Anyone here a mechanic?

[penaltybox 0]

I have a 61 chevy truck.It sputters and dies after driving a few minutes and will not restart unless I spray some starting fluid in the carb then it dies again.the filters are clean and the fuel pump is working, but it dribbles out of the line instead of a spray.What do you think could be the problem?Thanks

[roostingmx 0]

it sounds like its not getting enough fuel or the carb is dirty or plugged?

[J-Shera 0]

He said it wasnt getting enough fuel, he knows that. He wants to know WHY its not getting enough fuel. My guess was the fuel pump possible not working as well as it should.

[penaltybox 0]

The carb is clean as far as I can see.But if it is dirty why would it start just fine when its cold but not after its died and warm/hot already

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He said it wasnt getting enough fuel, he knows that. He wants to know WHY its not getting enough fuel. My guess was the fuel pump possible not working as well as it should.

thats what I was thinking.but I'm just guessing

[willy0314 0]

it could be alot of different things. Where do you live? Is it really hot there? You can run into a problem where either a steel gas line gets to hot, the under hood temperatures get to hot, or too much heat transfers to the carb directly from the intake, (any number of things really), but what will happen is the carb will become too hot and it wil cause the fuel in the carb to boil. Thus explaining why the truck will run cold but not when its warmed up. This is solved by adding some kind of heat resistant spacer between the carb and the intake.

However it could be other things also. The idle circuit on the carb may be messed up somehow. Whatever choke setup the carb has might be broken. The carb might be running so rich that you are fouling out spark plugs (most likely not). Your timing could be all out of wack.

Buy a cheap, clear fuel filter, and install it in line somewhere between the carb and the fuel filter, or get a fuel pressure guage for carb engines and install that some where ( better option, but neither is that expensive) That way you can make sure the motor is getting fuel. Pull out the plugs and make sure they aren't fouled, make sure the choke is workign right, and start the truck and check the timing with a timing light to make sure it is advancing right. Check to make sure that the carb isn't getting extreamly heated like I said before.

[penaltybox 0]

thanks and I live in Texas and this time of year its a 100+ in the sun

[whbd18 0]

I would try to take it to a mechanic in your area, without actually seeing the truck in person it would be hard to know exactly whats wrong with it. People here are only going to be able to guess what the problem is.

[hockeysew 0]

Quite Familiar with older Chevys here (68 Nova and 3 Camaros)

Sounds like a classic vapor lock but check a couple things first-

TAKE OFF THE FUEL CAP BEFORE YOU DO THIS!! Otherwise if you dont you will pressurize the tank and when you pull the air hose off the line it will spray fuel everywhere!

The first thing I would do is check your supply line to the pump from the tank-Chevy had a filter (similar to a "sock" that is on the end of the p/u tube) on the pickup in the tank that can be prone to clogging, especially on an older truck.

You should unhook the hose just before the pump and if you shoot some air down that hose, hear it bubbling and gurgling in the tank-if you do your OK-If not then the line or the "sock" to the tank is clogged-FIX IT

If that is ok then I would check your fuel pressure at the carb with the engine at idle-it should be 5 to 7 p.s.i. at the carb. If not the pump is suspect even if new (Checker and Auto Zone type cheapie pumps are famous for this)With your statement that the fuel just dribbles out of the line, that really makes me wonder about the pump-you should fill a 1 qt container in 30 seconds or so

Vapor lock is a very real possibility in that hot of an environment and if your fuel pump is weak it will only compound the problem-fuel under pressure is less prone to boiling and boiling fuel is exactly what vapor lock is.

I have had trucks (Ford and Chevy) in the past that the best cure for vapor lock was to eliminate the mechanical pump entirely and go with an electric pump mounted near the tank with a pressure regulator underhood. This is what I am running on the Nova and with 400hp out of a 355cu in engine it gets quite warm and I have never had a vapor lock issue.

When it quits on you give this a try-take a large rag or small towel and wrap the fuel line between the carb and fuel (make sure its clear of exhaust manifold and moving parts) and soak the rag or towel down really well with water-If the truck runs ok then that confirms the vapor lock issue. But fix the problem after that.

Good luck-Hope it helps

Feel free to PM me if you want more help-I have 25+ years of experience with performance engines

[BK 0]

Another thing is to check to see if your carb is screwed on tight. I had an old Jeep that had the same problem. I jiggled the carb a little and noticed that 2 of the screws were loose. I tightened them up and it worked like a charm.

[top 0]

make sure your gas is clean and you have all your gaskets and everything on your carb make sure its all adjusted.. another thing too it can be ur fuel filter my bosses truck did the same so i changed it and it works fine now.. or ur pump.. check all ur fuel lines make sure none are kinked.. or check is the timing on ur engines is right cuz its its not sparking right at the right time it will cause whats happening