(1981 2000 FI). Full tank makes no difference, when I make a firm turn [left-hand especially] it acts like its starving for fuel. Anything that I should know that might help me isolate this weird glitch?

Here are a few gems from distant memory. They may help.

A mini with similar issues, cut out on bends. Coil is mounted horizontally. Turned it around to face the other way, then it cut out on bends the opposite way. The oil-filled coil had leaked and when what was left surged inside, it cut out.

Carb float level too low, fuel surge let some air through causing weak mixture.

Rover SD1 2300 & 2600 would misfire after using screenwash. Leaking pipe to jets mounted on bonnet would drip onto coil.

I assume you've checked the obvious, plugs, points, condenser, leads, fuel pump, etc., so time to look for the more bizarre.

Is there a radio suppressor on the distributor or coil? Disconnect it and try again.

Most distributors have a small cable on the baseplate for an earth. They can break inside the insulation.

Are the engine mountings good. Engine movement has sometimes caused connections to break or disconnect, temporarily or permanently.

Hope something helps, or triggers other ideas. Good luck.

We have a 2001 Alfa 156 which has a fuel gauge that changes its reading depending on whether or not you're going uphill, downhill, left or right, so this sounds a bit like the kind of thing that happens on older cars. I'm wondering if, as it has fuel injection whether the fuel pump is a bit lacking in pressure so that gravity is having more effect in corners than other situations.

I considered a vacume leak where perhaps when I corner there is a seam somewhere that might be spreading out but I sprayed the entire intake route with starting fluid and found no leaks.

Is there anything in the tank like a baffle or a screen or just a hole in the bottom of the tank? I was thinking that since this thing had been sitting for years, maybe when I stir up the tank cornering, crap from the bottom collects on the intake location and starves it out until I let off the throttle for it to clear away. If it was a filter it would remain clogged, but its intermittent. I'll let you know, I'll check it out soon. My hunch is crap in the tank at this point.

This morning, ran pretty clean, for lunch run, ran awesome, but only a hard left turn stalls it out.

How's the oil pressure? If oil surge on a hard corner gets a gulp of air, the oil pressure light comes on momentarily, stops the fuel pump.

The oil light idea is a new one. Not sure if that is in the schematic for an 81 spider, but worth looking into.

I inspected the inside of the tank today and checked fuel pump flow. Tank is spotless and flow is great.

I'm thinking that maybe I'm losing spark because of a shorting of the wires inside the distr'. They look like they've been rubbing on the advance counterweights a little. One of the cap contacts is a bit grooved too..and the distr' was loose. I torched a wrench and made a tool to tighten it up. I'm gonna try a new distr' module/cap/rotor and see if its a crappy wire flopping around inside the cap. I'm running out of ideas, have to be getting close.

A chafed wire inside the distributor is a very likely cause. If you renew the wire, make sure its a cloth or fibre braided one, as a plastic insulated one will restrict the baseplate movement.


If it is fuel injected, the fuel pump will almost certainly be switched by the oil pressure. Prevents fuel pumping after a crash.

I put a new coil on it (since it was the only local part to buy) and I noticed the little connector thing between the coil wire and the distr module plug (buried behind the coil inside the heat sink thing the coil is mounted to) The connection was crappy. I cleaned it up too and refilled the gas tank.

Now it is better because it has moments when it runs like a raped ape and purrs like a kitten.....punctuated by periods of missing/starving behavior when I corner hard. Still stumped on exactly what it is, but the distributor module is the next part. The wires were a bit rubbed looking near the distr weights under the rotor. It has me suspecting that its in those module wires. Another thing. It runs better before it warms up, then it might start acting stupid after a few miles.

A little background on the car. I bought it 2 weeks ago for $800. It had 4 flats, no battery, and was a table in this dudes garage since 2004. He said it wouldn't start one day but it ran when he parked it 8 yrs ago. It's one of those brought back from the dead projects.

status update:

Spotless tank, new filter, new coil, new module,

Starts great. Idles nice. Runs awesome for 5 minutes, then starts acting like it has a real weak spark or is starving with heavy throttle or especially on a left turn. If I park it for 10 minutes, runs great again for a couple minutes, then crappy. That's the part that has has me stumped. It runs great until warmed up then in one moment it starts crapping out, but it almost dies in a LHturn. Makes no sense.

What are the symptoms of a weak pickup coil?

maybe run it in the dark and look for arcing from wiring breaking down..??

unsure about pick-ups.. too early TECH for me..started driving in '86,

old Lore had it.. points = start= idle / coils = revs,


neither of these appear to be your issue..,
Charlie

you probably have jelly in your tank or float bowl
you need to check both these properly
ie drop the tank remove all fuel,clean and refit with fresh stuff
fuel goes off and does weird stuff in a year never mind 8 of them

Can you check the fuel pressure at the fuel rail? There should be a pressure take-off. Fuel pump may be weak, failing as it warms up, or weak pressure regulator.

With pressure gauge connected, if pressure drops, crimp the return pipe. If pressure rises, regulator may be at fault, if pressure still low, pump is likely culprit.

s and b said:

you probably have jelly in your tank or float bowl
you need to check both these properly
ie drop the tank remove all fuel,clean and refit with fresh stuff
fuel goes off and does weird stuff in a year never mind 8 of them

Click to expand...

Pretty sure he's just done all that .., US fuels are totally different UK type fuels also,
some states fuel is off in 2 weeks..!!

Charlie

I dumped the tank and replaced it with super + seafoam + 2stroke oil before I even tried to start it the first time. I've already put 300 miles on it since I got it running and it seems quite trustworthy, just takes the fun out if it when one minute its running like a rally car and then taking off at the next light it runs like a busted old VW bug on 2 cylinders barely able to get through the intersection without shame.:shakehead:

new rotor, cap, and stator-pickup [in the distributor]....still acts stupid in hard left turns...

Is the engine moving on its mountings and straining the earth cable?