Suddenly on Sunday, just as I was about to go to a 100th Anniverasary Buick car show, my Q Jet from a '71 455-400 started pumping gas out what looked like the accelerator pump and was spewing it onto the manifold. This only happens at low idle when it's up to temperature and probably at speed it just is sucked back into the carb. I managed a whopping 70 miles on 3/4 of a tank of gas. Yes I had my fire extinguisher handy and I parked several car widths away from a neighbor at the show just in case. Any ideas on a quick fix as it was only rebuilt about 150 miles ago. My mechanic naturally is on holidays for two weeks. Interesting that on one of our hottest days it ran cooler than ever before. Probably all the evaporation of gas helped keep it cool.
Sounds like float level to me. I've never adjusted a float on the Quadrajet though. You might have to get someone to check it out for you if you haven't done it before.
I just got an email from my mechanic, what an era we live in, and he thinks that it is just some dirt stopping the needle valve from closing. I'll pull the top off the carb off and see what's happening in there. One of the old timer tricks is to clap off the inlet gas hose and then start the engine and burn out the excess gas before pulling it apart.
It may have a piece of crud jammed in the inlet needle valve. Q- jets look a little daunting , but they are pretty easy to work on. Pull the top off and have a look. Adam.
Barry, make sure there is a BRASS float in the carb. The black Nitrophyl ones can sink form fuel absorption. Most tool dealers I have seen have float weight checkers for sale, and the specs for what they should and shouldn't weigh. If it isn't the float, then I'd go for the dirt in the needle/seat. No matter which float, I'd make sure the stock filter in the carb inlet was gone from the carb, then add a good steel jacketed replaceable AC filter inline from the fuel pump to the carb inlet. I'd advise away from the plastic and/or glass filters.
The gas in the oil is a new one on me. Never would have thought of that. Good point I'll check it first thing in the morning. If you are right then the combination of gas and synthetic oil should really drive my leaky rear seal crazy. Hi Dave it's good to hear from you. I'll check the float out too. I'm pretty sure it's brass from what I can remember watching my friend rebuild it. I must say Dave, my engine has never run better since I got your distributor. You are a true car genius. Thanks for the compliment Adam, much appreciated. The old beast stole the show on Sunday.
.. use 2 have a daily driver.....same sort of thing use 2 happened....needle valve use 2 get stuck.......and often.....I would get out of the car almost every other day.....with a hammer in hand.....and give that little carb a little whak.....no problem.......ended up I had dirt/particles of some sort in my gas tank....didnt know which girlfreind 2 blame for that.........75 LTD.....had about 240,000 miles on that ford...till a police car slammed into it while it was parkedou:
Float sticking Barry - I have had the float stick down because the float arms are bent sideways or bowed out. They are pretty thin and easily distorted. Make sure they form a nice rectangle when you take the float out - look for an out-of-square condition which will make the float rub on the side of the carb body. Be careful taking the top off the carb. You need to jiggle a couple of things and take off tiny little spring clips. I'd suggest that you have a schematic or the rebuild kit instructions available. Go slow and don't force anything -
John, I just got lucky. I did two tricks suggested here, and by a friend, and the old hammer, gentlly applied, not only did the trick but it has never idled so smoothly even at full temperature. I just took a cruise in the 90 degree heat and she ran beautifully and was just over normal on the temp guage. If a small tap works well then a sledge should really fix it next time! Many thanks everyone you made two oldies feel better - me and the car.
Barry, finding just the right type and weight of tapping hammer is very important in getting those nasty little pieces of schwarf out of the needle and seat. Finesse is also important! Glad to hear it is platinum once again.
A friend with a Ford came over a few days ago, had some ball joints to remove from his A arms for his rear disk conversion he was doing. As everybody knows those things are rivitted in, and touch to get out. He'd been hammering on just one rivit for about three hours and hadn't made more progress than a chip off one side of one rivit. Knowing it was a low-life Ford, I went to my tool box, got the correct hammer, turned the compressor on, and went to the rivits, with my air hammer. Took a couple of secs per rivit to blast 'em out of their holes. The air hammer is the correct tool for any maintenence and/or repair operation on any and all Ford products. My friend was agast, until I told him it was a Ford factory air hammer tool (which it isn't really), for any operation, and he asked if I had the adapter to restake the new rivits for the ball joints. I said no, he should either use nuts and bolts, or have me weld the new ball joints into place (welding being a joke). He's dim bulb'd enough about Fords that he'll probably show back up and want me to weld 'em in.
