Car dies after two miles of driving

[Ericwz123]

Hey guys new guy here thanks for the ad . I picked 84 fwd tercel and the car starts up cold and idles fine however when I drive the car about 2 miles it sputters and dies. Then it wont start and I'd have to wait for it to cool down. The car cranks and sometimes turns over for a second or two. I do notice the float is low in the bowl after it dies. I took off the top of the carb and fuel was slightly above the jets.

I've check for vac leaks, replaced the aap diaphragm (it was leaking), changed the fuel filter (it has fuel in it when the car dies), choke is open and working. I can suck gas from the fuel pump inlet fuel line however when I took off the inlet line there was no fuel (car off) should this be?

I'm going to check fuel pressure should it be around 2-3 psi and should it change with throttle? And to what psi if so? Could it be the fuel pump? What else?? It's around 45-50 degrees here so I dont think vapor lock.

Xtra info. The previous owner replaced the carb, alternator, plugs, dissy cap, clutch, and water pump.

Thank you guys in advance I appreciate. This car is going to be a gambler.

[xirdneh]

Fuel filter with too much debris in it will cause your dieing problem. I would start there

[Ericwz123]

i replaced the fuel filter. I think the issue might be a dirty fuel tank. I have a little above a quarter tank of gas.

[Petros]

have to veify when it dies if it was fuel starved, or no spark? that is easy test, either dribble fuel down the carb, or use starter spray; if it starts and runs and than dies again, likely it is fuel related. if not might be spark, so pull a spark plug wire and hold the metal contact within 1/4" of metal on the engine and have someone crank it. you should get a strong bluish spark making a "snap, snap, snap" sound. if it is weak and yellow, or none existing, than you have a bad coronet in the distributor that runs when cold but gives up after it is heated up. could be the coil, or could be the igniter.

if no fuel, it could be a weak fuel pump, check fuel pressure. also make sure your oil does not have a gasoline smell, that would indicated the fuel pump is leaking fuel into the engine.

sometimes a cracked rubber or rusty hard fuel line has a leak in it up stream of the fuel pump and it sucks a lot of air, but it will not leak much out, so the leak is undetected. but you should pressure test the fuel system and you could find a leaky fuel line. most common place to find it is either on the rubber hose a head of the fuel pump, or the rubber hoses on either side of the fuel filter. sometimes a metal fuel line can also get rust pits in it that allow it so suck air into it.

good luck.

[FriendOfEvanW]

The previous owner of the wagon I’m working on installed a Weber carb without reading the instructions it seems like. He routed the fuel line and inline filter within 1/2” of the seam of the manifold and head. Until I moved it up and over the vacuum lines coming from the valve cover, the car would start acting like it was running out of fuel when it got to operating temperature. It never died on me, but would sputter and buck like it was running on fumes. It also hated to start if the engine was already hot. Gasoline boils at around the same temperature the thermostat opens at.

[dlb]

i replaced the fuel filter. I think the issue might be a dirty fuel tank. I have a little above a quarter tank of gas.

Luckily, the filters are cheap and easy to replace. I would try replacing it again and see if that changes anything. How long did the car sit for before you bought it? If it sat for a while, you're right that it could be either corrosion from the tank or gooey old gas clogging the filter.

Marginal electrical components (spark plugs and wires, possibly the distributor itself too I suppose) tend to work fine when cold but act up once the engine is warm so that's another possibility, although I've never seen any of those things cause the engine to up and die. I've typically seen them manifest as rough running and missing. It's something else to consider though.

[Ericwz123]

Hey guys thanks for the replies I appreciate it! The old owner replaced a few things such as the carb, clutch, waterpump, and fuel pump. However, that doesn't mean he did a good job, the more I dig in the more I see spotty workmanship. The fuel pump looks to be leaking. Bought a new one and going to replace it when it comes in. I replaced the fuel filter again and will check all the fuel lines.

The car starts and dies when I throw carb cleaner in the carb so I'm getting spark. The problem is the bowl not filling up. The gas filler cap is very rusty so I'm thinking the gas tank has some junk in it or a sneaky fuel line leak.

[BaileySims]

I am unsure of the importance of it, but I know there is a thick plastic spacer between the fuel pump and head that aligns the fuel pump arm on the cam lobe properly.

I figure missing that spacer would allow the fuel pump arm not to lift properly and cause low fuel pressure. Just guessing here though. Someone correct me if I am wrong.

[xirdneh]

I would think the spacer is needed, I have some.

[Petros]

the plastic spacer on the fuel pump keeps the pump from getting heated up by the head directly. it also has a built in heat shield to deflect some of the heat from the exhaust manifold. it also acts as a spacer for the correct geometry on the arm, in fact I do not think it will bolt up without the spacer in place, not without bending the arm. that might be a reason it is not delivering enough fuel to the carb.