Engine reinstalled - now stalling out

elsyr

Well, we finally got Brunhilde ('89 Carat) and her engine reacquainted, with all of the plumbing and wiring reconnected, and today was the big day to refill her fluids and start her up. Well, she starts, but she doesn't STAY started. She'll run for a few seconds, and sound GREAT (as good or better than she sounded before her heart surgery), then die out. She also does not respond properly to opening the throttle ... the response is very sluggish. My mechanic buddy who's been helping me with the work says it has every indication of fuel starvation, which is very curious. She never had a problem with her fuel system before (it was the coolant system that caused me grief), and I've replaced all lines, the regulator, the filter, etc.

Anyway - anybody have any thoughts on what could be causing this? Is there something in the ECU that needs to be reset after a long battery outage? Am I missing somethign ridiculously obvious?

Thanks,
Doug
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'89 Carat "Brunhilde"

wbx · Posted: Sat Apr 30, 2011 6:58 pm Post subject:

Is the AFM plugged in? (Something I seem to always forget to do)

Is the timing set correctly? Where is it set at?
_________________
'84 Westy (first owner).......but my daily driver has pedals
My "perspective" mantra:
A Volkswagen Vanagon is just a material thing,
As such, it is of the earth,
And if i need to, I can let my Van go.

elsyr · Posted: Sun May 01, 2011 4:39 am Post subject:

Yup - everything is connected. The timing should be good - we set it at 5 before TDC using the notches on the pulley. It also doesn't sound when it's running, like the timing is off. That's what's so weird - when it runs it sounds perfect. It just doesn't run for long. Shocked

I'm really wondering if my new pressure regulator is defective. I think we may swap the old one back in next and see what happens.

Doug
_________________
'89 Carat "Brunhilde"

BillM · Posted: Sun May 01, 2011 6:30 am Post subject:

Start with the basics:
Make sure all your grounds are good and in place like the transmission strap etc.
Verify that that everything is plugged in and just don't assume. Wiggle each connector at the afm,distributer,temp2,etc.
Then verify fuel pressure and delivery
Check for spark
If still won't run you need run the meter down the ecu connector following the trouble shooting guide that's available online. Even if you know you replaced or checked a componet already verify it again with your meter. It may seem time consuming at this point but I think it will lead you in the right direction. Plus this is stuff every vanagon owner should know how to do. At least your in your driveway and not along the interstate somewhere.

Bill
Zetec turbo

wbx · Posted: Sun May 01, 2011 8:10 am Post subject:

elsyr · Posted: Sun May 01, 2011 11:00 am Post subject:

Yup - have the Bentley and we're going to guage the fuel pressure tomorrow. I was hoping that there was something painfully obvious I was just missing, especially since fuel flow was never a problem before the engine came out. That said, given that everything has sat for damned near a year while the engine got rebuilt, who knows what might have changed.

Doug
_________________
'89 Carat "Brunhilde"

wbx · Posted: Sun May 01, 2011 12:37 pm Post subject:

A couple more questions:

After the engine dies after a couple seconds, does it fire right back up again?
What happens if you unplug the O2 sensor? There isn't much that happens in the couple second range, but the O2 sensor going closed loop is one of them...
_________________
'84 Westy (first owner).......but my daily driver has pedals
My "perspective" mantra:
A Volkswagen Vanagon is just a material thing,
As such, it is of the earth,
And if i need to, I can let my Van go.

elsyr · Posted: Sun May 01, 2011 12:49 pm Post subject:

Captain Pike · Posted: Sun May 01, 2011 12:50 pm Post subject:

Double check the brake booster line.
_________________
LEARN TO SELF RESCUE
59 Panel bus, 1966 Single cab. 73' 181. 73 Westy. 91' H6 Vanagon 3.3L.
.....................All Current.......................

ajdenette · Posted: Sun May 01, 2011 1:53 pm Post subject:

Sounds like a major vacuum leak i had a similar issue with i did the clutch on my subyaru
_________________
1985 2wd Westy with 2000 Subaru 2.2 current driver
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=685635
1986 Syncro Doka Project next in line
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=732777
1990 Vanagon Syncro Base awaiting body work

elsyr · Posted: Mon May 02, 2011 6:00 am Post subject:

BillM · Posted: Mon May 02, 2011 7:51 am Post subject:

Doug,
I dont know if you will hear the vacumn leak right away. Double check that your boot from the afm to the throttle body is on good. Take a look at the brake booster as suggested earlier. Do you by chance have your fuel lines on backwards? As silly as this stuff seems it has happened to the best of us. Good luck with the engine today. Dont let it get you down,make it motivate you!! Dont be afraid to step away if it frustrates you and regroup your thought,have a beer,smoke a bong,drink a cup of coffee what ever mellows you out. Let us know what you find.

Bill
87 Westy
Zetec Turbo

elsyr · Posted: Mon May 02, 2011 7:59 am Post subject:

VW Fanman · Posted: Mon May 02, 2011 8:46 am Post subject:

elsyr · Posted: Mon May 02, 2011 8:52 am Post subject:

VW Fanman · Posted: Mon May 02, 2011 8:53 am Post subject:

wasserbox · Posted: Mon May 02, 2011 9:48 am Post subject:

Is the fuel pump running after the initial key-on pressurization?

jpwerks · Posted: Mon May 02, 2011 7:07 pm Post subject: engine stalling out

VACUUM LEAKS !!!!!
_________________
81' single cab 1.8T Syncro (converted)
85 Vanagon 1.8T
55 chevy
2008 330i BMW
2000 jetta 1.8T
2004 Golf 2.0

svxcarat · Posted: Mon May 02, 2011 7:15 pm Post subject:

jimbelmont · Posted: Mon May 02, 2011 7:57 pm Post subject:

I had a very similar problem with my rebuild. Turned out I did not have the distributor installed deep enough into the case to fully engage the distributor drive shaft. It would start, run really rough at anything off idle, then die. I fiddled around with the distributor thinking it was timing when "thunk" it dropped lower into the case. Ran perfect after that. Something to check.


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