LUVTruck.com

I had LOTS of problems with my 78 with 80 engine about a year ago and it's been parked for quite awhile.
Recently I took one of my other good engine/transmission sets and redid the head gasket and put it in. I got everything hooked up and running great yesterday but was in a rush to get somewhere and have been without a car so just kinda guessed on the timing and took off down the road. It died in 3rd gear. I restarted it and tried to back up. It wouldn't go in reverse for long without dying. I got out, loosened the dist. twisted it just a bit and then backed all the way back down the road at 35mph with no problems. It was dark so I just borrowed someone elses car.

Do you think there could be any other problems beside timing? It had been idled warm and been running for about 20 minutes before I decided to drive it, and when I got it back, i could rev it as much as i wanted without losing power. So maybe it was just a problem under load, or maybe it was just the timing. Any thoughts?

I'll report back tomorrow after I do the timing with a light.

That could have been a timing issue but not typical. Not to kill it completely from running. I would believe a chatter, back firing, not taking the gas, hard to start, "diesling" after shutting it off....those are typically timing issues. I would think since it had been sitting a while maybe some sediment in your fuel blocked something somewhere. Definitely set your timing to eliminate that as a potential problem. Check your point setting as well.

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In life there is the "Way things should be" and then "There's the way they are".

2005 Silverado 3/4T Crew Cab
1981 Luv 2WD
1979 Luv 4x4 Currently going through Open Heart and Cosmetic surgery
1995 Roughneck JetBoat
1981 Luv parts trk

Well, I got the timing done, runs MUCH better now. Started driving it home, worked really well, got onto the highway and after a short while I lost power. Definitely sounds, feels like a fuel problem, if i pump a bit I can keep going for awhile but it eventually dies. After a couple trys at starting it again it will start and run, but it died several times on the way home. It had been sitting with about a gallon of gas in it for about a year, I put 5 gallons in and had planned to go to the gas station right away, but i dont trust it to make the trip. I figured filling the tank all the way would dilute any water enough so that it would work through everything in a couple fill ups. (I really don't want to pull the tank again, did that once.)

You can also disconnet the fuel line from the pump to the engine and let it pump what remains in the fuel tank into a container. This is a good time to check fuel pump performance and pressure. Then you could let the gas sit a few minutes and see if there was any water in the tank and look for crap that could be clogging the filter. Bottom line, you may still have to pull the tank for a good cleaning and treatment.

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I've never been wrong! Once I thought I was, but I was mistaken.
Rick
Loranger, La
1980 Stepside LUV (Again)

Ditto

_________________
In life there is the "Way things should be" and then "There's the way they are".

2005 Silverado 3/4T Crew Cab
1981 Luv 2WD
1979 Luv 4x4 Currently going through Open Heart and Cosmetic surgery
1995 Roughneck JetBoat
1981 Luv parts trk

well it sat with about a gallon of gas, and the cap was on, so i dont think i'd be dealing with sediment or anything, just water. it will run until it runs out of gas when on level ground, it was just once i started shifting and the truck started rocking that problems arose... so i threw in some heet and another 5 gallons of gas and let the pump run for about a minute circulating the gas/heet/water. I'll be finishing the exhaust and changing spark plugs and take it for another drive tomorrow.

Happy new year!

Check the float level through the sight glass on the front of the carb, adjust as necessary. If the float is set too low it can die when out of level, hit a bump, sudden stop, re-start as the fuel trickles back in. Also it could have a piece of trash in the float chamber that blocks fuel flow when under heavy load, then float away as the bowl fills back up under idle.
Have you changed the fuel filter? Do it again even if you have- all kinds of stuff grows in a near-empty sitting tank.
Electric or mechanical fuel pump? If electric they dry out sitting, sometimes don't pump full capacity, check that you have a good strong constant flow with no unusual noise. Also they don't like trash, if gets past the filter the flow could be restricted.

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'78 Chevy LUV,1.9,4sp,headers,31's,SAS Dana 30,Dana 20,SOA rear w/Aussie Locker, rough body, bought new 12/4/78.
'87 Trooper,2.3,5sp,headers,31's,ball joint flip & spacer,Aussie Locker rear,Superwinch hubs,brush guard w/5.5K winch,more to come.