| Author | Message | ||
     Benoit Leus Frequent User Username: benoitleus Post Number: 413 Registered: 06-2009 |
My Shadow hasn't been driven much over the last 6 months (not at all for the last 2 as we weren't allowed due to Covid-19 measures). Finally, I took it for a spin. It ran fine, except that it hesitated under load (not misfiring) unless you were very gentle with the accelarator. After a 20 minute drive I left it for a couple of hours only to find it now ran very rough. Also the RHD exhaust tail pipe makes that plopping noise. Am I right in suspecting a fuel blockage problem in the A-bank carburator ? Benoit | ||
| Graham Phillips Frequent User Username: playtime Post Number: 273 Registered: 03-2019 |
G'day everyone,..... Sounds like you need to take it for a LONG run to clean it out. Graham. | ||
| Robert J. Sprauer Frequent User Username: wraithman Post Number: 618 Registered: 11-2017 |
Check condition of the rotor and distributor cap for corrosion and condensation. | ||
| Hubert Kelly Frequent User Username: h_kelly Post Number: 387 Registered: 03-2012 |
Carb needle sticking, check pots for carbon build up, | ||
| Jeff Young Frequent User Username: jeyjey Post Number: 431 Registered: 10-2010 |
I'd guess too rich: either carb needle sticking or choke sticking (or otter switch failed and is holding choke closed). | ||
| Patrick Lockyer. Grand Master Username: pat_lockyer Post Number: 2310 Registered: 09-2004 |
Fuel pump filter or line filter maybe blocked and need cleaning or new line filter. | ||
| Larry Kavanagh Frequent User Username: shadow_11 Post Number: 631 Registered: 05-2016 |
This is a long shot but it's possible that unwelcome guests have taken up residence in your air filter housing while the car was lying up. | ||
| Benoit Leus Frequent User Username: benoitleus Post Number: 414 Registered: 06-2009 |
Jeff and Hubert, you were right. The carb needle was indeed sticking. Cleaning both carbs restored smooth operation. Patrick, you reminded me that it is probably time to replace the fuel filter. Benoit | ||
| Larry Kavanagh Frequent User Username: shadow_11 Post Number: 632 Registered: 05-2016 |
Happy motoring Benoit. | ||
| David Gore Moderator Username: david_gore Post Number: 3695 Registered: 04-2003 |
Benoit, I have used a reputable fuel stabiliser additive in the past in situations where I had to leave a vehicle in storage for an extended period. In our climate, it is essential to fill the fuel tank completely to avoid problems with water condensation/fuel degradation due to temperature and humidity whilst stored. I have done this for both our diesel and petrol/gasoline vehicles without any problems when it was time to resume using them. | ||
| Benoit Leus Frequent User Username: benoitleus Post Number: 415 Registered: 06-2009 |
Good idea, Graham. Although I really hope to use the car much more over the coming months. Benoit | ||
| Omar M. Shams Grand Master Username: omar Post Number: 2027 Registered: 04-2009 |
Dear David, That is interesting. However there comes a time when if you leave the fuel in the tank long enough it will separate out and form a tar at the bottom. This never happened to me when I lived in the UK due to their fuel specs being different but it does happen in the UAE, USA ad Japan that I know of. | ||
| David Gore Moderator Username: david_gore Post Number: 3696 Registered: 04-2003 |
Hi Omar, Have not had this problem so far with our diesel cars but will refer the question to #2 son who should have the necessary contacts from his position at the Ampol [formerly Caltex] refinery in Brisbane for investigation. Have heard of problems with E10 but nothing with diesel or higher octane [95 or 98] petrol/gasoline. | ||
| John Rowney Experienced User Username: johnrowney Post Number: 79 Registered: 02-2015 |
I spent 24 years in the Amoco/BP Refinery in Brisbane and some years in between in Indonesia. Our petrol could never leave tar deposits. Some of you might remember the Amoco ads for Nice Clean Petrol with the final filter, featuring old dropheads in particular. If tar deposits occur they must be due to contamination of heavy oils, although there is some possibility of some reaction of air with the unsaturated hydrocarbons from some components of the petrol over a long period of time. I will drain the bottoms of my Rolls-Royce Wraith WXA68 in the next few days to check whether there is any heavy "tar". This vehicle has been stationary for the last 14 months while getting its engine rebuilt. Hopefully I will report back in a couple of days. Water is always present in petrol, but it is normally in solution in very small quantities. This can precipitate out with low temperatures and cause rusting in the tank. Condensation of water in the top of the tank could also occur to introduce more water. The only thick deposits in fuel I have experienced is with my 1973 Montesa 247 Cota Trials motorcycle. It uses a 20:1 premixed petrol:oil mix, and if I don't flush it after riding it, after a while when the petrol evaporates, the oily residue is left in the carby. I need to take the carby off and flush the gunk out before starting it again. I must remember to always run the fuel out of the carby to stop this occurring! | ||
| Stephen Bardwell New User Username: cobard71 Post Number: 13 Registered: 03-2020 |
