Thread: Hot engine won't start

Originally Posted by DiscoDave

Hmmm... I had a look at things today:
Plugs - were black and oily. Cleaned them.
Plug gap - they were .030". I changed them to .025" but since find that figure is valid only for earlier models so I'd better change them back again.
Exhaust - black.
Distributor - Removed bodgy and broken earth wiring installed by previous owner and replaced it with my own bodgy earth wiring arranged in such a way that the vacuum advance can still operate! Lubricated as per Instruction Manual. Filed points with 600 grade and wiped clean. Replaced a missing circlip on the points fulcrum and a missing split pin on the vacuum advance linkage.
Points gap - HUGE - set it back to around .014".
Condenser - replaced it with identical one from my parts box.
Cap and HT leads - in pretty good nick.
Coil - I don't have a spare so left it alone.
Fuel Pump - Electric Holden thing. It ticks and pumps plenty of fuel. (Too much pressure?)
Solex Carbi - Appears to leak from every gasket but could be just seepage from a leaking fuel inlet union at the top. (Needs a new washer)
Butterfly Opening - Appears to open and close fully with accelerator operation. Can't see any change when operating the choke.
Slow Running Adjustments - Followed the Instruction Manual procedure but unable to obtain 'hunting'. I'd wound the volume screw so far out I thought it was going to drop on the floor! Wound it in a few turns and reset the idle speed to ~500rpm. I'll try again after a test run.

After all this I tried stopping and starting the motor a few times (with the accelerator pedal depressed as per manual instruction for hot starting) and had no problems but the engine was really only 'warm' rather than hot so I'll see what happens on a test run.

Beats me how it ran at all! Coil would be my first suspect.

Dave

you might try the other forum ... there's a topic there on this subject.

Trans Tasman Land Rover Series 1 Register Forum • View topic - Carburettor specialists

Just a bit of feedback on this topic - it seems I was chasing two problems simultaneously, there was an intermittent loss of spark from the distributor taking place as well as carbie problems. The connection between the coil and the points was found to be open circuit after the engine last stopped unexpectedly - cleaning up the terminals and replacing the cable seems to have fixed that.
Ian Harvie from LROCS had a thorough look at the carburetter before Xmas and found the pump injector assembly was broken, the accelerator pump assembly was sticking and the needle valve was leaking. I also suspect the electric pump is supplying too high a pressure and I may have aggravated this by replacing the inline fuel filters (there were two) with one new one.
The pump injector assembly has been replaced, the accelerator pump repaired and I'll be ordering a new needle valve and washer. As to the fuel pressure I hope to revert to the original fuel pump system in the new year or failing that install a pressure regulator.
For now she's running rich but at least she's running! Thanks to everyone who helped.