Working out the bugs on a 77 X1/9...

Meltora

Low Mileage
Hey guys, I need some help. I got this car last week and I've been trying to get it running right.

As of right now it runs great for a few minutes, then loses power, starts backfiring HARD, gets bogged down and ultimately becomes undrivable. I'm currently on the side of the road trying to find track down the issue in the dark. Ha.

I had a similar issue with my bike a while ago and the problem went away with some new plugs and wires. Just did the same on this car and it ran fine for a few minutes but then the same issue.

Now I'm wondering if it's something to do with the carb making it run rich... maybe air&fuel mixture? If so, how do I find that on here. It's different than my bike...

Thanks.
 
dirt in the carburetor

dirt most likely getting sucked up into the main and idle jets.

time to remove carb from car and clean with compressed air
 
Ok. Thanks. Still stuck on the side of the road... you think there's a chance waiting with allow it to start up so I can limp it home? Or if I pull th plugs and clean them if they'll fire up? I just put new AC Delco plugs in and gapped them to .024 and it ran great for a few. The suddenly flooded.
 
crap in the carb

I will add another vote for crap in the carb. You may have crap in the tank that is getting pumped up to the carb, or it could be deteriorating fuel lines sending rubber bits to the carb. Either way, it will eventually start clogging the jets and tubes in the carb.

If it will run for a few minutes after a rest period you may be able to limp home... if home isn't too far away. Otherwise you will need to pull the top of the carb off and see if you can clear the crap. I am not sure how well you can do that in the dark.
 
I sure hope you have mad it home by now. If you haven't solved the problem yet, look for a leak in the fuel line between the pump and tank. Sucking air into the line can cause backfiring and loss of power.
 
Carb and/or coil

It could be blockages in the carb, it could also be a bad old coil which is overheating and cutting out. Once it cools it will run again until it heats up.

Worth checking both.

Cheers and good luck!

Rob
 
In my experience when a coil goes it does not backfire just loss of power. Air in the gas line can cause backfire and loss of power. Gas starvation due to a clogged line or carb could do the same. If you were working on the car in the dark I am sure you would have seen sparks from the plug wires if they were shorting. Another thought is the distributor. A sloppy dist shaft can cause power loss and backfire. Also maybe the flat spring on the points if applicable is weak. These ideas are based on actual experiences. I could tell you enough stories to fill up this forum.
 
I would go through the carb. Clean everything, new gaskets, ensuring the float is properly set, the needle valve seats and closes correctly. Verify you have proper fuel pressure especially if someone put in an electric fuel pump.

As you go through verify the various carb parts are actually the correct ones, some one may have tried to change jets etc to get some "free" horsepower.

Change the condenser, wierd things happen to cars with points when the condenser goes bad.
 
Thanks guys. Towed it to my friends house late last night. Now we're going through the carb... taking out the jets to make sure there's no blockage.. there's a lot of fluid in the main jets. Not sure it's that's a bad thing.
 
Mel... I must have said this 1000 times here...

Pull the carb, pull it apart and soak in a gallon bucket of carb cleaner for about 20 bucks at any parts store. DO NOT MIX UP the emulsion tubes and air correctors!!!

If you don't... this problem will reoccur and strand you at the most embarrassing times.

Doing anything else will prove futile.

Rinse, I like to use Paint Thinner (Mineral Spirits) and then blow out with compressed air. Insure all orifices are clean and clear and reassemble.

In trouble on the road I would use WD40 and a wand... pull the 4 tubes and correctors and blow them out. Sometimes it would last a day, sometimes a month. One time a fellow member here nursed his car home 350 miles stopping every 50 or so to do some roadside cleaning.

Do it right, its a simple carb and a kit should not necessarily be needed. If you need anymore help, look up the exploded drawings in the index in Wiki or write here again.

HTH...
 
Mel... I must have said this 1000 times here...

Pull the carb, pull it apart and soak in a gallon bucket of carb cleaner for about 20 bucks at any parts store. DO NOT MIX UP the emulsion tubes and air correctors!!!

If you don't... this problem will reoccur and strand you at the most embarrassing times.

Doing anything else will prove futile.

Rinse, I like to use Paint Thinner (Mineral Spirits) and then blow out with compressed air. Insure all orifices are clean and clear and reassemble.

In trouble on the road I would use WD40 and a wand... pull the 4 tubes and correctors and blow them out. Sometimes it would last a day, sometimes a month. One time a fellow member here nursed his car home 350 miles stopping every 50 or so to do some roadside cleaning.

Do it right, its a simple carb and a kit should not necessarily be needed. If you need anymore help, look up the exploded drawings in the index in Wiki or write here again.

HTH...
 
UPDATE! Thanks for all the help. We pulled the main jets and various other things and did a lot of troubleshooting all to realize that the spring pin in the center of the distributor cap came loose and found its way into the rotor mechanism. The spring caused a short which in turn made it unable to produce a spark, and that's what caused our problems. Once finding realizing that, we were able to get everything sorted pretty easily! Ended up driving 100 miles after with no issues! Thanks!
 
I think this is the third time I have heard of this type of failure. At least once here besides you and another on the 124 Spider forum. Definitely an odd thing to have go.

Note to self: check the contact on the distributor cap when car won't run...
 
This kinda thing happens ALL the time, Karl...

like you said... this is the second or third time in the last 67 years I've been on this planet.

Seems to be a PATTERN developing...
 
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