My silver shadow 2 was stored for three years. Previous owner just literally drove it into a warehouse and took the keys. On purchasing I drained all the stale fuel. From what I understand as these cars fuel tanks are not pressurised like modern cars it oxydises and separates. I have put new petrol and cleaned everything I can. I am going to do fuel. Filter oils and air etc ASAP. Bought new spark plugs too. But it runs like a bag of nails. Think not firing on all cylinders like it's new owner lol.. | ||
| John Rowney Experienced User Username: johnrowney Post Number: 82 Registered: 02-2015 |
Today I took the drain plug out of my 1938 Wraith WXA68 which had been sitting with its tank half full of 91 octane petrol for 14 months. Since the car engine has been out for this time, and the car has not moved off its hoist, the fuel has been sitting completely unattended for the 14 months. I drained some of the tank and collected the residue in my filter cloth with the deposits shown in the following photo.  The residue on the filter cloth The residue had no trace of tar or any heavy oil component. The residue appeared to be aluminium swarf and other metallic residue. None of it had a rusty appearance. There was some dark-brownish metallic residue in the cupped area on the top of the plug. This turned to a black colour after a while. My observation was that the petrol was clear and bright. There was no free water in the bucket where the bulk of the drained petrol ended up. The results of this test seem to indicate that, given Australian quality fuels, there would be little likelihood of tar appearing in a fuel tank in a couple of months stagnation. However, I live on the Gold Coast in Queensland and this car was in my shed which would only have a temperature range of 7 deg C to 34 deg C over the period of storage. | ||
| Trevor Hodgekinson Experienced User Username: wm20 Post Number: 174 Registered: 11-2006 |
John, Obviously Qld gets a lot better fuel than we do in Sydney I repair lawnmowers & other small engines and carburettor blockages from a very sticky foul smelling tar like residue is very very common. It accounts for around 1/3 of all of my repairs. Some days the fuel I buy smells very strongly of toluene and other days it is just about all solvent benzene. AFAIK there is no standard that prescribes what is in petrol just a pile of regulations about what can not be in there and maximum levels of what is allowed. I regularly have to replace float bowls because this residue removes the zinc plating and it will not redissolve in the stuff we call "fuel" because it is not petrol. it would be interesting to find out what actually is in there. I can remember doing front wheel bearings , washed in petrol in a hub cap ( didn't we all ) and on a hot day, by the time you had set one side, the hub cap would be evaporated dry. Now days a bowl of "petrol" sits out for an hour and it changes colour to a mid brown then starts to smell like a swamp After several hours it is reduced to about 1/10 of the original volume and is black sticky and putrid. This tar like goo will not dissolve in any solvent that I have here | ||
| felipe heuser Experienced User Username: felipe Post Number: 106 Registered: 07-2017 |
Ethanol is ‘hygroscopic’ a fancy way of saying it easily absorbs water. The water leads to condensation in fuel tanks, fuel lines and carburettor fuel bowls. The high content of water in E10 fuel also will swell the paper filter media found in fuel filters not designed especially for flex-fuel operation. Gasoline mixed with ethanol has a shorter shelf life and goes stale quickly. Ethanol is also a solvent and it will disintegrate fiberglass, plastic, and rubber. | ||
| David Gore Moderator Username: david_gore Post Number: 3703 Registered: 04-2003 |
Felipe, I live in a regional coastal area that had significant problems after the mandated introduction of E10 fuel arising from trailer boat owners experiencing engine stoppages due to water contamination of E10 fuel from humid marine air. Our local service station applied for and received an exemption from stocking E10 after a significant number of off-shore engine failures in boats using inboard and outboard engines fuelled with E10 fuel. These failures were directly attributed to water condensate from the humidity in the sea air being absorbed by the ethanol in the fuel whilst in the fuel tank. | ||
| felipe heuser Experienced User Username: felipe Post Number: 107 Registered: 07-2017 |
I believe some countries have normal petrol pumps in their marinas to avoid this… I’ve also read in some European countries including the US continue to offer ethanol free petrol…lucky them ! Fact is that motors sitting for long periods of time including lawn mowers not used for many months out of season could develop problems… After much research however few solutions, other than replacing to methanol-resistant parts, is running motors as much as possible, adding fresh petrol to hinder contamination (I changed over to Shell super 98 which boasts keeping petrol fresher longer than a cheaper brand) and possibly an additive where formulas keep fuel fresh up to 12 months and provide protection to the entire fuel system | ||
| Stephen Bardwell New User Username: cobard71 Post Number: 14 Registered: 03-2020 |
I think we somehow forget that these where made to be used not as ornaments. If used regularly the petrol won't oxidise, oil will lubricate and they will run smoother. My shadow although sounds like a sack of spanners in a washing machine definitely improves when I drive it for 30 minutes. Looking forward to giving mine a full overhaul soon. | ||
