Hi guys, I have a 1972 Buick Skylark Convertible (350) that is having some sputtering/stalling issues when accelerating. I have tried to take it to a shop and they replaced the timing chain and got the timing right, but the problem still persists. I have replaced the carburetor, fuel pump, distributor cap, ignition coil, spark plugs, and wires. Not specific to just this issue, but I'm curious if there is anyone near my location who would be willing to connect and look at the car with me. I really want to learn more about restoring a vehicle from others who have experience (specifically on an old Buick). Even a phone call would help a ton. I'm certainly willing to pay for someone's time. I would love to connect with someone local and see your Buick and learn from your experience. Thanks, Ben
http://www.trishieldperformance.com/ Jim Weise is in Pine City. Not sure how far that is for you. Might be worth a phone call. Sounds like a fuel problem to me. How long has it been since the carburetor has been rebuilt? The ethanol in our fuel attacks the accelerator pumps. There are better rebuild kits to withstand this. Other than that, I'd be looking at every inch of fuel line. look for porous/cracked rubber sections, crimped metal line, or a clogged pick up sock in the tank.
Thanks, I did actually talk to Jim Weise on the phone today, very nice guy, and very helpful information! The car is not driveable right now and he wouldn't be able to look at it until Spring, so I was hoping to find someone a bit closer who may be able to look at it with me. I put a brand-new rebuilt carburetor on, so I would assume it should be free of any deposits. I have replaced the sending unit less than a year ago. Would it be possible for the sock to be clogged already? I suppose I would have to drop the tank and pull it out to find out. Is there any way to troubleshoot this without dropping the tank? I have looked over the fuel lines and don't see any signs of leaks (air in or gas out), but I may need to investigate that further. Thanks for your help! Ben
Tee in a cheap fuel pressure gauge. Use a section of rubber line with a brass tee. Run the gauge up to the windshield and tape it there.
‘Brand new rebuilt carburetor’... which is it? And..from where? Did the problem change? Did you keep your old (possibly original) carb? Remans from the parts store or online mass rebuilders are generally a crap shoot, emphasis on crap, so bad our reputable builders won’t even try to fix them. And I second double checking all the rubber in the fuel lines-pull them loose and check; ethanol eats them from the inside. Patrick
I would try a a swapping your carb with a known good working carb if possible. Just because you put on a rebuilt carb doesn't mean that it's good. When I first bought my car, the man that I bought it from had recently installed a rebuilt carb and guess what.....the engine would idle and rev fine while parked but as soon as a load was put on it, it would sputter and flatten right out. I tried rebuilding it myself and had the same results. I then sent it to John Osborne who is a known carb guru here and he rebuilt and then tried it out on his own car as he does with all the carbs he rebuilds and it acted the same as before. He finally figured it out that certain bleeds(I can't remember exactly) had been drilled out and the carb was junk. He wound up sending me another rebuilt carb in it's place. So the carb would be first on my list of things to verify as good.
Excellent excellent advice. You have honestly narrowed it down with the replacement of the other mechanicals that are not nearly as intricate as a carburetor. I would either take that carb to a known reputable carb rebuilder or like was said. Try another one.
Take the carb to the Carb Shop in Forest Lake. They do nice work and should be able to help you. Mark
Is this something you are looking at fixing in the next couple weeks, or more of a winter project? My schedule is pretty tight for the next 4-6 weeks. I may be able to lend a hand this winter. There are a few of us in Minnesota and Wisconsin.
I got a rebuilt Carb for a car I was having trouble with, and still had trouble, took the carb apart and one of the needles was laying in the bottom. I doubt highly paid experts are putting remans together
Ben; Hello. I had gone through a similar situation. The fix was; I replaced the rubber section of fuel line from the bottom side of the fuel pump, to the steel gas line that runs to the fuel tank. Will be a short section. Replace this with brand new rubber fuel line. I also added a spring around that part of the fuel line. Under acceleration with older rubber line, that section collapses. Hard diagnose when your driving. I experienced this while drag racing the quarter mile in Northern MN. Hope this is helpful. Brian
Thank you all for the suggestions and recommendations, it was all extremely helpful! I will hold onto the other suggestions for future issues Mike wins the prize for condenser replacement. After the shop fixed the timing, which was off, it still ran terrible. We reviewed the parts I had replaced and they suggested we replace the condenser as well. Once that was replaced it fired right up as normal. New question: Now that it's working and I have a new carburetor when I first start it from sitting for a while, it idles really high(fast) and is raring to jump into gear. Once it warms up after driving it calms down to a more reasonable-sounding idle speed. Sometimes after I turn the key off it's "dieseling" where it sputters 1 last time after the key is off. I did put a fuel cleaner in the tank a while back when I was troubleshooting things, it could be burning that off. I just added more 91 gas to fill up the tank, so maybe that will help. Or, is the idle speed set too high? These are the areas I just don't know enough to properly troubleshoot things. Thanks for your help! Ben
Ben, great to hear! Ask me how I maybe knew?....Mom's 1967 Camaro RS Convertible recently had same issue, brought it to the only guy-Rob Chilenski. He thought fuel at first too, but within 1 hour called me to say an $8. part! I would have chased it for 6 months! Mike
The choke will make it run at high idle when the engine is cold. That is normal. If the idle speed is too high when warm, it can have a tendency to diesel when shut down. Low octane fuel, and lean running will make that worse.
Since you’re in Lakeville the Holiday Stationstore on Kenrick has non ethanol premium and also has 110 octane race gas at the pump. Maybe you need to splash some 110 into the mix. FWIW I’ve had great luck with Holiday Premium in my cars. You may also have the timing too far advanced.
Glad you figured it out Ben. Just out of curiosity, did you have the timing chain work done at Master Transmission and auto repair?
