1976 VW Super Beetle fuel issue

[mtsipe]

[mtsipe]

Help! The cold start valve is stuck. Corrosion has welded the downstem of cold start valve and cannot be removed. When I unscrewed the mounting screws, the valve could not be removed. The top was loosened a bit and spinning freely. I attempted removing it and the top removed but the downstem remains in place in the fuel mixture chamber. A 1/4 inch is sticking out and i am afraid of breaking it. If it breaks, do i use a thread puller per-say like the image below or drill it out and vacuum the hell out of the chamber
(note: I do know the picture below is a threaded screw and not a straight piece of metal like the downstem is)

[VW_Jimbo]

Grab it with some needle nose pliers. If you cannot get a hold of it, it will most likely end up falling into the manifold. That is just the way the cookie crumbles.

If that does not work, remove the drivers half of the intake manifold.
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Jimbo

There is never enough time to do it right the first time, but all the time necessary the second time!

[mtsipe]

I got the cold start valve stem out but not without some collateral damage to myself. Got a bloody eyebrow and fat lip in the process. I was able to remove it clean without any damage to the mixing chamber.

I have some wiring diagrams to read but one more piece of the puzzle worked through. Now to get the main injectors working.

[VW_Jimbo]

Wow! Be careful. Bloody knuckles are par for the course the first several times. Once you get to the moderately skills level, it still happens but not to frequently.

The injectors fire off a signal from the coil. They all fire at the same time. Place them all in plastic ziplock bags. Remove the high tension wire from the cap and clip it to a good ground with no air between the wire and the ground point ( no sparks are wanted!). Then go crank the engine over. There should be some gas in the bags, if you have fuel and fuel pressure AND everything else is working. If not, check the injectors for carbon build up and retest. If still nothing, start ohming wires.
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Jimbo

There is never enough time to do it right the first time, but all the time necessary the second time!

[mtsipe]

[busdaddy]

Time to confirm the white #1 wire is connected to the #1 terminal on the ignition coil (the one the points wire connects to), then move on to the large plug on the ECU, is there continuity on that wire?, terminal damaged or corroded?, making good contact with the board?

Touching that wire to ground and removing it should fire all the injectors once, do it multiple times and you may even hear them clicking.
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[mtsipe]

Update: Got the replacement cold start valve installed. It fires up and dies.

I confirmed the #1 white wire, that is connected to terminal 1, does have continuity to the #1 position on the ECU. No corrosion at the connections.

When you say to touch the wire to ground, do I do so with the key on to position 1 or start position?

[VW_Jimbo]

[mtsipe]

[VW_Jimbo]

Take your camera and aim it at the center of the intake manifold. Then take 3 or 4 steps backwards, away from the engine, and click a picture.

Let’s see the whole thing. Something caught my eye with your linkage and air shroud. Not sure why but something is looking different.

Coil looks correctly wired, PROVIDING the numbers embossed on the coil itself are as the wiring is run. Those black ones should go to the 15 side and the green and white should go to the 1 side. You will need to check with a mirror.
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Jimbo

There is never enough time to do it right the first time, but all the time necessary the second time!

[mtsipe]

[VW_Jimbo]

Where is the AFM connector?
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Jimbo

There is never enough time to do it right the first time, but all the time necessary the second time!

[mtsipe]

[VW_Jimbo]

Completely hidden!

So, on the alternator body, is a screw with 3 or more wires connected to it. Get to that and be sure the wires and crimps are all in good shape. Clean them well and reinstall.

Take a light base voltage tester. Confirm you have power with the key on at the black wires at the coil. Then, while someone cranks the engine, place the light pin on the #1 side of the coil, it should blink rapidly. Be mindful of the v belt.

Also, I would like to know one more detail. Remove the air filter, exposing the air meter flap. Should be right there closed, blocking your view through it. With a screw driver or your finger, push on it. Does it move freely, with very little resistance?

If those are in good shape. Take a can of starting fluid, slide the tube in past the flap, and squirt a shot. Remove the can and straw. Then go try to start the car. What happens?
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Jimbo

There is never enough time to do it right the first time, but all the time necessary the second time!

[mtsipe]

I found this wire severed. I put a new connector on, cleaned up all the connections and bolted the three wires down. I tried starting the engine and same thing happened, it started then died. I then noticed a “circled G” light on the instrument cluster. After a few cranks, the battery lost enough juice to crank. The light remained on when I removed the key. I figured it was from not having enough voltage on the battery but I’m not sure 🤔.

I then did the other test removing the air cleaner to see if the flap is moving freely and it does move with very little resistance.

I will have to do the test at the coil when I charge up my battery.

[mtsipe]

I pulled this from rob and Dave’s aircooled Vw website.

[VW_Jimbo]

So, it starts. Good, you have spark. The cold start valve is the reason it runs for a few seconds. So, your issue is why the injectors are not squirting fuel.

You can verify this with the carb cleaner. You can keep the car running by squirting small burst of fluid into the air filter opening. That test will verify my hypothesis.

If that comes back as I believe it will, we can move onto the next string of tests.

However, I am leaving town, camping and shooting out in the desert for the next week or so. I may be able to check in. But, if not, get busdaddy helping you out. He is a smart guy, well versed in this system.

Good luck!
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Jimbo

There is never enough time to do it right the first time, but all the time necessary the second time!

[mtsipe]

I had a mechanic friend test the injectors why cranking the engine. the injector connector we tested had no ground when starting and about 0.9 volts(or 0.09 volts but he can't remember now). He said he wasn't sure if they are high or low impedance injectors. How much voltage do the injectors require to spray? I was going to test the double relay using a bosch l-jetronic trouble shooting guide. These are a couple links I found. I know one is not specific to the super beetle but is for the L-jetronic fuel injection system.

http://www.realtechsupport.org/UB/I2C/VW_L-Jetronic_Fuel_Injection_Workshop_Manual.pdf

https://bairheads.runboard.com/t50,offset=0

http://www.angelfire.com/wa2/fits/

Also, I know that the ECU provides ground to the injectors. Where is the ground location for the ECU?

[Randy in Maine]

It has been forever since I worked on a FI Type 1, but I THINK the ECU/FI grounds are at a male connection on the alternator. I want to say it is at the topside but I really can't remember right off.