i need help with my flat-4

hello everybody,
i began building a buggy from a VW Variant, before taking it appart
the engine was running exelently however the body was so rusted up it
was not worth keeping it.
i have finally gotten the engine in place and connected everything up
and i recently started the engine after about 18 months without running
is started pretty much immediatly however after about five minutes of
runnung the engine would try turning off. you have to pump the gas
vigorously to keep it running just.
im not much of a mecanic but i think that it is to do with lack of
petrol thus by pumping it the injection cuircuit in the carburettor
keeps the engine running...
any help would be greatly apretiated!!
P.S: i had to change the coil for a second hand one.. dont know if that
has something to do with it. i also checked the spark plugs and they
were quite black with carbon residue.
thank you again
Stefan

On Jan 24, 1:47 pm, stefanbry... (AT) gmail (DOT) com wrote:

im not much of a mecanic but i think that it is to do with lack of
petrol thus by pumping it the injection cuircuit in the carburettor
keeps the engine running...
any help would be greatly apretiated!!

SWAG that the float-valve in your carburettor is stuck. That or the
automatic choke (which is electric in most cases.... did you re-connect
the choke wire?).

Try disabling the choke and try flushing the carburettor with cleaner.

Last SWAG... do you have an electric idle cut-off? If so, the
connection may be wonky.

Peter Wieck
Wyncote, PA

stefanbryant (AT) gmail (DOT) com wrote:

hello everybody,
i began building a buggy from a VW Variant

FYI, there is a rec.autos.makers.vw.aircooled that you should check out.

--
Mike Smith

SWAG that the float-valve in your carburettor is stuck. That or the
automatic choke (which is electric in most cases.... did you
re-connect
the choke wire?).

i had already removed the valves and cleaned them out with some
carberetter cleaner however i tried blowing thru them closing the valve
and some times the valve would not open again with me blowing thru
them. i also just installed a land rover defender electric pump (which
i supose has more pressure and the engine lasted much longer before it
started acting up)

as for the choke wire which is it and where is it (my mecanic clasess
were all in spanish and my english terminoligy isint very good hahaha)

i do not think i do have an electric idle cut off as the only electrics
ive done on the engine have been the coil and the alternator

thank you very much for such a quick response

P.S: what does SWAG mean??

Note the interpolations:

On Jan 24, 5:09 pm, stefanbry... (AT) gmail (DOT) com wrote:

SWAG that the float-valve in your carburettor is stuck. That or the
automatic choke (which is electric in most cases.... did you
re-connect
the choke wire?).

i had already removed the valves and cleaned them out with some
carberetter cleaner however i tried blowing thru them closing the valve
and some times the valve would not open again with me blowing thru
them. i also just installed a land rover defender electric pump (which
i supose has more pressure and the engine lasted much longer before it
started acting up)

Do you understand the operation of the float valve? It raises up and
closes the valve letting gasoline into the carburettor. So if it is
sticky and hangs up, you will experience problem.

as for the choke wire which is it and where is it (my mecanic clasess
were all in spanish and my english terminoligy isint very good hahaha)

Mpfffff.... typically it is brown, or green, or black or something...
it goes from the harness to the circular thing that hangs off the
top-ish of the carburettor and is about 40mm in diameter. Current is
applied to it while the engine is running, it is bi-metalic strip that
expands when heated and opens the choke. You will start a little hard
without it, but you can start. The sovereign method to disable it is to
look down the carburettor, loosen the clamp on the choke, then rotate
it until the choke goes fully open with a cold engine. Resetting it is
the opposite, but the goal is *barely* closed when cold, then reconnect
the wire.

The automatic fuel cut-off wire is also brown, green or black, possibly
red (yeah, I have seen all of the above and it makes no sense) and it
goes to a little barrel-like thingy that also hangs off the carburettor
about midway and is just under 25mm in diameter and about 40mm long
with the wire on the end. This cuts off idle fuel, but does not affect
normal running.

i do not think i do have an electric idle cut off as the only electrics
ive done on the engine have been the coil and the alternator

thank you very much for such a quick response

P.S: what does SWAG mean??

