Highland gow Posted March 4, 2012 Share Posted March 4, 2012 Hi I have a problem with my series. Landy starts pretty easily and when warmed up idles very nicely. It can drive downhill ok and can accelerate a little. Going up any kind of a slight incline there is no power whatsoever, and if I keep trying to go uphill it just dies. Sometimes it also backfires. When I check the spark plugs they are black with soot. I have tried the following: Compression test – all 125-140 psi, a little higher when oil is added Adjusted tappets Entirely new ignition system. New genuine Lucas 45D distributor to replace the old 25D Replaced condenser in this new distributor 3 times Thoroughly filed, cleaned and gapped points New plugs (2 sets), new wires New coil, and then replaced that one with a known good coil from my Jaguar Replaced old wiring from fuse box to coil and from coil to distributor Adjusted ignition timing Right on 6 deg BTDC at idle, advances (mark moves counter clockwise) when idle speed is increased New vacuum line from carb to distributor Entirely new fuel system I rebuilt the Zenith 36IV with a genuine rebuild kit. Flattened all of the housings. Replaced Zenith with brand new Weber New fuel line from pump to carb and new filter (the filter does not fill up all the way, only a little less than half) New fuel pump, inspected the old one which looked fine. Removed fuel pickup line to check for clogs, all clear Added 5 gallons of gas to tank to make sure I was not low Fuel in glass sediment bowl is full and clean New exhaust manifold (the old one was cracked by the down-pipe attachment) New intake manifold gaskets and all new attachment hardware Engine runs 50 psi oil pressure Dynamo output seems fine, lights are bright and the battery does not run down. Tightened fan belt. Please can any one help? Ali Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FridgeFreezer Posted March 4, 2012 Share Posted March 4, 2012 Sounds like it's running rich, you don't mention at any point actually checking/adjusting the mixture. Also worth looking at the choke, if this is stuck or set wrong it will run rich all the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MECCANO Posted March 4, 2012 Share Posted March 4, 2012 Did the problem occur after you changed the carb. has it ever flooded and hen wont re-start? Mine behaved liek this and it turned out the "new weber carb" had the vacum advance takeoff on the wrong side of the throttle butterfly. ( it should be before) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bowie69 Posted March 5, 2012 Share Posted March 5, 2012 I know it is new, but don't discount having a tiny bit of dirt stopping the float coming up properly and closing the inlet. Do you run an inline filter? If not, you need to with a weber. I don't know if the weber has a float chamber overflow, but if it does, make sure you have not connected the 'petrol-in' pipe to the overflow -ask me how I know.... it was a long time since I had an SU, honest... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanuki Posted March 5, 2012 Share Posted March 5, 2012 Clogged air filter? Try running it with the air-filter pipe disconnected entirely from the carb. (I have memories of a large agricultural engine that had serious smoking/gutlessness issues: after the owner spent lots of money on new fuel-system parts we found that it ran a lot better when I removed the mouse-nest and half-a-bucketful of chewed nut-shells from the air filter casing) --Tanuki. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snagger Posted March 5, 2012 Share Posted March 5, 2012 I had similar problems on my Lightweight and replaced just about everything like you did, rectifying many faults which may have been contributory, but to no avail. In the end, it was setting the ignition timing by ear, not by static marks, which cured it. The static marks are for 2* and 4* leaded fuels, not modern unleaded, and so the timing marks don't always give good guidance. Loosen the distributor clamp and idle the engine. Adjust the distributor position until maximum rpm is found and tighten the clamp in that position. You may need to adjust the carb settings after this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MECCANO Posted March 6, 2012 Share Posted March 6, 2012 Does it back fire when you lift off to change gear? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
secondjeremy Posted March 6, 2012 Share Posted March 6, 2012 Air cleaner hose collapsed internally - take it off the carb and see if its any better. Firing order correct ? - check leads on distributor cap and direction. - Go back to basics take no 1 plug out and find compression stroke - it will be the 'missing' one when you crank the engine over - and stop at what would be the maximum compression. Now check rotor arm really is pointing to no 1 lead - then check the other ones are in the right place (sorry think it goes anti-clockwise but would have to check) Incorrect rotor arm - probably not as came with distributor. Sure you're not using a ballasted coil? What age of Jaguar - All XJ6 and onwards may have ballasted - I don't think my 1969 Daimler V8 did. My 1971 Stag did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeriesEwan Posted March 7, 2012 Share Posted March 7, 2012 you have set the points by gap only. I have found setting by gap puts you in the right postcode but very rarely gets you to the correct house, You can get an automotive multimeter that you can use as a dwell meter for less than £30 very useful tool asides but you can use it to check & set the dwell angle properly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benniesworld Posted September 17, 2021 Share Posted September 17, 2021 Highland, Did you ever resolve this issue? I'm going through the same process now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bowie69 Posted September 18, 2021 Share Posted September 18, 2021 Probably worth starting your own thread, with your specific symptoms, that way we can not clutter this one up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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