escort XR3 1981 cutting out problem
Discussion
hi guys, having trouble with my escort XR3, been happening since ive got the car which is over a year now.... keep getting this problem of when on long runs the car will slow down and loss of power will occur until the car cuts right out and lights on the dash appear, the car was sat for 13 years and the previous owner had the fuel tank chemically cleaned out. when i got the car we took the old engine out and fitted an 80K XR2i lump with a conversion plate for the EFi to MFi inlet manifold. when the engine was overhauled we fitted new water pump,brand new carburettor),fuel(manual)pump,starter motor,plugs,complete distributor,leads,fuel tank cambelt,sender,sump,ignition coil and battery...... but the problem still occurs??? seems on short runs when doing low speeds it doesnt happen but when on long runs when the fuel has to go through quicker its does the dieing thing and cuts out. if i leave it for a few minutes the car will start up ok and move off fine until foot is down, and then die again after a mile or so.... i fitted a small disposable inline fuel filter before the fuel enters the fuel pump and you can see bubbles of air coming through into there???? when the car died i checked under the bonnet and noticed the filter had barely any fuel in it??? is the carb being starved of fuel? where is the air coming in from?? would new fuel tank and brake lines be the best thing to replace? to solve this issue? any help appreciated......
I'd suspect a perished rubber fuel hose (between the tank and the fuel pump) which is partially collapsing under the suction of the fuel pump and/or is split letting air in 
.
There will probably be a length of rubber hose between the tank and the metal fuel pipe (running most of the length of the car) then another one between the engine end of said fuel pipe and the fuel pump. I'd look to replace all the rubber fuel hose sections that can be located and see if the fault goes away (you could also be scientific and replace them one at a time to see which one was faulty - but for a long term fuel-leak-free future they'd probably all be best changed anyway).
If the fuel filter is downstream of the fuel pump, it could also be the fuel pump which is faulty (letting air in which can be seen as bubbles in the filter).
. There will probably be a length of rubber hose between the tank and the metal fuel pipe (running most of the length of the car) then another one between the engine end of said fuel pipe and the fuel pump. I'd look to replace all the rubber fuel hose sections that can be located and see if the fault goes away (you could also be scientific and replace them one at a time to see which one was faulty - but for a long term fuel-leak-free future they'd probably all be best changed anyway).
If the fuel filter is downstream of the fuel pump, it could also be the fuel pump which is faulty (letting air in which can be seen as bubbles in the filter).
pump is brand new... covered less than 200 miles..... tried a new petrol cap to see wether there was a vacuum being formed in the tank and it still did the same thing.... will try new rubber fuel pipes, and if it still does it after i renew them i will take off the existing fuel line and run a rubber fuel line from the tank to the filter just before the fuel pump and see what happens. if its fine then i will renew the metal fuel lines... what are they made of? and where to get them from?
A couple of thoughts spring to mind. How long a run till it cuts out? It could bee a carb mixture issue. If its set to week, it can start okay on choke but as the temperature rises the engine can struggle to run and then die. It also could be the coil failing/running to hot or as mentioned fuel pump or relay.
well yesterday it ran fine from colchester to ipswich (main roads all the way 15 miles). then after 2 hours shopping we drove 4 miles across ipswich (residential roads) then after an hour in asda got onto the A12 getting up to 50/60mph we cut out 5 times.......
carb is brand new and set up correctly( done same thing with the old carb)
coil is brand new and been checked out before (thought this was the fault)
the lobe in the cam is correct (it was doing the same thing before we put the XR2i EFi engine in
and pm me regarding the conversion plate, wasnt cheap tho
also tried the fuel cap thing to no avail....
carb is brand new and set up correctly( done same thing with the old carb)
coil is brand new and been checked out before (thought this was the fault)
the lobe in the cam is correct (it was doing the same thing before we put the XR2i EFi engine in
and pm me regarding the conversion plate, wasnt cheap tho
also tried the fuel cap thing to no avail....
Edited by fatboyz on Monday 7th April 20:27
Do you know why the previous owner had the fuel tank cleaned? I would guess that whatever the reason for having the tank cleaned is still there. Had a similar problem a few years back in that the car would run fine on low to mid engine load/rpm, but excessive revs or load would see it cut out. That turned out to be crud in the tank that had blocked the filters within the fuel pump. However the car would start fine again. That was on an electric fuel pump. I would be very tempted to let the engine die and then whip the top off the fuel float and see if any fuel is there.
Check for a spark when the problem occurs, it's often the ignition module that causes this issue, an internal transistor goes open circuit when hot;
http://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/400535647510
If spark is o.k, pull the sender unit out and check the pickup tube for the fuel feed. There is a gauze filter on the bottom that often get clogged up.
http://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/400535647510
If spark is o.k, pull the sender unit out and check the pickup tube for the fuel feed. There is a gauze filter on the bottom that often get clogged up.
You said that the old tank was chemically cleaned out but you've put a new one on?
Has the new one got a swirl pot in it from an injection car? Also, might be worth picking up a cheap Facet electric pump on the bay, even if it's used, just to test whether you're getting enough fuel pressure
Has the new one got a swirl pot in it from an injection car? Also, might be worth picking up a cheap Facet electric pump on the bay, even if it's used, just to test whether you're getting enough fuel pressure
Sorry it should say ive put a brand new fuel sender unit on.. Im going to run some new temporary rubber fuel hoses and see if its any better.. If after i test it and its fine i will then renew the entire fuel lines properly, will also check the fuel tank vent and take a peek inside with the sender unit taken out.....
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