Boy, time flies when you are having fun. I guess I am having too much fun.
When last visited, I was certain my awful running woes were due to a leaky intake manifold gasket. The spray-some-Heet-at-it method was used to confirm.
Attached is what I saw when I lifted the driver's side carb/manifold. About half the gasket missing. Not good. Replaced the gasket w/ a new fiber one, and put all back together. As you might suspect, the car ran much better, but not perfectly. I had returned to a prior state wherein the engine was drivable, but still rough on throttle transitions, and steady running. Seemed to be missing or stumbling, and still w/ some popping out the exhaust. Put your foot into it tho, and it took off w/ plenty of zip. Also, when adjusting the carbs, I noted that only one of three idle mixture screws had any effect on the idle speed. Even screwed all the way in, no effect. WTF??
So I drove it around some, burned about a 1/2 tank, back roads and highway. Filled it up w/ fresh gas (Sunoco uber premium), and drove a bit more. Last trip out to run some errands, I can report that the car ran -- I really do not want to say this too loudly -- near perfectly. Smooth on the throttle, no popping out the back, and good power. It fixed itself?? I have not gone back to see if the idle screws are now working, but that is on the list.
PS: the business about something hard having gotten in to one of the cylinders does not seem to have been a big deal. Per prior posts, all four compression numbers good. The banged up spark plug (and all of the others too) were replaced when carbs were off.
I'll need another few hundred miles to be sure that I have overcome (defeated) this problem, and I am cautiously optimistic. Also, I have a deeper appreciation for what advantages one achieves by employing fuel injection. Just sayin' . . .
Originally Posted by Gordon Nichols - Massachusetts 1993 CMC:
