Oil in the Carburetor from the oil breather

[Nathc23]

I have a 1974 Type 2 bus and recently she was struggling to start in the mornings. We were on a road trip down the west coast of the State sand so some days driving for 6 hours or so.
I took the top off the carb and noticed a fair amount of oil. After cleaner this out with a paper towel she started first time no problem. I have a hose coming from the Oil Breather which connects direct into the carburetor. Any advice on why oil is coming in and how I can fix it?

[Xevin]

Would that be a Weber progressive carburetor? How about some details on your setup. A picture of engine compartment could help as well.
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[Nathc23]

The pictures show the oil breather and the hose that connects into the carburetor. I have lifted the top off the breather and there is nothing in there so not sure if I require foam (?) or something in there to control the oil? I have tried tightening the white connection that goes into the carburetor but it didn't work.
Any help would be grand as I am a bit of a newbie with these.

[Xevin]

Excellent pics. When you say trouble starting in the mornings. Describe what was happening. Did the engine turn over? Did it feel like you were starved for gas? Did nothing happen when you turn key to start? And then the starter engaged and started to crank. Do you have a faint gas smell inside bus. Does your engine bay have a strong smell of gas. Lots of questions coming your way.

Unrelated:
Do you have the black fan that hangs from the top of the engine compartment with hose going down. Can you see the road anywhere when you look down engine compartment towards the ground?
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[Nathc23]

So it sounds like it is trying to turn over. After about 10 seconds it kicks in and starts. I have to keep the revs high for a while otherwise it cuts out. After starting off it would sometimes cut out when I came to a stop. Although if I have got rid of the oil in the carburetor it starts straight away and runs perfectly fine.

No gas smell except after I have filled her up and then it disappears after a few miles.

No I don't have the air blower in the van. It is on my list of things to replace ( heater boxes, hoses and the fan and get that all working correctly)

[Starbucket]

Disconnect that hose and start the motor and watch for a lot of blowby. That's where the oil is coming from as the blowby condenses as the cold incoming air goes down the carb. Might be time for new rings.

[Nathc23]

Disconnect the hose going into the carb? Excuse my ignorance but new rings where?! I'm still learning...

[SGKent]

is the problem you want to know about the oil, or is the problem starting it, or both. They aren't related unless the timing is so far off it is causing excessive blowby, or the the compression is low, or there is gas in the oil.

I would suggest treating them separately. To find out why it won't start, check the timing, points and plug gap. It could be the timing has changed. Check the automatic choke on the carb to be sure it is working properly. check for vacuum leaks.
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[Starbucket]

[Wildthings]

Having oil sitting in the bottom of your air cleaner isn't going to hurt much, the oil come via the breather and then just sits in the bottom of the air cleaner looking ugly but actually being pretty inert. If you don't like the mess you can direct the oil into the top of the air clean directly above the primary throat of the carburetor. This way the oil will go right back into the engine.

I suspect your choke isn't working and when you messed with the carb you knocked it free. Have you been pumping the gas pedal one full stroke before trying to cold start your engine? Two strokes may be needed as the temperature drops towards freezing, plus additional strokes as the temperature drops further down.

[Xevin]

Yes what Wildthings says. I'm going to lob this out there. Could it be flooding and then when it sits as he's cleaning up the oil with the air cleaner off the carb is realeasing gas enabling it to start again Next time it happens press the
Gas pedal all the way down and then turn the key to start. With foot still on pedal.
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[Terminatez]

[airschooled]

Be aware that the plastic 90 degree fitting shown in the photo above contains a restrictive profile inside, shrinking the 1/2 inch breather tube to a quarter inch passage. This may cause excess crankcase pressure and extra oil leaks out other places.

Robbie
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[Wildthings]

[aeromech]

Good catch Jim.

To the O P. If you want to eliminate the breather oil as being the cause, disconnect the hose from the air cleaner and just run it overboard. That’s the way the old VW’s did it before pollution concerns. See if that helps.
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[Wildthings]

[Nathc23]

Thank you for all your help. I'm going to get round to looking at it this weekend and see what I can do.

[Wildthings]

I just used a hardware store grommet and the nylon pipe to hose elbow with the pipe threads pressed down into the gromment. Haven't had mine set up this way for long, but it seems to work fine.

Sorry for the fuzzy picture.

.