1966 Stalls after start/idle

[crawler_81]

I have been working on my sons 66 T-bird for some time now but am having problems with it stalling. A little rundown on what we have done to car and what it is doing is the car was parked in 1976 we decided to see if we could revive it have done a lot of work to is new fuel tank, sending unit, fuel pump carb rebuilt by a very qualified carb shop, new starter, alt., voltage reg,. start solenoid, battery cables, plugs, plug wires, cap, rotor, points and condenser along with new ignition switch car will start and idle real good then all of a sudden it dies like that key was shut off no spitting or sputtering and not smell of fuel try to restart and sometimes it starts right up and idles other times its hard to start and runs like crap, does not act or smell like it is flooding even hooked a wire straight from coil to battery and started it idles perfect then all of a sudden shut off like someone turned key off and advice would be appreciated

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[Robert Evans]

I have been working on my sons 66 T-bird for some time now but am having problems with it stalling. A little rundown on what we have done to car and what it is doing is the car was parked in 1976 we decided to see if we could revive it have done a lot of work to is new fuel tank, sending unit, fuel pump carb rebuilt by a very qualified carb shop, new starter, alt., voltage reg,. start solenoid, battery cables, plugs, plug wires, cap, rotor, points and condenser along with new ignition switch car will start and idle real good then all of a sudden it dies like that key was shut off no spitting or sputtering and not smell of fuel try to restart and sometimes it starts right up and idles other times its hard to start and runs like crap, does not act or smell like it is flooding even hooked a wire straight from coil to battery and started it idles perfect then all of a sudden shut off like someone turned key off and advice would be appreciated

It does sound as if you have a blockage in the fuel line somewhere. Sometimes it is where you have a joint or a connection in the fuel line. Where a pipe connect to the fuel filter or where it connects to a carburetor. The pressure or suction will allow the fuel through but very slowly. I have had connections with tiny gauze filters in them. Not sure someone may have fitted something like this to the car. Unless you have already cleaned from back to front.

 

[inspector]

How long does it run before it shuts off. What happens if you increase the engine speed? Could be electrical, maybe a bad coil.

 

[crawler_81]

it will run 3-5 minutes before shutting down to me it seems like it would be an electrical problem when it dies it just shuts off like someone turned the key off. will a coil cause that?

 

[crawler_81]

It does sound as if you have a blockage in the fuel line somewhere. Sometimes it is where you have a joint or a connection in the fuel line. Where a pipe connect to the fuel filter or where it connects to a carburetor. The pressure or suction will allow the fuel through but very slowly. I have had connections with tiny gauze filters in them. Not sure someone may have fitted something like this to the car. Unless you have already cleaned from back to front.

I was first thinking it was a fuel supply issue so have checked to make sure fuel line is clear and rubber hoses are new I also unhooked fuel line at carb and ran a line to a bottle while cranking engine over fuel supply was steady

 

[crawler_81]

it really acts as if its a electrical problem is there anything in the distributor that could cause this
INSPECTOR you asked what if I increase engine speed it will still shut off again just like someone turned the key off sorry I missed that part of your question earlier

 

[Robert Evans]

it really acts as if its a electrical problem is there anything in the distributor that could cause this
INSPECTOR you asked what if I increase engine speed it will still shut off again just like someone turned the key off sorry I missed that part of your question earlier

Try changing the condenser in the distbutor. This is the only other thing I wouldlook at.. What you did with checking the fuel line seems to be correct. Unless the needle and seat inside the carburetor is only allowing a little fuel in.

 

[crawler_81]

Will finally got it fixed Robert Evans you where right I put a new condenser in and it fired right up and is running perfect so thank you and thanks to everyone for suggestions and ideas glad to have it running now just need to tackle the dash lights they worked until I replaced the ignition switch so I am thinking it is the wire one the center stud of the switch

 

[Bond007]

Glad that it worked out.

 

[Ward 57]

Glad I found this thread. My '57 just started doing this. After all it's probably 20+ years old. The parts guy said when they go bad they go straight to ground and kill the ignition. I'm glad it was just in the garage and not out on the road. $12. vs a dead car.

 

[Ward 57]

Well I found my problem. As soon as I pulled off the distributor cap I cold see the wire coming from the connection from the distributor to the points was frayed and holding on by only one or two strands. I'll replace that and the capacitor I just bought.

 

[Ward 57]

Well I found my problem. As soon as I pulled off the distributor cap I cold see the wire coming from the connection from the distributor to the points was frayed and holding on by only one or two strands. I'll replace that and the capacitor I just bought.

I'm an idiot LOL. After replacing the wire and condenser, no spark. Checked all my connections with an ohm meter ,all good. Then I looked again and discovered I put the power wire on the wrong side of the insulator washer inside the distributor. Straight to ground. Moved the wire to the other side and it fired off immediately. I forgot the washer was an insulator.

 

[64ZCODE]

You may be an idiot but you're in good company😛

 

[Ward 57]

You may be an idiot but you're in good company😛

Thanks. Classic cars may be a hobby but also a journey in keeping our minds sharp. Attention to detail keeps us on our feet.