Snowman Posted November 17, 2003 Share Posted November 17, 2003 Has anybody done a weber conversion that lives in a cold climate? If so, how has that worked out for you? The reason I ask is that after flying back into Anchorage at midnight after being gone for 4 days, Roxanne took some SERIOUS moral support to get started at 5 below. It probably took a total of 30 seconds of cranking (in 5-10 second increments to go easy on the starter) before she would even fire. Then, after much more cranking, pumping the gas pedal, and cursing, she finally sprang to life. After that, she's run fine, but I haven't had another cold-start yet. I'm hoping that this was a case of a bit of ice in the fuel that temporarily prevented flow or something, and not something that will be continued. Any opinions on this? The hitachi carb always seemed to do fine with cold temperatures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Carb Posted November 17, 2003 Share Posted November 17, 2003 My Chrysler is the same way when it's cold, it isn't webber powered though. I think it's some sign of a not properly tuned carbrator, Or it's just something carbrated engines do when real cold... *shrug*:cornfuzz: on a bad day, it takes about 30 seconds of cranking before it fires, and then a few more seconds of cranking before it actually starts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bratman2 Posted November 17, 2003 Share Posted November 17, 2003 Snowman, do you have a fuel pressure regulator in your fuel line? I had the same problem with my 87 Brat, started the year before last and got much worse last winter. If the old girl had heavy frost on it it would flood with one touch of the gas peddle. My theory is that when it is warm the motor would fire up so much faster that it never got a chance to flood, when it was real cold it would take longer while the gas was being pumped past the float by the fuel pump flooding the engine before it fired off. I have a Mister Gasket regulator that I set at 2 lbs during the winter months which cured my hard starting problems. Glenn Taylor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
northguy Posted November 17, 2003 Share Posted November 17, 2003 If you were left to freeze for 4 days and then asked to work right off the bat, how would you respond? You didn't call Roxanne the "B" word did you? Never use the "B" or the "C" word towards your car. That'll cause irrepairable damage to your relationship with your vehicle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calebz Posted November 17, 2003 Share Posted November 17, 2003 Not true at all NorthGuy.. the "B" word and "C" word are extremely valuable tools. On occasion, they have been known to be more useful for soob repair than a whole metric tool set. They are an excellent persuader for getting those tight fitting parts on, and it has been scientifically proven that they have top notch lubrication properties ideally suited for freeing up rusty parts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowman Posted November 17, 2003 Author Share Posted November 17, 2003 Have no fear Northguy, I think I've only actually directed any explaitives directly toward Roxanne maybe three times. This wasn't one of those. I don't think the FPR, or my absence of one, would be suspect, as during the first 30 seconds of cranking the engine didn't even try to fire, but after that it tried to start a few times and then did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NanoSoob Posted November 17, 2003 Share Posted November 17, 2003 Did you check to make sure the choke is adjusted properly (make sure the plate is closing all the way)? I know on vehicles I've had in the past if the choke plate wasn't closing completely they'd take thirty seconds or more to fire up, but if the plate was closing completely they fire up in about two seconds. Hope this helps, NanoSoob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
northguy Posted November 17, 2003 Share Posted November 17, 2003 Calebz - :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ezapar Posted November 17, 2003 Share Posted November 17, 2003 What the Hell are you doing living in a place where it gets to 5 below??? Poor little Soob. I would never treat it so bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowman Posted November 17, 2003 Author Share Posted November 17, 2003 Coming from 70 degree Oregon to that made me feel like Besides, Roxanne seems to like the cold, it's just the weber that isn't too fond of it. How do you adjust the choke? I've adjusted the high idle control, but couldn't find the choke adjustment itself if there is one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edrach Posted November 17, 2003 Share Posted November 17, 2003 Take the top cover off the air cleaner and "set" the choke by depressing the pedal all the way down once (sorry if I'm too basic here) and see if the choke is closed all the way. If not check the linkage for the choke and see if there's an adjustment. Worst case, check the website for where you bought the weber and see if they can talk you through it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
torxxx Posted November 17, 2003 Share Posted November 17, 2003 -5 F? did you have you car plugged in? My hitachi carb soob is the same way man.. Do you have your preheater hose hooked up from the exhaust to the carb? You need an oil pan heater and a block heater.... if the temp drops below 5 above plug your car in.. I just did that to mine, and I was amazed at how good it starts at -40F. Just my 2 cents Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowman Posted November 17, 2003 Author Share Posted November 17, 2003 This was in airport parking, so no plugging in . I always use the block heater below 25 above just for good measure if I can. I think I'll get an oil pan heater in the near future. She started up fine this morning after being plugged in overnight, so I think maybe it was a case of the fuel draining out of the float bowl back into the tank and everthing being sluggish after sitting for several days in the cold. Oh, and the hot air pipe has no way to connect with the weber carb. Tomorrow morning I'll inspect the choke to see what it's doing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
incognito Posted November 17, 2003 Share Posted November 17, 2003 the real nightmare to winter is the plastic and rubber hoses where they connect.. manipulating them sometimes causes them to crack. Just like I did with my current problem. Pics of that in my usmb photo album. But worse of all, its not the first time I've had problems in the winter. Cold is a bitch, but a block heater RULES! since u park at uaa anyway, plug that sucker in! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowman Posted November 18, 2003 Author Share Posted November 18, 2003 I have to park about 1/4 mile away to plug it in, but I do anyway. They only have about four or five spaces in my parking lot that are close enough to an outlet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
torxxx Posted November 18, 2003 Share Posted November 18, 2003 get a few 500 ft long extention cords and an outlet expander.. lol.... as far as the oil pan heater goes, I've had really good luck using a battery blanket wrapped around my oil pan.. Drop your skid plate over the pan and the blanket fits snug around the oil pan, then throw a loop of bailing wire around it... Its 10x easier then trying to get all the oil and grime off the bottom to put one of those sh!tty glue on heaters.. The battery blanket warms the whole pan, instead of just the bottom like a glue on one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
northguy Posted November 18, 2003 Share Posted November 18, 2003 Kelly, maybe this is an opportune time, or maybe not, but I just saw a posting for a turbo Legacy wagon (93) for 4k (maybe - my memory is a bit slow today - could be the cold weather) posted on the newer gen forum. Sorry, I just checked it and it's a sedan, not a wagon, although it is a 5 speed. It also is in PA - a long drive this time of the year. Oh, well. You'd do better to hand loose for Qman's Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nug Posted November 18, 2003 Share Posted November 18, 2003 I had a weber on my jeep and that thing was a wh*** to start also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
78TurboBrat Posted November 18, 2003 Share Posted November 18, 2003 - 5 below, and i thought it was chilly here in texas. hmmm Well i had a nissan truck once up in wyoming, and when it got cold it would flood, i did the same trick as to puting a FPR on it and it took care of it. from then on i hit the peddal once, pulled the choke, and of she fired. and ran great, eventually the nissan ghosts came and took her soul, poor thing. was a great truck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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