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Starting Problem
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Pahdmeister
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Joined: June 19, 2010
Posts: 39
Location: No. Cal.
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PostPosted: Tue Aug 03, 2021 11:08 am    Post subject: Starting Problem Reply with quote

'78 fuel injection - recently completely rebuilt with several 5-6 thousand miles on it. Has been running fine.

Bus can sit for awhile and start right up. No electrical problems.

Took bus to stereo shop to finish up wiring to amps and install ACR for aux. power system.

Got a call yesterday that the bus won't start.

Went over and examined bus. No work had yet to be performed so everything was intact. No visible messing with any wiring yet.

Bus will turnover and fire up and then will backfire (not every time) and then just dies.

Examined all hoses for vacuum leak, etc. - everything is intact.

Changed out the battery just to eliminate possibility of low CCA.

Still will only fire up but then just dies.

Only thing else I can do without taking to mechanic is to change out the fuel filter since I am not capable of performing diagnostics on my own.

Any other suggestions?



My concern is that the shop did something like leave the key in ignition or something else that might harm one of the electronic devices associated with starting / running the bus.

What might they have done that would affect the starting / running of engine?

I am going to have it towed today and would like to at least advise them of the possibility the problem may be of their making. Of course not until issue is fixed will I know what the real cause was.

Thx.
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'78 Riveria FI 2.0 w/o hydraulic lifters (5th Owner - currently has 140K miles).
'74 KGhia Convertible (2nd Owner bought in 1986 - currently has 105K miles).
'80 Rabbit Convertible (sold).
'78 Riveria FI 2.0 w/hydraulic lifters (2nd Owner- bought with 3K miles on it. Gave it away (practically) 163K miles later w/o ever needing a valve job.

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ImAddicted
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Joined: April 24, 2012
Posts: 1195
Location: Unorganized Territory, Maine
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PostPosted: Tue Aug 03, 2021 11:51 am    Post subject: Re: Starting Problem Reply with quote

Sounds like only the cold start valve is working. First place I would check is that you have gas in the tank (yes, that sounds elementary but it happens), then the fuel filter, then the pump. Beyond that, more details would need to be known with some basic diagnostics which could be walked through if you were so inclined. I hope you are taking it to someplace that knows ACVWs and is familar with the LJet. Otherwise, it could get expensive.
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Wildthings
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Joined: March 13, 2005
Posts: 50261

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PostPosted: Tue Aug 03, 2021 2:55 pm    Post subject: Re: Starting Problem Reply with quote

A set of points with a broken off wear block can cause that. If you have a timing light with an inductive pickup, attach the pickup to a plug wire and see if it flashes as the engine dies. If the flashing stops while the engine is still spinning that would indicate an ignition problem.

To check that the fuel pump is working, power it directly from the battery and see if that keeps the engine running.
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aeromech
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Joined: January 24, 2006
Posts: 16925
Location: San Diego, California
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PostPosted: Tue Aug 03, 2021 6:59 pm    Post subject: Re: Starting Problem Reply with quote

Damn, I’ve seen some of the work stereo shops do. Poor workmanship on wiring. Good luck with that ACR installation. Too bad you’re not close to me or I’d offer to do it for you. If you’d like to see what a good job looks like send me a PM and shoot you some pics.
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