Non Gti Carb Woes

[TEKNOPUG 3]

Persuaded a friend of mine to by a 205 a couple of weeks ago. Not a GTI as it had to be an Auto. Picked up a very clean 1.6 auto on a J plate with 66k on the clock. Mint interior, loads of new parts, service history etc, ABS, PAS sunroof (even some kind of aftermarket air-con which I haven't figured out how to work yet).

 

Anyway, drove it back to London after collecting and taxing it. 60 odd miles, all seemed fine. No smoke or worrying noises - very civilised and relaxed in fact (not the 205 driving experience that I'm used to!).

 

Took it out a week later with the intention of taking it back to my garage and doing a little work on it (at least that's what I told my friend - really I was going to go back and try and get my turbo through the Mot).

Was a bit of a pain to start what with it being an auto box AND auto choke. 5-10 minutes later and I got it going without stalling as soon as I shifted into gear. All seemed fine as I head onto the M11. Got to a few miles before the Stansted turn off and hit a bit of traffic and had to slow to a crawl. Where upon the engine cut out. Restarted it again but it lacked power. Would shift into 4th and then revs drop and back into 3rd, then upto 4th and back down again. Pulled over onto the hard shoulder as a precaution. Drove along for a few hundred metres with the power rising and falling until the engine finally stopped. Managed to get it started again and it all seemed fine. But as soon as I put it in gear (put the engine under load) the revs would drop and the engine died. Got out and had a look under the bonnet. Hmm...I know nothing about carbed engines or auto boxes and even if I did, I don't have any tolls with me. In the end got Green Flag to come and trailer it back to London (are much hassle with them saying that I wasn't covered for THAT car etc...). There was no smoke or nasty grinding noises so I didn't think that it was terminal.

 

Told my friend to call the AA on Saturday as tell them you've just broken down. Even if they can't fix it, they maybe able to identify what's wrong. So, the AA came and they couldn't fix it. But the guy did say that it was basically being starved of fuel (hence why the revs kept dropping under load) and that the carb is at fault. So does anyone know anything about carbs who might be around in North London anytime soon?? I find it odd that it drove perfectly for about 100miles before packing up. As I say, carbs are a black art to me and I wouldn't even know where to begin lookig. I can't take it to a garage as it won't drive.

 

Help/advice/suggestions anyone???

[Longun 1]

The only thing I know about stalling autos is on an old Supra I had there was air leaking into the inlet causing it to run lean as it didn't register the air and would stall all the time and would miss fire here and there. Fixed air leak and everything was ok.

 

Don't know nothing about carbs yet I'm still learning.

[Guest BrainFluid]

Well heres my 2p.

 

Fuel or Air must be the problem.

 

Try running the car from a bottle of petrol. This should take fuel blockage out of most of the equation.

 

As for a blockage in the carb, take the air filter off the carb and with the engine running at a god rev put your hand over the top of the carb then take it off again. Do this a few times and it may loosen a blockage in there. (when you put your hand on the carb theres big petrol sucking going on through the carb)

 

If theres still a problem your either leaking air into the engine through the inlet manifold somewhere or into the carb.

 

Check the manifold.

 

If thats cool then you have two options, refurbish the carb or get a second hand one from the breakers. At my local breakers who remove and store parts 205 carbs are going for £15. Cheaper than a carb kit. But if you take the carb to a carburettor specialist they will often test it for free. My local one does.

 

Hope that helps its all I know based on previous malarkies with the manual choke carb on my old 205 XT

 

Nate.

[trogboy 17]

Autos are a mystery to me i'm afraid but from your description it sounds like it cuts out when you try and raise the engine speed from idle. Is that the case?

 

If it idles OK then my money is on a partial blockage of the main jet in the carb. The idle circuit should be separate hence the idling OK but when you try to accellerate a blockage in the main jet circuit would cause it to run lean and cut out.

[TEKNOPUG 3]

So what's the best way to clear a blocked line - use the vacuum effect over the air intake or can I get some carb cleaner to stick in the petrol? An air leak sounds most plausible at the moment.

[trogboy 17]

You can check for an air leak by carefully spaying a mist of petrol around the carb base and the manifold. If there is a leak then the note of the engine will changes as the extra fuel gets sucked in. I have used a plant mister in the past to find an air leak on my old GTI. You need to be really careful as a mist of petrol is also extremely flammable! If you use a plastic mister it will die in short order as the petrol dissolves the innards of the pump mechanism.

 

To clean out the a blockage you can try taking off the air inlet to the carb and placing your hand over the top of the carb until the engine almost stalls, before releasing it again. Do this a few times - the suction created in the carb may dislodge any blockages. Alternatively you can strip the carb and blow the castings through with compressed air.

 

Edit: just noticed you mentioned the vacuum effect in your last post. Doh!

Edited April 12, 2006 by trogboy

[johno_78 2]

it sounds like the carb needs servicing. you can get a kit form your local motor factors for £15-£20. both of the 1.6 autos i've had, have had carb problems, but once sorted they turned out to be great little motors.