begging for help.

[maglinjosvinn]

this is the story to date:

i'm using a solex on my 1.9L engine. this weekend, i took that solex off, dipped the parts in a bucket of cleaning agent, put everything back togehter with the new bits, and start the engine. its beautiful. fires right up after a couple presses of the pedal and idles at 1000 rpm, no questions.

i fiddle with the idle air and mixture screw according to the rebuild kit's direction. i got my timing (with vacuum lines off) so that the dot on the flywheel is deadnuts on the pointer arm.

so. i go for a ride. will not run under power. chokes off and dies every time. ok. cool. fiddle with it some more, nada.

so i'm talking to this one guy, and he's like i don't know opel, but i know cars a bit, pull back your timing and see what happens. i do it, car revs up and its freakin AWESOME sounding at higher revs. but now it wont idle, and even though i've set the timing back again, it STILL won't idle.

when i'm on the road i have to have the gas pedal ALL the way down in order for it to run... i can pick a speed and go that fast, i gotta always be accelerating.


so. i need help. suggestions, ideas. so forth, so on. thoughts and input very welcome at this point.

[GoinManta]

OK... a shot in the dark here.. Have you checked for vacuum leaks at the carb base? Set it back so it will idle and test by spraying carb cleaner or starting fluid at the bast while idling... Wouldnt have a open vacuum port on the inside of the carb next to the head that wasn't plugged ? Really sounds to me like vacuum issue of some sort.

Charles

[maglinjosvinn]

*nods* open port? where would i find something like that. i'll be sprpaying all the vacuum anything with quik start in the morning.

[jvandyke]

Brother, it's 1 freak'n degree outside! I just got back inside and my brain's frozen. Hope you have a heated garage. I don't.

[maglinjosvinn]

hahahaha. *FEARLESS*

i was outside last night in the wind trying that solution with the pulling back the timing.

i'm serious.

i don't want heat. iwant a smooth running GT.

[yellaopelgt]

Originally Posted by maglinjosvinn *nods* open port? where would i find something like that. i'll be sprpaying all the vacuum anything with quik start in the morning.

I hope you dont mean starting fluid.......Its a bit volatile. WD-40 might be a BIT less dangerous. I've seen some pretty big BOOMS with starting fluid....I hate that stuff.
just be careful. The open port would be down at the base of the carb, usually there is a short piece of hose clamped on it and plugged but it may be missing on yours. Check the float level as well it might be wrong.
Man I hate the solex.... I fought with mine for 10 years till I finally gave up on it.
HTH
Joe

[hrcollinsjr]

Your problem has probably already been diagnosed by others, the problem now is to find the leak. While you're under the hood check the advance mechanism in the distributor to see if it is moving freely. Underneath the rotor button is a small piece of felt type material, add a few drops of light weight oil to it to help keep the advance mechanism moving freely. This is often forgotten.

HTH,
Harold

[Sparky73]

Originally Posted by jvandyke Brother, it's 1 freak'n degree outside! I just got back inside and my brain's frozen. Hope you have a heated garage. I don't.

Same here! I had been sick all yesterday with bad acid reflux.. so I stayed most of the day inside in bed. Girlfriend came over for a while and when she went to leave at around 11 last night, I finally felt it! Wasn't it just 40 something a few days ago? LOL

[newman27]

Originally Posted by maglinjosvinn hahahaha. *FEARLESS* i was outside last night in the wind trying that solution with the pulling back the timing. i'm serious. i don't want heat. iwant a smooth running GT.

I admire your dedication! Not to derail this thread too much, but we have snow here in "Hotlanta" even!

Matt

[Paul]

Originally Posted by newman27 I admire your dedication! Not to derail this thread too much, but we have snow here in "Hotlanta" even! Matt

Yea, but it's a WARM snow

[broszzy]

10 below zero this morning here, glade i dont have tickets to th Packer game today....ICE BOWL II I got cold drinks and a hot fire lol

Pat

[maglinjosvinn]

alrighty back on track then

pulled the carb off again, checked the seals when she mounts to the manifold...

what i have is the following:

carb top, 1/4in spacer, carbbottom, thin paper gasket, heatshield, slightly thicker gasket, manifold.

i am prolly still suckin air... we pulled it and reassembled but she just refuses to idle.


