djellum Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 (edited) hey, 87 gl wagon 4wd, carbed ea82, non feedback hitachi. my car did this to me a day or 2 ago on the way back from work. running fine, and just up and dies. starts easy and runs smooth for 15 seconds and boom shuts down. doesnt matter what rpm, and doesn't hesitate at all, just dies. got out and checked to see if something was leaking or any obvious problems, get back in, starts find and I drive 30 miles across town, visit a friend, and drive home without a hitch. today, same symptoms but won't quit it. I did put some sea foam in the tank and the oil a week ago, right before I changed the oil and oil/fuel filters. I'm worried I broke loose some crud and got it stuck somewhere. can't find my fuel pressure gauge, but I don't hear anything near the fuel pump when the key is on. is that indicative of anything? Im flat broke so the fix will have to wait a few days till payday, but I will put some fuel in it to make sure the gauge is working and its not just out of gas, but I'm sure it is reading right. Any idea where to start other than the fuel pump? Edited June 20, 2012 by djellum forgot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cougar Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 You may have an ignition problem. See if you can start the engine by spraying some starter fluid into the intake. If the engine still won't run using the starter fluid then you most likely have an ignition problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djellum Posted June 21, 2012 Author Share Posted June 21, 2012 ill give that a go, when it starts acting up again. started and ran fine yesterday. gonna throw some money at the consumable parts soon anyway. The coil is looking pretty old, I might just replace it anyway and save it as a spare. I did find 2 more questions though. 1) is there a fuel filter under the dash? I have read a couple of places that say yes and a couple that say only on the fuel injection cars, etc. I do not have a filter in the engine bay, and the line does run straight through the firewall. I havent had a good time and place to get under their to check, but thats a likely candidate for having been neglected. 2) I pulled off a bit of the underdash plastic the other night to see if I could find a fuel filter, and there was a metal unit with electrical plugged into it attached to the plastic under the steering wheel. I unplugged it and didnt notice any difference in running, lights, or any other functionality change. What does this do? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cougar Posted June 22, 2012 Share Posted June 22, 2012 (edited) There are no fuel lines under the dash of the car. Think of the possible problems that could happen if that was so. The lines run under the chassis body. Due to the nature of the trouble you describe my best guess is the problem might be with the ignition relay or possibly a loose fusible link. The links are in a small plastic box mounted on the coolant reservoir. Make sure they are making good contact. The device you describe sounds like it is a relay. There are a number of them under the dash that are used for various things. The ignition relay for your vehicle should be near the steering column and might be causing the problem due to bad contacts. I doubt the coil is bad and suggest you not replace it unless you first prove it is bad. The ignitor would be a better thing to replace if you are just guessing at the trouble. They fail a lot more often than the coil does. If you don't already own a test light probe or digital meter I suggest you get a probe at least so you check for power. A meter is the best to get. Your money would be better spent on one of those items instead of a coil. You say you can't hear the fuel pump. You should be able to hear the pump run for a couple seconds when you turn the ignition to ON. The pump will then turn off until the engine starts up. Edited June 22, 2012 by Cougar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a2labs Posted June 22, 2012 Share Posted June 22, 2012 The fuel filter on my 1985 GL wagon ea82 carbed d/r 4wd is on a little shelf next to the frame just in front of the right rear axle, if I had to guess I'd say yours is there too. However, with the symptoms you describe, I'm sure the filter isn't the problem. But it is a small plastic filter, most likely cheap, and never hurts to replace it. In my experience, when a coil or igniter goes bad, it typically starts as a little tiny problem too small to notice and gradually gets worse. Often times coils will get worse as they get hotter, like when you're driving for 30 minutes or more, it will miss more and more, but not cut out completely and then run fine after that. So pretty sure neither of these is your problem. Intermittent electrical problems are some of the most frustrating and difficult to diagnose so far as problems go. Try to pay real close attention to any similarity so far as what's happening when the problem occurs, turning hard right, going up a hill, while shifting, etc. The good news is, when you finally find the source of the problem, it's usually very easy to fix. In my experience, 9 times out of 10 it's a bad connection. Don't give up and good luck! Let us know anything you discover. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gloyale Posted June 23, 2012 Share Posted June 23, 2012 There are no fuel lines under the dash of the car. Think of the possible problems that could happen if that was so. The lines run under the chassis body. Actually, the fuel lines do run inside the car. through firewall, into cab, and along the drivers side rocker under the plastic gaurd. But they are bendable, rubber coated, hardline and there are not fittings or filters in the cab. You say you can't hear the fuel pump. You should be able to hear the pump run for a couple seconds when you turn the ignition to ON. The pump will then turn off until the engine starts up. In a carbed car, the pump doesn't run until there is a tach signal to the FPCU. (pump realy) My money is on clogged jets and/or emulsion tubes in the carb from the seafoam. most likely the primary jet. easy to pull the top off the carb, unscrew the tubes, clean them out and reinstall. note* the electrical unit attached to the trim panel is for the intermittent wipers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djellum Posted June 23, 2012 Author Share Posted June 23, 2012 yah I figured out the wiper thing on my way to work yesterday. the int wipers don't work well anyway so I may try to replace it at some point. I checked the fuse able links, they are connected and wiggling them doesn't do anything. everything seems firmly connected and not corroded. the back one (black) was a little frayed on the cloth that covers the wires, and was looser than the others but pulling it didn't cause any problems. it seated back in fine. It did it twice early on the way to work yesterday, then quit and didn't give me any grief on the way home. Ill take a look at those tubes on Monday. Any special tricks or settings on those tubes or just pull out and drop back in after cleaning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
l75eya Posted June 23, 2012 Share Posted June 23, 2012 Keep a can of starter fluid with you and the next time it happens, try to see if the starter fluid will keep it alive when it starts to die out. That will answer your question as to whether this is an electrical or fuel issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cougar Posted June 23, 2012 Share Posted June 23, 2012 Thanks for the info about the fuel lines and the fuel pump circuit Gloyale. Some things I didn't know about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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