Got the '50 Plymouth out on the road for the first time in 2 years earlier today. Made it halfway around the block when it died because of having no gas. Filled the tank up and tried restarting it, but if I didn't keep my foot on the gas and tried to just let it idle it would die again without getting the chance to move it at all. The fuel lines and fuel filter are not clogged, an it's not overheating. I let it sit for about an hour after pushing it back home, and after the hour it started up and idled just fine and I was able to drive it up the driveway and back into the garage. Any ideas on the cause? I was gonna rebuild the carb cuz I'm not exactly sure when that was last done (more than likely over 10 years ago). Could it be vapor lock? Any suggestions, comments, and or advice is greatly appreciated!!
It's never a bad idea to rebuild or at the very least thoroughly clean out a carb that has sat for two years. I'd start there.
make sure you have a fire extinguisher next time you go out for a ride. Sounds like you sucked up dirt from the tank. Rebuild the carb, then try again. Don
I'd bet on a clogged fuel tank, especially if you ran it dry once. Been down this road on a '48 dodge a few years back. It'd run around town just fine but the minute you put a load on it it'd sputter and die.
Had a 51 Ford truck that did the same thing after I ran it out of gas. When the fuel ran out, the rust and other debris in the fuel tank all converged at the fuel line outlet on the bottom of the tank and plugged it pretty good. If I would let it sit, enough gas seeped by to start it and drive it for a block or so. Sometimes I could drive a long way if I kept it under 25. I replaced the fuel filter, cleaned the line between filter and carb, and couldn't figure why it was still starving for fuel. Pulled line from bottom of tank and it just dripped. A minute with a wire to dislodge the mess and a coffee can (ok, 3 coffee cans) to catch the gas, and all was well again.
Might also be your coil. My '50 did this every time I drove it more than a mile or so. When I parked it, it would not start for about an hour. Once it cooled off, it would fire right up and run great. I've heard many stories about vapor locking being tracked down to a bad coil that quits when it gets hot. Pete
when you service your fuel system add a filter before and after the fuel pump. after you inspect the carb and rebuild it drop the tank and have it cleaned as its money well spent and don't ask me how i know.
Could the venting system be clogged?? I have seen that before. One guy actually collapsed his gas tank at one point.
For one thing, be sure the ol Plym has a vented gas cap on the tank....needs for the air to come in. Another thing some have done is shoot some air fairly gently back into the tank thru the line to try and blow off any crud that has gotten onto the pickup. May not be a permanent fix if there is a lot of junk in the tank. Can remove the tank and put in some small size rocks - shake it around for a while to knock loose the crud, then rinse. I think one guy attached the tank to his cement mixer to make it go round-n- round with the rocks.
Sounds like fuel tank to me too. The way that I verify it's the tank so I don't drop it for nothing, Is to take the fuel hose off of the pump on the tank feed side and blow into it. If you can hear bubbling in the tank with out too much resistance, it might be your pump, carb, or vapor-lock. But, if you feel like you are going to pop a blood vessel in your head along with popping a lung, you have a clogged main line or tank. Either way it is worth your money to drop the tank and have it cleaned, or do it your self with about 5 gallons of gas and about 6 feet of chain. And take a piece of thin cable and run it through the length of your hard main line several times, using several cans of carb cleaner. You'll be amazed at the nasty crap that comes out of them both After all of that when I reinstall tanks, if I cleaned them myself or had a radiator shop do it, I always put rare earth magnets on the bottom of the tank. Away from the pickup tube so they will attract the debris and keep it there. Mike
Who is this "One guy" fellow? I can see where his tank might collapse if he put it in a cement mixer with a bunch of rocks.
The fellow I was refering to put a not vented cap on a car that required a vented one. Don't know how but it run long enough to collapse the tank. Also took the largest pait of channel locks we had to get the cap off. Expensive mistake for him, new tank and all...
Should have just run the car in reverse and blown it back up. I have heard about this happening, always thought it was an urban legend though... always thought a piece of rubber would pinch or a hard line would crack and leak air.
I pinched a vent line on my bike tank when replacing a speedo cable and it caused the tank to collapse after about 80 miles. I don't see why it couldn't happen to a car also.
Had the same trouble all winter on my 1949 Ford 8n tractor. All winter it would start, run awhile and then die. Carb would been major flooded. Last week I took the carb off, douched it good with carb cleaner after taking it apart. End of story is this worked so good that the tractor started right up when I was about 2 feet away because it saw a CLEAN carb LOL!!!! I feel the carb was gummy and may have had a stuck float. Good luck. By the way Ford is flat head 4 cyn.
I have colapsed a tank on VW before... I didn't know it untill it was only taking 3 gallons at the pump twice in a row after me running out of gas. so i pulled the tank and the whole bottom was caved in! hahaha the best thing I have ever seen, to think that the tiny little stock VW pump sucked hard enough to do that to the tank is amazing Mike
Thanks everyone for your tips and suggestions! I'm gonna rebuild the carb and flush out the fuel lines, as well as make sure there isn't a bunch of crap clogging up the tank. I appreciate all the help!!
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