The other day i let me car sit and idle for almost 60 minutes in my garage. ..Sometime between the 50 and 60 minute mark it died. I assume i ran out of gas. So i put new gas in and still nothing. Gave it starter fluid and it would act like it wanted to start, so i checked the carb and didnt see gas come out when i played with the linkage. Then i took gas line out put it in a bottle turned the key and no gas came out when i tried to start the car. So i assume fuel pump went bad so i ordered new one and installed it today and it started...But 2 hours later it did the same and acts like it wants to start but nothing. . Now i know im getting spark and i installed new wires..spark plugs and cap and rotor few days ago. This a 75 buick lesabre 350 and carb is rebuilt according to the previous owner....One thing the spark seems weak and i was told i the distributor assembly is bad. Would this explain the issues here? Should i go ahead order a new one? And one last thing it does start up with heavy spray of starter fluid and stays running but runs real rough.. Shop i took it too before i installed fuel pump told me they could only do so much cause of the bad distributer.
Pull the plugs and see how they look. Excessive idling can cause them to carbon fouling if running rich, or oil fouling. Also, pull the distributor cap and see if there is obvious carbon tracking or of the rotor has carbon build-up or burnt/carbon buildup on the posts inside the cap. Since you did not change things/parts, and it simply stopped running after long time idling, that should be the focus of your troubleshooting. If you start changing parts or settings, you may introduce more variables into the issue, and just get lost in the weeds.
I forgot to mention. I just gave the car a tuneup a week ago. New plugs, wires, cap and rotor. and probably havent drove it 5 miles total. Just pulled the #1 plug it black.
Im assume im running lean but that wont explain the hard starts.. Just so you know that we could only do so much with the carb simply because the distributor isn't working properly and the spark plugs are extremely fouled out! But your bill is $190.80 and you can pick it up until 5pm today or 8-5pm tomorrow . That comment was from the shop. I really dont want to take it back there when i can do almost everything myself except adjust the qjet thats on their. . Since then i have changed the plugs, wires and cap and rotor. Its idling rough too and was idling rough like that after i picked it up from the shop. So distributer?
If the plugs are that badly carboned up in an hour of running at idle, you are way rich. There are many things that can give those results. As far as the shop stating; "the distributor isn't working properly", can you get a good explanation fro them on the problem with the distributor? Is the shaft worn or bent? Advance not working correctly? Anything to provide a concise problem with the malfunction of the distributor is helpful. Replacing it outright, may or may not resolve the issue. "Guessing" is a rich man's game, the poor man will end up broke trying to play. Do you know the basics of engine operation, ignition timing, base timing, dwell, proper advance operation, full advance, correct idle, choke settings and vacuum readings? Do you have baseline cold compression, warm compression and "wet (oiled cylinder) compression as well as leak down tests? Otherwise, you are going to end up going in circles. If you have a shop doing this work, do they know how to do these things? A distributor that is functioning normally, does not typically just "go bad". A coil, set of points, condenser, vacuum canister, cap or rotor can fail, but each of those results in pretty specific symptoms when they fail. Understanding how everything works are fundamental in troubleshooting and problem-solving. Even basic knowledge of all the things that work together to make an engine run correctly is important. (Appears you have HEI, so points/condenser don't apply) If you (or the shop) doing the work, do not have the basics or better, then frustration and spending more time and money to solve the problem will be the likely outcome. I do not mean to "talk down" or "over your head", so any and all info you can provide, will go a long way with folks offering things to focus on in helping.
I am trying to understand what I am seeing here? For new plugs, is this rust or what? (The carbon of the electrode and ground strap are a given for the long idle time, likely very rich idle/choke not dropping off)
Those threads on those plugs do look rusty, gooped up, or something. Lets start from the top, how did the car run before all this started happening? How does it run before it quits, smooth, rough, smooth then rough? Your distributor cap doesn't look new, looks like its been on there awhile. Remove the coil cover and make sure the wires and the brass terminals from the coil are clean and seated properly in the cap and the 12 volt wire and module connectors are making good electrical contact with those wires and brass terminals from the coil. Also check the condition of the carbon button, spring and rubber pad/cushion/insulator on the bottom of the coil in the cap.
You killed it in the garage from carbon monoxide poisoning. If those are new plugs and look like that already the engine is running too rich but if they have been in there all winter and you just fired it up and let it idle I can see where the plugs can get all fouled up and the car won't start after that. See if you can pump gas into a jar again could be the sock in tank is getting plugged but from the look of those plugs it looks like the carb is running rich and flooding it out. Smell the oil probably needs changed now.
Shop told me i needed a new Distributer assembly. And that's not rust on the spark plug. Thats the anti sieze gel to keep it from getting stuck. ..And it was running fine after i got it from the shop. Before i couldn't. Punch it without it wanting to bog down and die. After i it back from the shop i could punch it no problems but it still ran rough...But no issues until i let it idle for a hour
I dont know carbs and im just now starting understanding timing. I can fix brakes and just bout everything else on my car but never took the time to learn carbs or basic timing. Thats why i took it to the shop and why i now want to learn so i can figure out this and try to save money. I welcome the advice
OK. Sounds like it's not getting fuel. You put a new pump on. A couple other things can cause this. One of the rubber sections of fuel line is coming apart internally and blocking the fuel, or the strainer (sock) that is in the gas tank is plugged.
Thanks. It helps to know what knowledge, and ability you have. Perhaps someone can recommend a good shop in St. Paul that can get you up and running. While you can learn the basics, it takes time, and considerably more time to learn over the internet with several folks trying to assist. Some of us (myself) tend to "forget" little things for doing maintenance for a long time. And trying to type every step can become tedious to create and often overwhelming to read. If you do not have the specific shop manual for your car, it is a most worthy investment. The books are a wealth of information. I realize it may not be the road you wish to take, but I recommend you find a good, honest mechanic to get you up and running, then then you get your hands on the shop manual and get basic engine operation, timing, and carburation under your belt. Not having a vacuum gage, timing light and knowledge will just get you very frustrated very quickly.
There is a rubber hose right under the drivers door it could have a leak in it causing the gas to not come up to the carb. It is either not getting gas or spark. It may start now that it has been sitting for 24 hrs try to start it again if it runs and then dies again after a few minutes or so (10) It could be that sock in the gas tank. Test to see if you are getting gas and test the spark to a ground on the engine. Distributor could have a problem but it was running for an hour so that is probably not the problem. So leave the timing alone until you get it running again. Check all the vacuum lines and make sure none of them are cracked or able to leak replace as needed. Get a vacuum gauge valuable tool there. You can use the trans line to hook it up if you have the 350.
Take fuel line off at carb and run it into a jar. Turn it over a couple times to if your getting fuel. You may need a second set of hands to do this and disconnect the power to the distributor first. If your getting gas try changing the filter in the carb.
Update ..it wasnt the carb or distributer..Turns out it was a bad sending unit so once i swapped that out all the issues was fixed. This was after installing new distributer and rebuilt carb..Still had the same issues then dropped the gas tank and figured out it was the sending unit..Took the shop a week to figure it out too.
I'm not understanding how a bad sending unit in the gas tank caused this issue? Are you talking about the pickup in the tank? If the sock was plugged, I could believe it.