| Larry Kavanagh Frequent User Username: shadow_11 Post Number: 633 Registered: 05-2016 |
Stephen, If SWMBO finds out that you are using the washing machine to clean you tools she may be none too pleased. | ||
| Alan Dibley Frequent User Username: alsdibley Post Number: 237 Registered: 10-2009 |
Thanks for the tip Stephen. A useful idea, especially after hydraulic problems, where everything in the garage inevitably has a thin coat of fluid. Alan D. | ||
| ross kowalski Prolific User Username: cdfpw Post Number: 1402 Registered: 11-2015 |
Stephen, You should start a thread on your engine tune up. Also, the proper royce parlance is "my engine is running so rough I can only balance a bag of nails on it" I most enjoy the diagnostic threads. | ||
| Stephen Bardwell New User Username: cobard71 Post Number: 15 Registered: 03-2020 |
Hi Ross, Good idea I will once I start! Being in the UK it should probably be.. Rough as a bag of spuds or butchers dog. But trying to sound like I know what I'm doing and mechanical minded I thought spanners  | ||
| George Constantine New User Username: theo Post Number: 32 Registered: 06-2012 |
Hi everyone I had the same problem, my 1979 corniche stood for around 6 months. It stared OK then after about 30 minutes it started to run very rough with black smoke coming from the exhausts. number 3 & 4 on both banks are very weak. Any advice would be appreciated. Thank you George | ||
| George Constantine New User Username: theo Post Number: 33 Registered: 06-2012 |
Hi All I think I rushed by previous posting, I meant to say, number 3 & 4 HT leads on both banks produce a very weak spark?and the car runs very rough with black smoke coming from the exhausts Thanks George | ||
| Alan Dibley Frequent User Username: alsdibley Post Number: 249 Registered: 10-2009 |
I have just found a bug that is new to my experience on a MPW soft-top Shadow. Symptom: won't start - petrol smell in exhaust but not even one ignition stroke. Started by doing all the usual (no dice) and then decided to dismantle/de-wire/disconnect the system to test individual components. All the individual bits tested OK - condensor, coil, points all doing the right things. Reassemble it - nothing. TCALSS the insulator which carries the connection between the coil and the points was almost a dead short to ground. It separates into two bits of plastic which have cavities where there seems to be no reason for a cavity. Split the halves and scraped out some softish/hardish dark brown stuff. Reassembled it with Gorilla glue filling in the cavities (so it won't happen again). Started first time. I can't imagine the possible origin of the low-resistance goo. Perhaps someone else can. The car had been stored in a dry garage and not started for several weeks. If the short was only partial it would account for rough running. This one was permanent - a few ohms - so it must have gone solid during dry storage??? Incidentally the MPW Shadow (pre-Corniche) is a real eye-turner and, when the top is down, looks much bigger than a "normal" Shadow, especially in red with white top. Alan D. | ||
| Alan Dibley Frequent User Username: alsdibley Post Number: 250 Registered: 10-2009 |
(Off topic) But that is possibly trumped by a series of window motion failures on my Citroen CX. Three of the rocker switches had the corpses of insects jamming the internal works. Spiders I think - the switches were fine after a dose of aerosol brake cleaner and a blast of air to flush them. There is no possible way (???) for the insects to get inside the switches - THREE times??? Alan D. | ||
| Omar M. Shams Grand Master Username: omar Post Number: 2074 Registered: 04-2009 |
we need photographic evidence Mr Dibley OBE | ||
| richard george yeaman Prolific User Username: richyrich Post Number: 1156 Registered: 04-2012 |
I agree Omar, I think its too much cider. Richard. | ||
| David Gore Moderator Username: david_gore Post Number: 3785 Registered: 04-2003 |
Alan, After much consideration, I think one of "Murphy's Laws" is applicable to your Citroen CX problem. This being "Nature always sides with the hidden flaw". In your case, "hidden" is the operative word......  | ||
| Alan Dibley Frequent User Username: alsdibley Post Number: 251 Registered: 10-2009 |
Sorry, can't provide photographic proof - all the switches work OK now, but I could send you some pics of Somerset spiders. They are not particularly big, but they are very fierce. But the big ones would not fit in the switches, so what can I do to convince you? I think that next time I find the problem I will definitely take photographs. I worked out that because I have had the car for 31 years and this is the first time it has happened, it should recur round about summer or autumn in 2051, so don't hold your breath. Alan D. | ||
| ross kowalski Prolific User Username: cdfpw Post Number: 1472 Registered: 11-2015 |
Alan, This is not a problem in Australia because you couldn't fit a Sydney Funnel Spider into the ashtray, needless to say a electrical switch workings. | ||
| Trevor Hodgekinson Experienced User Username: wm20 Post Number: 194 Registered: 11-2006 |
A problem that pops up with ride on mowers stored for long times is ants nesting inside the switches. Some lubricant and vigerous movements of the switch usually clears out the freeloaders |