S uper W ild A ss G uess


Peter Wieck
Wyncote, PA

Mpfffff.... typically it is brown, or green, or black or something...
it goes from the harness to the circular thing that hangs off the
top-ish of the carburettor and is about 40mm in diameter. Current is
applied to it while the engine is running, it is bi-metalic strip that
expands when heated and opens the choke. You will start a little hard
without it, but you can start. The sovereign method to disable it is to
look down the carburettor, loosen the clamp on the choke, then rotate
it until the choke goes fully open with a cold engine. Resetting it is
the opposite, but the goal is *barely* closed when cold, then reconnect
the wire.

well i know now what you are talking about it is all the way open.. it
always had been.. it does not have any cable going to it however on
the other car i have with the same engine it doesent have any cable
going to it either an it runs fine

super wild ass guess... i like that!!

On 24 Jan 2007 15:00:45 -0800, "pfjw (AT) aol (DOT) com" <pfjw (AT) aol (DOT) com> wrote:

Note the interpolations:

On Jan 24, 5:09 pm, stefanbry... (AT) gmail (DOT) com wrote:
SWAG that the float-valve in your carburettor is stuck. That or the
automatic choke (which is electric in most cases.... did you
re-connect
the choke wire?).

i had already removed the valves and cleaned them out with some
carberetter cleaner however i tried blowing thru them closing the valve
and some times the valve would not open again with me blowing thru
them. i also just installed a land rover defender electric pump (which
i supose has more pressure and the engine lasted much longer before it
started acting up)

Do you understand the operation of the float valve? It raises up and
closes the valve letting gasoline into the carburettor. So if it is
sticky and hangs up, you will experience problem.

The float valve if closed should not allow any more fuel into the carb..

This is when the bowl is full of fuel and the float is floating at the top of its
travel. As the engine uses fuel from the bowl, the float lowers with the level
and opens the valve allowing fuel into the bowl till the float raises to the top
and closes the valve again.
The amount of fuel in the bowl when it is full and the valve is closed is about 5 minutes
of idle run time. If the valve is stuck closed you will get the symptoms the poster
discribes. Then after time the float weight trying to pull the valve up/open finally
happens , maybe with a bump or knock . So the engine will again do the 5 minutes
of run time then stop because it has used the fuel in the bowl again.

as for the choke wire which is it and where is it (my mecanic clasess
were all in spanish and my english terminoligy isint very good hahaha)

Mpfffff.... typically it is brown, or green, or black or something...
it goes from the harness to the circular thing that hangs off the
top-ish of the carburettor and is about 40mm in diameter. Current is
applied to it while the engine is running, it is bi-metalic strip that
expands when heated and opens the choke. You will start a little hard
without it, but you can start. The sovereign method to disable it is to
look down the carburettor, loosen the clamp on the choke, then rotate
it until the choke goes fully open with a cold engine. Resetting it is
the opposite, but the goal is *barely* closed when cold, then reconnect
the wire.

The automatic fuel cut-off wire is also brown, green or black, possibly
red (yeah, I have seen all of the above and it makes no sense) and it
goes to a little barrel-like thingy that also hangs off the carburettor
about midway and is just under 25mm in diameter and about 40mm long
with the wire on the end. This cuts off idle fuel, but does not affect
normal running.

i do not think i do have an electric idle cut off as the only electrics
ive done on the engine have been the coil and the alternator

thank you very much for such a quick response

P.S: what does SWAG mean??

S uper W ild A ss G uess

I always used the word Scientific instead of Super , it makes the

acronym more fun.
Pete , please don't take my post here as an attack on you . It is not
meant that way at all. You have usually always been right on with your
info. and have taught me more than a few things.

Peter Wieck
Wyncote, PA

thank you both very much!!
i just took apart the carberettors and gave theme an intense cleaning
removed all the brass or copper screw things and clreared them out (one
of theme was cloged; the one that is at the base of the resivouir) i
think that was the problem...
the engine runnes perfectly now it is however running a bit ritch.
thank you again and best of wishes
Stefan