My Car arrive. Beck Speedster

I took delivery of my Beck Speedster on Friday. The car is more beautifull the I could Imagine. Thanks to Lane Anderson Manual the learning process of the car was easy. The car as I expected have a few glitch. The front trunk, does not close , and the AC,pull the engine down to the point it stall . The car have a terible smell of gas. It is everything I wanted and expected. Any advice what the gas smell could be?

Congrats on your new ride !
Get with Carey he surely will walk you through these minor issues.
Easy fix's may be:
Trunk:
Make sure that the cable knob is pushed all the way in.
Gas:
May be just the tank vent but check around for any visable moisture.
A/C:
You may have to increase the idle adjustment a bit.

Peter, I had the same problem with the trunk. Two things: 1) The spare tends to shift. Make sure that the bottom is pulled all the way forward and the spare is shoved all the way to your left as far as it will go. 2) Make sure that the release handle has returned to the latched position. The spring isn't strong enough to get it there everytime.

Congrats on your Beck. We need pictures ASAP!

Peter, There are a couple of reasons why the A/C may be dragging the engine down.

Subaru computers have a provision for the A/C. When you turn on the A/C, the computer increases the engine RPM to accommodate this extra normal load. You should ensure that the proper wire to the computer from the A/C switch is connected. Referring to a wiring diagram will reveal which wire.

Another reason the A/C can drag down the engine is if the head pressure on the compressor is way too high. The pressure should normally stay around 220-250 psi at which you will hardly notice the A/C engagement. When the head pressure gets well above this point, you begin to feel it as the A/C engages and it begins to increase the load on the engine and drag it down. This is dangerous to the A/C system. Should the head pressures approach or exceed 400 psi, the A/C does not cool and the system may be harmed (hoses and/or compressor). Causes of this condition can be (1) the lack of adequate air across the condenser through blockage or a failed cooling fan or fan relay or (2) the condenser is too small or (3) both.

There are other reasons for this problem that involve design parameters but yours is probably a very simple fix.

The gas smell is probably coming from a tank vent especially if you don't see any evidence of gas leakage around the engine or fuel tank. The standard Subaru system is a closed system and safely vents to the atmosphere under certain abnormal conditions and even then the charcoal canisters should eliminate the gas smell. Perhaps your charcoal canisters have become disconnected.

OTOH, your tank may be set up to vent all the time like the VW-based Speedsters. When a car sits in a hot garage like in Miami, the fuel in the tank gets hot, evaporates, causes pressure, and forces the fumes out the open vent, hence the gas smell. If you put a check valve in the tank vent, it will solve the problem at normal temperatures, but under certain hot conditions like sitting in traffic on a 100

I am glad that the manual I wrote has helped. The issues you mentioned sound like normal sorting problems that can be easily resolved. Carey will certainly be happy to help you get them straightened out quickly. Welcome to the Madness!!!

Lane, Is there an on-line version of the now famous Beck Speedster Manual by the Hon. Lane Anderson? What else do you write manuals about? Scotch? Cognac? Vintage Port? Type 4 engines? Side curtains? Bunnies at Amelia?

Congratulations Peter! Hope you rethink Carlisle, or at least consider the Run On The Smokies later this year. Sorry to hear about the glitches, I'm surprised that they weren't taken care of before delivery. That A/C glitch could really leave you in a bad spot in Miami's traffic.

On the AC: the Vintage Air system uses the same unit for AC and heat so please look at the additional Vinatge Air paper I put in the manual pack for you. It will show the position that the knobs MUST be in for it to work. Essentially the heat must be all the way off, other wise the system is calling for heat and AC at the same time. Those knobs are VERY stiff so make sure the heat is actually off (vintage air says this was normal for their new knobs). Especially on the heat knob... there is a "hump" when turning it and that could easily be mistaken for the stopping point, but it is still on. Once it gets past that "hump" it turns easy again. This is very important, otherwise the evaporator is trying to heat and cool at the same time and your head pressure will be through the roof and cause the motor to stall. You also have an idle control solenoid that is set to run with coolant or air temperatures below a certain point, as well as when the AC clutch is kicked in, and it kept the motor at a smooth 900RPM with the AC running during all my test drives, so I am really leaning towards the high head pressure...
The through the hood spyder gas cap is vented by design. My guess would be that fuel sloshed around in transit and maybe even got on the carpet via the vent, or the S Florida heat is doing exactly what Charles described. If it is the vent I can walk you through closing that up if needed.
On the front trunk this is a common adjustment, but I am very surprised on your car because I must have opened and shut it 100 times and it was an extremely smooth latch. So, make sure you have it almost closed, with the safety in its hole, and with the heel of your hand push very firm right in the area of your hood crest emblem. Like Alan mentioned, make sure the release handle is also returned to :rest" and I would also just double check that the tool bag is above the tire, between the spare and the tank. If it sits any higher it may stop the hood from closing.
I'll resend all of this in an e-mail, and feel free to call if you need more help with anything.

Charles, I can email you a copy (without the binding) of the manual (with Carey's permission), but it wouldn't do you much good for your car. Still, I will do so if you want one. I have written enough technical documentation in my career as a software engineering and engineering manager that it comes reasonably easy. Never written any books about booze as I always seemed to finish the research material off too quickly. As for the bunny at Amelia Island, well, that'd be in the Adult section ;-)

Nolan "I'm surprised that they weren't taken care of before delivery"
Just FYI: unfortunately none of these problems existed during any of my test drives, in shop testing, etc... or they would have been taken care of BEFORE the car shipped.

