truck wont start please help

[dat521gatherer]

this has been an ongoing progressive problem for a few months now and i feel very pissed off and defeated. generally i dont ask for help but that's part of the reason were all here is to help each other.

 

my 521 l16 with weber 32/36 and electronic dizzy started to have a hard time starting a few months back. i would have to feather the hell out of the gas pedal to get it to start when the engine was cold. eventually it wouldn't start in the morning with the cold air but in the afternoon when the sun was out i could get it to start after a few minutes of feathering the gas and playing with the manual choke. now that the season is changing i cant get it started anymore. after it would start up i can turn it right off and it will start right back up on the first revolution until the engine cools back down after a few hours. i thought it was flooding so i had the carb rebuilt by a well known shop. it still does the same thing. i cant find any pattern to it. holding the gas down makes it try to start but i still have to play with the choke and pump the gas.

 

i just replaced the battery and am ready to battle it some more. i bought new plugs and wires too. i will put them on and take the carb off and with a little starting fluid sprayed into the intake manifold the thing should fire. i'm still thinking it's the carb. any help is great guys.

[Cuts metal like mad]

Check your spark plugs, it gets hard to start when they are fouled. Also do a compression test COLD, worn rings might cause this also. Good start I think.

[dat521gatherer]

i just put in the new plugs and wires. the old plugs were wet with gas without even turning the engine over. took the carb off to make sure there was no flooding and not even a poof with starting fluid. the spark at the wires is yellow red. i never upgraded my coil when i put the electronic dizzy in. maybe i burned it out?

[MicroMachinery]

You should have a bright blue spark. If it's not, I'd get to the bottom of that before pickin' on that carb.

Also, I'm running electronic ignition w/ the stock coil on an L18. I know it's not ideal, but I also know that it'll work...

What do the cap and rotor look like? Is your engine grounded very well? Check those out.

[Pacific coast Datsun]

Dan- i had the wet spark plug issue as well on my wagon. I was told by a mechanic that it was being caused by the spark not being hot enough. I switched to EI & that issue has gone away. You currently have EI so that may not be whats going on. Not much help but my 2 cents...good luck & i feel your frustration.

[datzenmike]

A points coil will work but not for ever. The points coil runs with a ballast resistor in line to drop the voltage to around 8 volts to increase the life of the points. An EI dizzy will push 12 through it and it WILL overheat. Any EI coil from any car/truck from '78 up through the mid '80s without a crank angle sensor dizzy should work.

[Cuts metal like mad]

I may have a spare one of those. PM me if you want, and I'll look for it. I've lost your phone number... :D

[dat521gatherer]

zuum i still want that coil. just been busy. i got it started twice since my last post. i still dont know what the problem is

 

i haven't checked the compression cause i dont have a tester. i dont have any blow by though. i think the rings are fine. no oil burning at all. i'll still find a way to check it just to know what the numbers are.

 

i swapped an old points coil in and nothing. i swapped carbs and nothing.

 

my spark looks like it has some blue in it. should it be completely blue? if i close the plug gaps to say .032 should that increase my spark?

 

my timing is on i have no back fire when turning it over or driving or shutting it off. like i said it runs fine after i get it started but it.

 

i have a spark, weak or not it's a spark. timing is on fuel is there.

 

when i first turn it over i get nothing for a minute. no poof no back fire, nothing. then it catches a little as i pump the hell out of the pedal. it catches for about 2 or 3 minutes then it chokes along and i hold the pedal still about half way down and then it finally starts. it starts right back up after i get it running. till about 2 to 3 hours later.

 

so trying to choke it and bitch slap it and cursing and kicking among everything else i'm still stuck. it did feel good to get it started the other day. i wont give up on her but she is on restriction until further notice. she's not aloud to go anywhere. it;s giving me more trouble than my teen daughter.

 

i guess i'll try regrounding the engine.

[Cuts metal like mad]

Its still here, wish I had some better advice for you... this is a brain teaser for certain.

[dat521gatherer]

no compression on all 4 wtf. could my timing be off that much? i'll check the v-notch. valves that out of adjustment?

[ggzilla]

Did you do a dry and a wet compression test? If the compression comes up with a wet test (put oil in the cylinders, then test teh compression), the leaking fuel has probably washed all the oil off the cylinders.

 

Always do a dry compression test, followed by a wet compression test to get the true results.

[dat521gatherer]

when i say no compression it was more like o on #3 and 4 and 20lbs on #2 i dont remember #1 cause i was too baffeled

i put a little oil in #4 and got around 30lbs and oil in #3 and got around 32lbs. fucking ridiculous.

supposed to be 171lbs

[drxfter]

Did you do the compression test with the engine at operating temperature? It won't be accurate when cold.

If you've got wet spark plugs, chances are its ignition related. The fact that it starts fine hot but not cold also hints at this. Check for spark using a High-Energy Ignition tester (looks like a spark plug with a massive air gap) for checking Electronic Ignition outputs, you should be able to get one inexpensively from an Auto parts shop. With your slightly mis-matched ignition systems, its a possibility.

Oh and Merry Christmas. (Don't work on the little devil over the holidays, mate!)

[banzai510(hainz)]

be nice to see when each post was made. Whos running this site?

 

when it gets cold and wet and I dont run my 521 I have a hard time to start also. Only way it would run is keep the key to START.

 

everytime it was condensation under the dizzy cap.

 

adjust the valve lash on your rig and that might do it or ck the intake ,make sure its sealed up nice and tite.

[dat521gatherer]

intake valves were so tight they weren't closing so i couldn't get any compression. adjusted them and it started right up.

 

#3 intake is now adjusted as loose as it will go and it's around .007 the other intake valves are also running out of adjustment room.

 

what causes running out of adjustment room? too much head shaving?

what is the remedy cause i guarantee next time they wont adjust anymore. cam tower shims or something?

[datzenmike]

The valves are sinking into the head. The valve seats are wearing down