we got to get the timing set, with lines attached the dot in just a smidgen *above* the indicator window and pointer at the flywheel. she won't run worth spit when the lines are attached


we looked at the mechanical advance. it moves, and you can suck on the vac line and she'll move just the tiniest bit, but it does seem excessively stiff. not that i would have anything to compare it to.

pulled the plugs, they all have that nice dry burn look to them. check the points, its right. (.018 yes?)

pulled a plug and put it right to theh coil, nice strong spark




now. for the test runs, as long as you pump the gas pedal she'll run like a dream, but the s econd you try to just hold hte pedal and maintain a speed power goes right out the window and you gotta struggle for the next couple seconds to get rid of the backfires and stutters.

[maglinjosvinn]

Originally Posted by yellaopelgt I hope you dont mean starting fluid.......Its a bit volatile. WD-40 might be a BIT less dangerous. I've seen some pretty big BOOMS with starting fluid....I hate that stuff. just be careful. The open port would be down at the base of the carb, usually there is a short piece of hose clamped on it and plugged but it may be missing on yours. Check the float level as well it might be wrong. Man I hate the solex.... I fought with mine for 10 years till I finally gave up on it. HTH Joe

wait a second... open port? float should be good... whats this jive about an open port?

i KNOW there's two threaded holes immediately to the front (of the car) from the idle mix screw...

and for the r ecord there's no charcoal can, it rusted and vanished on a road trip some time ago. lol.

[ungermm]

If you haven't already, take a look at these two articles. The articles have drawings of the components involved and how to go about go about locating vacuum leaks. Later on you can also do a search on how to tune your carb.

better vac pic - Opel Photo Gallery

Vacuum Leak Article - Opel Photo Gallery

[GTJIM]

Did you check the base of the carb (where it sits on the manifold gasket) for flatness with a steel rule? Over-tightening the four hold-down nuts bows them every time ... and does not seal a thing ... they need to be just gently 'nipped up'.

The symptoms show that your motor is running lean - pumping the pedal just shoots fuel in with the accelerator pump to cover up the problem. You may have to check all the way back to the fuel tank for blockages - including the pesky 'sock' filter above the fuel pipe inside the tank. Is the fuel pump working to capacity? Is there an in-line fuel filter that is blocked (there is one inside the fuel inlet on the carb)? Did your 'cleaning' move gunge into the fuel transfer tubes drilled inthe carb or block the idle passages? Is the fuel tank properly vented? - if not a vacuum can build up in the tank stopping fuel flow.

Oh - and if you have any water in the fuel tank or lines it sinks to the bottom ... and freezes - in your climate!

[maglinjosvinn]

yeah... the list of miseries are all relatively possible. i know that dad cranked down on the carb today really tight, but it was obvious that the heat shield was causing it not to sit proper.

i don't know where these spacers are supposed to go. i mean, there's obviously a thick one in the carb itself, but the heatshiueld hits the manifold and causes everything to sit funny as hell. maybe tomorrow i'll call in sick to work and get the tank pulled out. i'll have to take the sock out from the top of the tank, as the petcock is welded into place now. i'll check my electric fuel pumps' built in filter while i'm at it too.

*sigh*

[GoinManta]

Originally Posted by broszzy 10 below zero this morning here

But its a dry cold..

[maglinjosvinn]

alrighty, put another carb on it, runs 'better' but still has issues withh anything higher t han 2000 rpm. its enough to get to church tonite, but still a headache for driving 3 towns away for work.

all new gaskets, spacers. nuts finger tight. jets are all by the book.

thoughts?

[GoinManta]

Originally Posted by maglinjosvinn nuts finger tight

That would be it.. replacing the Carb doesnt solve the vacuum problem if you didnt tighten the carb down.