Lane, you are right, a Beck manual probably would not help but I appreciate the thought. Just thought there might be some other manuals that could help us professional deadbeats and car event attenders. I shall consult the adult section. :-)

Sorry about the comment Carey as I'm sure you or your mechanics do check everything before shipment. Perhaps Peter's referring to glitches was as you said. BTW the car looks spectacular.

Excellent, Peter!

Nolan,

No worries and well... sometimes $hit happens, and all we can do is try to help troubleshoot it, and if need be get it to a shop. Because of the extensive testing I did on Peter's car I would suspect the AC and heat are both on, and that would explain both his AC symptoms (not blowing cold and killing motor) I don't yet know the exact issue with Peter's AC, but I personally took the extra time to run the car with the AC on for the last 100 miles of the test drive, stop frequently, both casually and hard stops, just to see if I could get the AC to kill the engine. On the original tune I could do this, but with the idle solenoid and a few minor tweaks on the Stinger at the AC idle load points I couldn't get it to die, period. On hard, hard stops where you were stalling the hell out of the engine it would drop down to about 700RPM but the idle solenoid would kick it right back up.

Even still I was concerned about the temperature difference IN to S FL. The hottest day we had was low 80's and only for one day, so most of Peter's testing was done in the mid 60s. So, we also added an additional port to the high side line so that a hi/lo pressure switch could be added to bypass the compressor should it build up too much on the hottest S Florida days. If his switches are indeed in the correct position and he still has the issue I'll shoot him that switch in the mail.

Likewise, the fuel smell is almost certainly from the spyder gas cap and if he needs something different done there I can walk him through plugging the vent and or adding a canister.

hello peter,congrats on your car,finally,call me ,lets ride, enjoy every second,YOUNG AGAIN,soon, herbert hofer.

I just spoke with Peter's mechanic and walked him through the gas cap possibilities and he already had the hood figured out. They think the AC compressor has seized, so I have Subaru of South Bend bringing me a new one and I'll turn it around to Peter. Can't say I understand that one but I guess a part is good until it dies...

Hi Guys . I am enjying my car more that I did My Aston Martin . It is a head turner. Evem my next door Venezuelan neighbors, who think his S.... does not stink have to come out (after he drove by in his Porshe convertible) to find out what kind of car it was . The car is Great, drive great . Is tied and beutifull. So it smell bad. Who care The Hi Pitch sound is great. Every litler thing will be fix with the help of Carey and all of You.
To Nolan No I have to go to my Grandson , Holy Comunion Other wise I will go .

It is getting good. My mechanic fix my trunk,and was able to push the seat a couple of inches back. The gas smell is fix with the Charcoal canister . The only issue I have left is the AC. The Car is beutifull and I love it It will take a few week s more to work the kink and it will be perfect

Charles you ole Subaru Coupe guy. You must have passed your last ASE certification test in a breeze. Having never seen the car you correctly diagnosed Peter's problems. Very observant on your part that the stalling issue was directly related to high compressor head pressure and that it would eventually harm the compressor. Right on. And your observation about needing the charcoal cannister to squelch the gas smell was right on as well. What is your shop rate?

Carey. Having the heat and AC switches on simultanelusly will not raise the head pressure at all. It just makes the compressor's efforts meaningless because the hot water is offsetting the cooling. Charles is right again. You have obstructed flow across the condenser caused either by a failed fan or fan relay or debris on the condenser. Possibly an undersized condenser for the task demanded.

Peter you will be riding cool in no time.

Clint, You are far too kind but after all I have lived with one of these Subaru-powered beasts for quite awhile. I have had to work through the A/C on my car so we have had it all apart and I had a chance to see what SAS had done. All seems well at the moment.

This A/C design stuff can be a sticky wicket and I am sure that Carey and Co. will get it all working fine quickly. I can tell you that under favorable conditions we are all working with very tight spaces so A/C component configuration requires some trial and error.

I have had gas smells as well but only when I overfilled the gas tank so I am now careful not to fill the tank to the top. SAS retains the charcoal filters and the little smell I have noticed dissipates quickly.

I would agree that the high head pressures are probably eminating from other causes and may be unrelated to the position of the switches. I have three cars with this sort of A/C system (VA). From my experince, if I inadvertently left the heat on when the A/C was on, it just did not cool very well but I noticed nothing else happening.

I'll have Peter's mechanic look for fan obstructions or a faulty fan/relay, but the dual condensers, dual fans, fan relays, hoses, drier and evap. are all in their "stock" Beck location and everything except the evap are the same parts we've used for years without issue.

From what I understand low pressure can be just as bad and reduce the cooling of the compressor causing catastrophic failure, so we'll look for a line restriction as well.

The Subaru compressor has a hi/lo cut out, so I am not sure of that failed or the compressor just went south. Regardless, I'll have Peter's mechanic install the aftermarket bypass as a 2nd "safety" feature for the compressor.

Charles, my VA experience with AC and heat on were quite a bit different than yours. Both on would draw the motor to a stall, but everything was smooth when running just heat or just AC. Maybe a case of 1+1 does not equal 2.

As always, I appreciate the feedback guys.

Peter, congrats on the car. You are in good hands, Carey and Co. are among the best in attention to detail and solving problems. Glad you are enjoying your ride.

I Just got my belt for the luggage rack. Thanks Carey. I took the Car out today in I-75 I was doing 90 ml and hours .The Baby move . The gas smell is better since the charcoal can was added . The car is beutifull. Who need AC as long as you could put your top down