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Stacey007



Member Since: 25 Sep 2015
Location: Cheshire
Posts: 3713

United Kingdom 
Possible fuel starvation, hesitant
Hello

My trusty series is the only car in our fleet that you can rely on starting even after being left for months....unless when it didn't the other day.

Used it to collect daughter couple of Fridays ago no probs, tried to start Saturday turning over not pumping fuel...


Tried the manual pump, tried new fuel filter, then some fuel direct to carb so noticed its the fuel pump not working, so It had a new pump.

All working ok and I used it this weekend to attend two shows...

Under load its hesitant and almost juddering with lack of fuel. What should I check?


There is a gauze on the fuel pickup I think on the main tank I can undo and check, anything else?, thought check the pipes etc also. I've tried adding some lead supplement also (it normally has a bit of this each fill up to be fair)




thoughts Smile



Thanks
Post #1038268 24th Jun 2024 1:29pm
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Gareth



Member Since: 12 Dec 2011
Location: Bramhall
Posts: 1073

England 
I’d be taking the top off the carburettor to check for cleanliness. There is usually a bit of sediment in the bottom of the float chamber.
Check for sticking needle valve.
Check jets in carb top for blockage. I use a butane refill canister to blow through the various jets and orifices.
Check the float hasn’t ‘sunk’ The modern fuels don’t preserve plastic floats and it will eventually leak. Cheap replacements available.
If a Zenith carb, renew the o ring.

Apart from that you’ve covered the pump and pickup. Check no air leaks on the suction side of the pump and piping. I would expect a bit of leakage of fuel if there was. 2021 Defender 110 X-Dynamic HSE D300 MHEV
1966 S2a 109 aka Betsy
1968 S2a 88 aka Bob
2014 Jaaaag F Type 3.0 Supercharged.
Post #1038269 24th Jun 2024 1:57pm
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TexasRover



Member Since: 24 Nov 2022
Location: Paris
Posts: 965

France 2002 Defender 110 Td5 DCPU Chawton White
You either dive into this to understand and fix it, or have someone else do it for you. It is not an art, but you need to want to learn and understand (time) to fix it.

Assuming this is a Zeneth Carb, there are a few things you want to check. If you open the carb you really should fit a new gasket, but be careful not to overtighten the top screws as you will warp the lid and base (see 7)

1. Vacuum leaks, typically where the carb is mounted
2. Fuel supply, you have been looking at that. You can open the carb and have a look at the float chamber, should be full. Also just cranking the engine fuel should squirt into a bottle.
3. Float check not full of fuel
4. Check valve for function
5. Check accelerator pump membrane, piston and spring. In fact you can do this with the car in situ. Hesitation could be caused by faulty accelerator pump. It squirts some extra fuel into the airstream to compensate for the air accelerating faster than fluid (on acceleration)
6. Check for any jet blockage, not likely unless it is a mess in there.
7. If it stalls on idle afterward reassembly you messed up the mating surface and introduced air into the idle emulsion tube. To fix that you should relap the surfaces and maybe add a bit of gasket sealant between the mating surfaces.

A lot of people curse the Zenith, but one that is set up right is really nice, simple and robust. I bought a bunch of used ones a while back and rebuilt them handing them off to people in desperate need. Unfortunately I now only have one left in stock, which is for my own use. But I have some instructions and documentation I can find and share.
Post #1038286 24th Jun 2024 4:55pm
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blackwolf



Member Since: 03 Nov 2009
Location: South West England
Posts: 17192

United Kingdom 2007 Defender 110 Puma 2.4 DCPU Stornoway Grey
What fuel are you using? Any additives?

My first suspicion is that there is either crud or a dollop of slime in the carb if you're running E5 or (worse) E10.

My first action would be to clear the jets, the quick way being to remove the elbow from the carb, run the engine at moderately high revs and whack your hand over the top of the carb until the engine almost stalls, then remove hand and let engine speed recover. Repeat this process a couple of times and you should have cleared the jets, unless there is an overwhelming about of ethanol-produced crap in the system.

If you're lucky the problem is sorted. If it makes no difference then the problem probably isn't a blocked jet and phase 2 troubleshooting can follow.
Post #1038296 24th Jun 2024 6:34pm
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Stacey007



Member Since: 25 Sep 2015
Location: Cheshire
Posts: 3713

United Kingdom 
Somd great advice, thank you

I use E5 fuel but an adative also.

Carb cleaning etc seems a good call. (Removing the elbow etc...)

Texas Rover Shame your not doing the refurb kits 👍

Wil try and have a look see what I can do, can I use air time clean the carb?
Post #1038319 24th Jun 2024 9:53pm
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Stacey007



Member Since: 25 Sep 2015
Location: Cheshire
Posts: 3713

United Kingdom 
Hello


As I have a few shows booked and limited time in the evening to go through this, I have cleaned what I can my removing some of the fuel line and bought some tiny sort of bottle cleaner brushes to clean the pipes, I've also sprayed carb cleaner in and around what I can and changed one of the fuel pipes for a new one.



Now, it appears similar and if I quickly prod the accelerator it will back fire (like a gun shot) in fact while warm and I had the elbow off the carb using the method mentioned above to stop the car. I went to restart it stood outside and turned the key....


It was like a Landrover-borghini literally flames came out of the pipe followed like a big bang Shocked



So next question, is the back firing another issue or part of same? what do people recommend. Thanks
Post #1038609 28th Jun 2024 9:56am
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TexasRover



Member Since: 24 Nov 2022
Location: Paris
Posts: 965

France 2002 Defender 110 Td5 DCPU Chawton White
Other than very very rich running, back (or through the carb) firing could indicate timing or valve issues. Did you check the timing is correct? Could you have accidentally swap over the spark leads? Did you check valve clearance?
Post #1038614 28th Jun 2024 10:36am
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