Charles

[maglinjosvinn]

well... how tight am i going for? i mean, i could really reef down on them basically i turned them on by hand then tightened in a x pattern another 1/8th a turn

the other carb has a corner that is clearly 'rolled' up on it, and very obviously the problem, despite the fact there was a good profile on the gasket.




we also watched it run, and its obvious that there is fuel intermitantly coming out of the spout in the primary from the prime pump, without messing with the pedal. lastly, my fuel from the 'injector' in the middle of the primary is all spotty and certainly not a nice even spray.

to make matters worse, i have to hold the choke butterfly slightly open in order to start the car at all, and setting the 'fast idle' hasn't done a thing ever for me. lol. i can get it started just fine, really, so its just a headache more than anything.

the mechincal advance is still iffy at best, its so freakin stiff... but i haven't the slightest clue how to 'adjust' it so it actually does what its supposed to


dad feels the intermittant power at higher rpms is from too much fuel, namely, that priming pump being all iffy.





oh. btw . this has done this with both carbs. not 100% about the priming pump issue, but the rest is spot on.

[opelspyder]

I would also look into other things as well on the vacuum system. Did you remove the vacuum hose to the booster? Is it tight. Is there a lower port on the intake that does not have a plug or cap. I have had vacuum issues due to those cheap caps falling off my lower port, so check that. Also a possible bad booster, causing the vacuum leak. You need to take carb and choke cleaner to answer this one more than likely. But it is definitly a vacuum issue, as I have had the same problem, and it always points to VACUUM!!!!!!!
Keith

[yellaopelgt]

Before you start tearing the gas tank apart...just disconnect the fuel line from the base of the carb,check to see if you have a good steady flow. If that checks out OK, then dump the heatsheild and run it without it. I have a feeling its probly at least one of the problems. If it interferes with everything tightening down nicely as you described. Have you tried the WD-40 trick yet? That will pin-point where some of the leaks are coming from. I've used permatex copper adhesive spray on the gaskets,comes in a rattle can. Just a LIGHT coat then wait till its tacky and then tighten everything down.(you can disasemble things again once its dry... if your careful..) Tighten the nuts down in a -X- pattern until then are all tight...thats it.It shouldnt take much....maybe a half turn after finger tight. You dont need to crank em down at all. The gaskets and permatex will seal it up. If this doesnt work...and you have good fuel flow..start looking into the brake booster system...but I would think it would really only effect it when you applied the brakes. If it were that bad of a leak you would hear it sucking air. What are the chances both carbs are gummed up???Gotta love them solexes..... BTW...why are you running a electric fuel pump with a solex anyway?

[maglinjosvinn]

the mechanical FP was a peice of trash. the 20 dollar 2-4 psi pump was / is easier to install and work on, also opened up room to work under the engine.

i sprayed every gasket with QuikStart, and she only reved when i accidently got a bit of the mist near the air intake.

what does the heat shield do for me, anywyas? i mean, is it a cruicial component?

there's a white cap on the lower port that points back to the engine block i sprayed it too. no change.

i also sprayed around the intake manifold to the head. (yes i know this means i can go boom when the exhaust ignites the spray). no change, just the same.

there's a valve on the brake booster line, sprayed that. sprayed teh distributor where the vac lines connect.


before this i had cut the vac lines back a couple inches, and they went on very snug.


why would gas be coming out of the priming nozzle while its idling with no interaction from me?


it idles like a DREAM btw.


oh, i put a bit of gasket material in the air filter and cut a small hole in the top, now its running better, but you can smell unburnt gas on the air.

[yellaopelgt]

Now that I'm thinking about it.... one of the major problems I had with the solex was the choke adjustment. Water choke...either I could get it to start and idle fine or it would bog down at higher rpm's never had a happy medium with it.and since you seem to not have any huge vacum leaks around the intake,carb base etc. and you cant start it without fiddling around with the butterfly physically, are you sure the choke is working properly?? Sounds like you are flooding out.You shouldnt be smelling gas like that. You only need to loosen the 3 screws around the housing and turn it a bit to adjust. IDK give it a shot??? Too difficult to diagnose on-line.... get that housing loose, and try adjusting it when its running and see if makes any difference.Your obviously not getting enough air to start it anyway. BTW the heat shield isnt a have to have on thing.....plenty people take them off and run just fine. But if you were to live in a very hot climate I would advise against it. IE Texas, it simply helps prevent boil over.....you probly need not worry about it. Good luck......

[gt crazy]

cheers to you man! i got a solex and it dont work worth a crap lol. sometimes it idles sometimes it dont wanna give gas to idle and sometimes it just dumps the gas. WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF SOLEX. Just glad to see that im not the only one trying to keep it stock. Let me know if you every get yours running right, it'll be inspiration to keep mine.