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Thu Nov 11, 2004 10:26 am

Hi. I have a 72 Super Beetle, with a 1641 cc motor (rebuilt on new long block with new oil cooler this August) a 34Pict/3 carb and Bosch .009 distributor. After my rebuild, everything ran fine. I have almost gone 3000 miles since the rebuild, changed oil at 1600 miles. Recently, when the engine is cold, and usually only in the morning, the engine will stall after idling a couple minutes. Also, it stalls whenever I slow to a stop--at the bottom of my driveway, then at the next few stop signs. It re-starts easily and, after driving several miles, the problem is gone and I can let it idle all day if I want. I have tried adjusting the carburator as outlined in Rob and Dave's Aircooled VW Pages (www.vw-resource.com), but the problem persists. It does not seem to miss or run rough. Any ideas? Any help would be appreciated. Thanx.

Thu Nov 11, 2004 11:22 am

I have the EXACT SAME problem! I have a 71 Super with a 1641, 34-Pict3, and 009 Distributor. I also have an Engle 100 cam. I have adjusted my carb as well to no avail. I'm looking forward to hearing any feedback on this. Could this be a timing problem?

BTW, I was told a while back that for a 1641 w/ Engle 100 cam, I should be running about 25 degrees full advance. But then, I started reading about 009's and it said I should be advanced 32 degrees at full advance? I read that since the 009 has 22 degrees advance built in, I would only need to make up for the extra 10 degrees at idle. So, I set it for 10 degrees advanced at idle, but it seems like it would like a little more?

Sorry to butt in, I'm having the same problem and will be watching this thread. Thanks... :D

Thu Nov 11, 2004 11:47 am

When I rebuilt my engine, I had a vw mechanic help with checking oil pressure, compression, etc. I do not have a timing light, so he timed it for me. Apparently, we cannot accurately time the .009 distributor statically. He rev'd the motor up to a fast idle and set it at about 30 degrees (BTDC?). It has run great since, except for this new problem. I suppose I could just sit in the car to warm it up for about 10 minutes before pulling out, but I never seem to leave myself enough time to do this. I can let the car sit all day and have no problems when I drive home from work. It only happens after sitting overnight.

Thu Nov 11, 2004 4:35 pm

Is your heat riser pipe clear? It needs to be.

Well if you want your engine to last, the 009 needs to be set at max advance 30-32* BTDC when the engine is at 3000 rpms.

You can buy a good timing light with the advance setting for about $70 at sears. You need a tach that will measure the rpms also to make sure the advance is set correctly.

Read this?

http://www.aircooled.net/gnrlsite/resource/articles/distributor.htm

Consider buying a SVDA with a petronics or compufire from aircooled. It will run a lot better.

Thu Nov 11, 2004 7:25 pm

You got an electric choke on those carbs? Even with that, I still have to rev it up and play with the gas pedal 3 of 4 times in the morning.

i have dual 34 pict carbs with stock distr and electric choke

Thu Nov 11, 2004 9:47 pm

I would be looking at the heat riser pipe as well. They get clogged up after a few years and do exactly what you are describing. The stalling is most likely from the carburetor icing up.

Fri Nov 12, 2004 11:48 am

Thanks to everyone for all the help. My heat riser pipe should be clear...it was very clean when I rebuilt the motor 3-4 months ago. I'm going to look at my choke to see if it is working properly...that seems to be the first thing I should check since the problem only occurs on cool, damp mornings after the car has been sitting all night. I will post my progress (if any) here. thanx again

Fri Nov 12, 2004 12:17 pm

You may want to pick-up a vac dizzy too. Mine runs way better than when i had the .009.
The stock air cleaner works best with that carb too.

Hope this helps.

Fri Nov 12, 2004 3:56 pm

If you are running an extractor the holes for the heat riser have to be drilled out as come plugged from the manufacturers. Actually the tubes aren't drilled out after the heat riser portion is welded onto the extractor. The flow of air will not be as good as an original or nos as the tubes are not positoned the same way in the extractor or an aftermarket replacement muffler. So even if hooked up the heat riser might not get as warm as it should be on a real cold morning.

Tue Nov 16, 2004 8:22 pm

My super beetle is running fine now. Friday, it would not start...turned out the starter was shot so I replaced it. Also replaced my rear shocks since I was working on the car. I also found a short that was coming from a somewhat old stereo cassette player. It was slowly draining my battery while the car sat. Replaced the stereo too. Now it seems to idle much better, and it does not stall after only warming the motor up a minute or two. Go figure! (I had noticed sluggish starting for the past week, too, prior to the starter completely failing). I did check the choke and it seemed to be working just fine. Thanks for all the help, everyone.