and called a rollback.

In my mind I was convinced the fuel pump was the problem so I replaced it and the car ran fine,I drove it to a cruise in and my confidence was restored,unfortunately my renewed confidence was short lived on the why home the car died.

I was frustrated and I called my pal with a rollback and again had it hauled back to the house.

I had a new carburetor for my project and decided to replace the old one,I didn't expect it to solve my problem but the old one was leaking so it was a stab in the dark,

I poured a little gas in the carburetor and the car ran great,and continued to run fine for the next few months,I was sure my problems were behind me.I was wrong,the car died on the way to my pal Dave's shop.

That was the last straw,I was furious and another friend of mine has Earl's garage and we towed it to his place.

He had the car on the rack running and he noticed a small but steady drip near the gas tank,seems all my problems could be traced back to a 50 cent piece of rubber fuel line that the ethanol in the gasoline had attacked.

The hose was split and the fuel pump was sucking more air than fuel.

Earl called a few hours later and said the problem is fixed and the bill is 20 bucks.
I haven't had any fuel related problems since. HRP

 

If you built the car and have lost confidence in it then you haven't lost confidence in the car you have lost confidence in yourself.

I once had a bike that had begun to lay down on me, I had been all over the country on it and I was known for being able to limp one along on nearly nothing. I finally gave up and tore it apart and put it back together other then some rollers in on the crank pin I found nothing wrong with it and the crank pin wasn't really loose just figured it was a good time as I was already in there and they were cheap enough. The bike ran fine after that and I really didn't do anything to it but I regained my confidence that I could handle anything that came along.

Moral to the story is this if you think that the carb is a problem take it apart, its probably not the carb at all anyway but you will at least know that when you are done.

 

Hell, I don't even have confidence in my new Mustang or F150...so I have AAA.

 

I know the feeling. I have a hard time trusting any of my cars too far away from home, as I'm not much of a mechanic anyway. Short trips first, only when you'll have time to sort it out if something happens. Seems like once you build up some "confidence miles" it's easier to take longer trips.

My '52 Ford hasn't been out of the garage in almost 4 years because I just don't trust it. It stranded me too many times. I really want to try again this year.

 

You're right, its gong to break down sooner or later, its a car. It's not just yours, its everybody's. If it moves, it can break. Whether you can fix it when it happens, or you need help, is luck of the draw. Evidently you have been lucky this far and not broke down much, or you wouldnt dread it so bad,its not the end of the world..
Most carb/fuel problems can be fixed without running out and buying a brand new carb. As has been mentioned, check the whole fuel system. Take the carb off and take it apart and clean it, or have somebody else take a look at it. Good Luck

 

I like '52s let it spend a month with me, I'll make a driver out of it for ya and be stylin' while I am at it.

 

Also be sure to check the ignition system, it's been my experience that at least 75% of "carburetor problems" are caused by poor spark.

 

And vice versa.

A carb is just a dumb mixing device, a car would actually run with a gas soaked sponge. All a carb does is allow passing air to mix with some fuel. If the car is laying down it is probably something else.

 

Reminds me of a funny story. A friend of mine had a 6 cylinder truck that needed a tune up. He drove it to work and while he was at work his son was supposed to come to the parking lot to tune it up. My friend forgot about it and after work he got in it and cranked it up. It cranked and ran but started running fast and wild with no response so he shut it off. Looked under the hood and his son had removed the carburetor to take it and rebuild it. The truck was just running on gas being squirting out of the gas line'
Carburetor?....we don't need no stinkin carburetor..

 

LOL that is classic. You just can't make that stuff up.

 

I know my car pretty well and put 7,300 miles on it last year (my first year), it comforts me to know I have Grundy Insurance as a back up.

 

Yes it can be a bit unsettling, but the best way to find the problems is by driving it. Just drive and figure out what conditions cause the problem. Then fix that. Keep going until you have all the small issues resolved.