440 1.8 ran like a pig, now won't start at all! Seems like fuel prob

Best mates car,
He's going to get rid of it because of this problem, but I want to get it running for him so he'll hold onto it. The cars in nice order and has life left in it! It ran Ok in the Summer and then in the Winter started to cut out and run as if fuel was contaminated. Won't start at all now. He's tried filters and cleaning pipes etc. but no joy. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers

Big Jim

[pettaw]

You didn't say whether it was injection or carb. If its carb, they can warp at the base and cause all sorts of problems, but usually they'll run. Injection could be loads of things, from injectors to filters and regulators/pumps.

Is there any fuel coming through the fuel pipe? Does the fuel pump run when you're trying to start, if injection.

Andy

Andy,

I'll need to check with my friend re: Carb or Injection? He did state that the last time this happened he had a "gunge" coming from the fuel line!! Seems strange to me! The car used to start using a tow at 30 mph but died once the tow stopped. I'm bringing the car to my garage next weekend so I can get a better look at her. (it!!)

Thanks

Jim

Hi Jim,

I'm afraid it's back to basics here...

1/ What year is the car, is it carbed or injection?

2/ Are we getting a spark at the plugs?

3/ Are the leads on the right way, in the correct firing order i.e 1-3-4-2

4/ Is the cap & Rotor arm in good condition?

5/ Is there fuel in the Tank, Don't be misled by the fact that the fuel needle is "just above the red" IT DOESN'T NECESSARILY FOLLOW that there's 2gallon in the tank, the fuel gauges in the 440 are quite contrary and wave all over the place! I've only ever experienced this on a Fiat 127, whereby if you tapped the guage reasonably hard it would go back to Full!

6/ Is there fuel getting to ...a/ the carb ,b/ the injectors?

7/Is the starter engaging?

8/Does the engine turn over quickly or slowly, with the battery fully charged?


This should give you something to go on. Try some of these or all and comeback to us if your unsuccessful.

Hope this helps...


Regards
Dave M

[pettaw]

If he has a 'gunge' coming out of the fuel lines, then that's where to start. You'll need to flush all the fuel lines and change all the filters. You might even have to change the fuel lines as well, but see if you can get fuel flowing first. Run the fuel pump with the lines disconnected to flush that out as well. If its carb then just run the starter with the spark plugs out and ignition unit disconnected, if its injection you should be able to jumper across the fuel relay.

I'm afraid he must have let the fuel run out or in some other way stir up the #### at the bottom of the fuel tank which has swiftly clogged up the entire fuel system. It may take a few months of frequently changing filters once you've got the car running again to completely clear the debris.

Andy

Thanks Andy & Dave,

It's a 440 1.8 Injection (Li with a G or X somewhere?) I'll know better next weekend when I get my hands on it. Engine turns normally, plugs, distributor etc. seem fine. A mechanic got her running after the first occurrence of the problem after changing every filter under the sun, so I wonder (as suggested)is it a case of the "muck" building up again in the system. Apologies for my lack of knowledge of the "petrol" members of the species as I've been driving the same "turbo oil burner" for the last 240K miles.(I just kick it and it keeps going). I'll post again as soon as I've had a chance to delve into the machine itself.

Cheers Gents,

Jim D.