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Here's the deal... I have a 54' chevy 3100 with 235 1bbl rochester. The truck will idle for hours, no problem.. take it on the road.. a block away dies. No fuel getting to the carb. Needles not stuck...

Here's what I've done... Washed the fuel tank... replaced fuel lines with stainless... new fuel pickup... new fuel pump... rebuilt carb.. replaced inline fuel filters with glass bowl..

Still same problem... now before I spend more money on theories of mine I'd like to to get some imput...

could air filter variations have any effect.. oil bath.. chrome.. none..

Make sure the gas cap is vented. Next time you are out and the truck dies, loosen the fuel cap and listen for the tell tale sucking noise. Leave the cap a little loose and see if this fixes the problem.

Jim

check the pushrod for the fuel pump - might be bent or worn enuff to not pump well at higher fuel usage rates above idle - air filter won't affect fuel supply

Bill

Does the fuel supply have any relations to the coolant system.... I have a new radiator, new waterpump and new hoses.... I've noticed a lot of pressure building in the system... enough to where I have seen it blow coolant out of the overflow reservoir and even collapse the hoses...

If you're just idling, it will do that.
Scott

hot or cold shouldn't affect fuel supply - make sure your thermostat is functional and you're not overfilling the rad - leave an inch or more down or it'll blow off

Bill

FTCorona, Have you figured this one out yet?

Jim

float level set wrong or with a small hole can cause you the same kind of problems.

No luck yet.. The gas cap is vented and made no changes on the dying.. as for the mechanical fuel pump, I cheated and got a 6v master electric pump.. I have a constant source of fuel to the filter bowl right before the carb.. thought this fixed it.. took it out.. died two blocks.. same thing.. I re-adjusted the float.. needle.. nothing.. the needle isn't sticking.. time to ditch the rochester??

mayby when your condenser gets hot it shorts out mayby its not fuel

when it dies you say no fuel to carb,,take oil can with gas in and squrit in carb top see if starts,, if no check ing,,if starts remove line at carb and crank over no fuel???If fuel at carb remove air cleaner and open throttle see if acc pump shoots fuel,,if yes you have other problem,,if no remove top of carb see if fuel in bowel,,if no needle sticking if yes look for blockage in jet..doc

Still no luck.. Here's what I've done, I ditched the rochester and installed the 2bbl holley weber carb from langdon's. She fired right up, and idled like a dream. However, like before, I took her out on the road and made it two blocks, and then she started hesitating and once again stalled out.. I shut her off... start the electric fuel pump again, and after about four cranks she fires and idles like a dream... take it another block or two, same thing? I still believe it is lack of fuel but its a entirely new system... has anyone tried to run the fuel line out of the drain hole on the bottom of the tank and ditched the fuel pickup?

evan

I had one that did that. It was a small leak in the fuel line. If you had a mechanical fuel pump, I would suggest getting a tank of gas (the kind you fill the lawn mower up with) and buy 5 feet of gas line and by-pass your truck tank. I am sure you have turned the electric fuel pump on and checked for leaks (it should almost spray gasoline). Keep us informed.

If you can rig a small gas tank, like a small motorcycle tank, under the hood and run a line from it to the electric fuel pump, you can remove the suspect tank from the loop. Fire the truck and if it runs OK you know the problem is in the tank or the lines from the tank. If it continues to stall, the problem is from that point forward. Question, when it stops running does it sputter & buck as it dies or does it just shut off like the key was turned off? If it sputters & acts like it's running out of gas it probably is & you're on the right track. If it just shuts off, it's probably electrical and you are looking for a fuel problem that doesn't exist.

i'd start looking for electrical. all fuel supply is new. check your coil, they'll do what your explaining. they get hot, won't work. cool down will idle fine.

Drive it 'til it dies, get out and see if you have fuel. If the accelerator pumps nothing but air, you have a fuel starvation problem still. Take carb spray with you and see if it will run on it when the truck dies, that will tell you which system that needs attention,
Scott

Does your glass bowl fuel filter show fuel in it when it dies? Wonder if you have something in the tank that keeps getting sucked over the outlet?

Mine is doing something very similar. Its a 53 3100 w/216 and carter yf carb. Idles like a dream, bogs down when driven, cant get out of second it stumbles so bad.

Ive replaced fuel pump, plugs, wires, cap, rotor, condenser, blew out the lines looked in the tank-absolutely not a speck of rust, cleaned out the fuel filter, rebuilt carb, Im in the same boat.

It ran fine around town for a few weeks before this then sat in the garage for a week. Now I scream everytime I try to fix it. :mad:

I would be thrilled to see this problem resolved also. I thought I read a post (similar subject) about someone who replaced the valve where the line goes into the tank and that fixed their problem. Any ideas???

I hope someone comes up with something. Im getting really annoyed, I just get to sit in it in the garage and pretend to drive it :rolleyes:

Thanks, Jeff

It may be the altitude. Not the attitude.

Your truck wants to come to Texas. Trucks like Texas and Texas likes trucks.

I had an MG that always had vapor lock. I carried a bottle of water to cool it down. Did you move the fuel lines?

Just an idea.