Beginners question about stalling

Probably can be solved with a tune-up.  Could be many things, linkage, idle jets, timing, etc.. Expect a some fix.

At 403 miles - it shouldn't be due to needing  valves adjusted (unless they are way off or have an issue - not likely)  I suspect the carb linkage settled in or got loose and that is causing it.  So a simple carb adjustment.  Guess I would have waited for ~1k miles and had oil changed, valves adjusted, timing checked (points?), and carbs checked.  No need for new plugs or points

@Carlos P posted:

I read a bit up here on the forum on stalling. So my Speedster just reached 700Km  (403miles). Until now it didn't stall when it was idling. Yesterday went i went for a drive, even at 30 mins driving, it stalled after 3 mins of idling.

Does this have to do with the fact that it is time to have the valves adjusted? The car is going in for that tomorrow. Or are those 2 things not related?

a beginner,

Carlos

I think a slight tweak of your idle screw might be all you need. (1/8 turn at most. 50-100rpm). But as an inveterate worrier, I would caution you wrt letting your air-cooled motor idle for extended periods.

the stalling happens when i am waiting for the red light to turn green... :-(

i will share all the info here with my mechanic, thank you all so much!

c

@Troy Sloan posted:

Probably can be solved with a tune-up.  Could be many things, linkage, idle jets, timing, etc.. Expect a some fix.

My reply should have said a simple fix, not some.

It's perfect that you're getting it checked at 300 miles.  That should include an oil change because of the engine break-in process.  1,000 miles is rather late for the first oil change.

I agree with everyone else, though - It sounds like a tweak on the idle adjustment screws and re-sync of the carburetors and you'll be good to go s good as it was.

Gordon has this right.

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Agree that this sounds like the normal dialing in process.

Just curious - was yesterday the warmest day you've had the car out in so far?

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the last days were the warmest days we had so far, but that day wasn't the warmest. I am based on the East Coast of Canada, so the temperatures were around 65. (18 degrees)

does the temperature have an impact on this?

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@Carlos P posted:

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...does the temperature have an impact on this?

I looked up your location, and that's why I asked. I figured the tundra might just be thawing there.

Yeah, temperature is critical to setting the tune on these engines. They change as they warm up, and it's pointless to do any tuning until everything is warmed all the way - which means actually driving the car for a while, not just letting it idle with the engine lid open. When outside temps are warmer, the whole warming up process happens quicker. In cold weather, you might drive for a half hour without everything getting fully up to temp. These aren't like modern cars, with all kinds of computer-controlled compensation for temperature.

Some parts in the ignition system may actually fail when hot, but then seem to go back to normal when cooled back down - stuff like electronic distributor modules, coils, and even spark plug wires.

Any mechanic with some signs of gray - who was alive when beetles roamed the earth - will know this. Look for clues in their speech - words like 'jeepers' and 'waycool'.

If they start out by looking for the OBD port, be skeptical.

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As temperature increases and the car is fully warmed, the idle speed should not go down. In the hottest weather idle speed goes up.

IMHO the valves need adjustment OR the carbs/linkage need to be tweaked OR the timing may need an adjustment(entirely possible distributor clamp loosened). A tiny little piece of dirt and a slightly plugged idle jet can easily be the cause of low idle speed.

Change the oil, adjust the valves, then RUN it HARD to heat it up. Then adjust.

We had one dropped off here not too long ago from "another builder" and it turned out the engine bay was so packed full of sawdust and fiberglass dust that the air cleaners were just packed and it wasn't breathing.  A nice filter cleaner bath and a light oiling and it was happy again.

\today the weather is cold and indeed, the stalling doesn't happen.

Just a thought, but could the fuel line be near a heat source, causing vapor lock when it gets hot?

hi Lane, that is interesting. Yesterday I picked up the speedster after the valve adjustments. I have no problems with stalling first. When I drive for a while, and restart the car that i have back the stalling problems. Maybe the stalling happens when the car is heated up....

When I installed my new shroud, I made a hard line crossover fuel line. My mechanic warned me that I might have issues with it heating the gas, but it’s only an issue if I shut it off when it’s hot. (Kind of hard to get it started) But I don’t have any issues with it stalling while it’s running.

Here’s a thought Carlos: Is your engine tin fully intact?  When I bought my Spyder it was missing the ducting for the oil cooler. Try as I might, I could never get it to run/idle properly. I could get it to idle perfectly when cold, then it would stall when warm. If I synced it warm, it wouldn’t idle cold. Finally figured out the missing oil cooler tin was allowing hot air to blow right on my passenger-side carb.

Once I installed the new shroud with all the tin, problem went away.

These are the bits that were missing.

@dearlea, it is amazing that someone left those parts off.

@Michael McKelvey posted:

@dearlea, it is amazing that someone left those parts off.

True. But if you look at pics on BaT or in Google images, it's surprising how often they're missing.

@dlearl476 do you mind sending me a picture to where that sit in the car? Very much appreciated.

Behind the fan shroud on the driver's side in a Speedster(right by number 3 cylinder). Hot air should go through the tin and exit under the car.

Thanks Danny. Out and about today.
This is the best pic I could find Carlos. Like Danny says, Drivers side to the outside of your upright cooler.