TheSamba.com :: View topic - What's with the FI

Fri Nov 28, 2003 4:16 am

:cry: Just bought a 79 Westy. When I test drove it in Dallas it ran like a jewel. Now 24 hours after it arrived here in Italy(US Army) it's a dead pig.

It had a rough idle,almost likea vacum leakbut couldn't find one. Replaced points andwent for a drive, started bucking after a couple miles and then finally quit. Restarted after about half hour and got me home,but barely. Engine will idle,but can't rev w/o popping and sputtering like it's running outta gas. Got fireat plugs,and infact whole ign is new.

It did sit for a couple months waiting and sitting on the boat. I don't really understand the FI well, have read the bently, but what I need is a picture of where everything is.

Can some one tell me whatto check first!

Or,what carbs to get!

Thanks,

Todd

Fri Nov 28, 2003 5:15 am

Hi Todd

I am not too sure exactly what your problem might be, however in 1970 my family and I where moving back to Canada from Belgium at the end of my Father's posting at SHAPE with a 68 squareback that was Fuel Injected and when we got home and picked up the car it would barely run. The strange thing being that it ran perfectly when my Dad and I delivered it to the transport company in Germany. What we eventually found out is they steam cleaned some or all vehicles to get rid of potential pathogens and agri germs. In the process they overdid it around the engine compartment in our case and burned up some engine rubber. I don't remember what parts were destroyed in our case, but it might be somewhere to start, almost sounds like a possible vacuum thing. Good luck.

Steve

Fri Nov 28, 2003 6:36 am

Furbo,

A couple of thoughts:

I would re-check for vac leaks, particularly the vac hose that goes to the power brake booster from the engine. It is pretty big hose and fits into a funky fitting at the engine, (mine didn't seal as well as it should have) and when it leak, it will barely run. Putting a vac gauge on it should give you some good information.

What kind of fuel pump pressure are you putting out? I think they require something like 35 psi delivered to the regulator. Sometimes when they sit for a while, the "mung" inside the gas tank will clog up the fuel filter and it won't deliver well to the injectors and you really are running out of gas.

A couple of websites here for additional FI and vac hose diagnostics.

http://type2.com/bartnik/

http://homepage.mac.com/ratwell/

One more question, I assume this is this a 79 Federal model since you have points. Would that be a correct assumption?

Changing these to carbs can be a fair amount of work and money I think. You can probably fix this for cheap money.

Fri Nov 28, 2003 7:10 am

"How To Tune And Modify Bosch Fuel Injection" by Tom Probst is a good book to have in the library if you keep the fuel injection. Some diagnogstic tools you may find handy: Multi-Meter, Vacuum Guage, Timing Light, Dwell Meter, Test Light, Jumper Leads, Remote Starter, Fuel Pressure Guage, Compression Tester. Do you have access to a base garage? Mabey they have some of this equipment to loan. For this and all unknown problems on the bus I would start with running the tune-up procedure. Like randy said, mabey varnish in the tank, so pull the fuel filter. I had the same problem on my bus one time, ended up being a little water in the tank. The water could not pass through the filter and so after a few miles it would run the line dry. But to answer your last question, carbs are readily available for $400 or less and are easy to install. With so many fittings, hoses, and wires, the potential cause of your problem may take awhile to discover, and you will probably fix a few things you didn't know were broken along the way. Good luck

Fri Nov 28, 2003 9:00 am

I agree with the above posts but the first thing I would do is drain the gas tank, flush the system including the injectors, and install a new fuel filter. The bottle of fuel injector cleaner that you get from the local parts store isn't worth the time- have a shop clean them.

Being shipboard in a high humidity environment may have caused condensation in the lines/tank.

The Bosch FI system is a good system when it's kept up, I would try to fix it before converting to carbs. JMHO

Fri Nov 28, 2003 9:33 am

It could be the head temp sensor by #3 cylinder. If it goes, it can give symptoms like you describe. I sold a 76 that was running great. the next day the new owner takes it for a test drive on the highway, gets 30 miles away, turns around to come back and loses power, so badly that all he could do was 10mph. I spent a day with him fiddling with the fuel system, etc, and finally tried the head temp sensor. Drove it around the block, and it ran great. tried to adjust the sensor again, and killed the engine. That was the problem. We got the sensor replaced, and it ran like a champ again! Jeremy