Help! My fasty is revolting!
Posted: Mon Aug 04, 2008 9:59 am
My 1971 F.I. stock (except for points upgraded) fasty has had a number of small issues creep up and then wander away over the last couple months but now it seems a good handful of them have arrived and are not going away. It's been such a good car to me but I haven't put the weekends into it that I should be and so it's letting me know. There's a whole bunch of issues but instead of making a dozen new threads I figured I'd put them all into one, ranked in order of most troubling (to me):
1. Leak on driver's side at heater vent/channel area. It's been raining here forever and that area is getting soaked. Not just a little leak, but puddles form. Mildew is starting to become an issue. It even runs underneath the pedals and I think I have to tear up the old sound deadening because I don't know if it'll ever dry out or if it'll hold moisture like a sponge. Newer windshield seal, door is dry on the inside, can't figure out where it is coming from! All I can think of is maybe it's running down the front doorjamb and in instead of out. The metal runner on the bottom of the door is pushed back slightly from where it looks like it should be, but doesn't really look like it'd be funnelling water in instead of out.
2. Pass. door filling with water. Hasn't been too bad lately, but I think it's running between the window and the door. I do still have window scrapers, but they're cracked and old. Thought about putting plastic betwen the door and the doorcard, but then I was afraid my doorcard would just get wet. On super hard rains, water will come inside as well, in a similar spot as above.
3. After sitting for a few days, the engine sounds weird. I don't usually drive the car from Fri night to Mon morning. When I start it, the engine sounds kind of clogged/muffled I guess, as if you were listening to it run while underwater. This happens rain or shine, but more often when rain is/has been involved. Revving it for a few clears it out and power and normal engine sound returns. Usually good until the next Monday.
4. Gen light on. Sometimes it will go off and stay off, sometimes it stays on. Sometimes it goes off while driving and comes back on at idle, only to go off again. (99% of my driving is in-town). No real noticable effect, although so little electricity is used it's hard to say.
5. Unhappy when it heats up. This has been a long standing issue. When I drove it in the winter, the colder the day the better it drove. Now that it's summer, after sitting in traffic and whatnot for a bit it starts idling poorly. Developes a bit of a hiccup, sometimes will seem about to stall for a second but then rumble back to life. Merely resting my foot on the pedal will bring the idle up high enough where it doesn't happen, but my idle doesn't seem low to begin with. Sometimes doesn't like hot starts. Backfires once in awhile when decellerating/downshifting. Loses power as it heats up.
6. Trunk leak. Appears to be coming in from where the ECU is, pooling in the trunk and running under the rear seat. Water might be coming in on the opposite side in the same spot but I can't see how. Trunk seals are there for the most part, but pretty much shot.
New Parts-
Generator
Battery
Fuel Filter
Fuel Lines
Spark Plugs
Head Temp Sensor
Voltage Regulator
Spark Plug Wires
Some other info:
When I replaced the plug wires, 1 came broken in the package. I happened to already have a new one, so I didn't return them. Once while checking to make sure the wires were secure on the distributor cap (they where), I got zapped. Cracked cap or just crappy wires?
The heat used to sort of work, but doesn't work at all any more. Cool air will blow through, enough so that I feel a draft around my ankles, but that's about it. I've replaced the heater hoses (I call them dryer vent hoses) a couple of times and the current ones are shorter than stock, but uncracked and securely fit. At least 1 cable connected to the flap works. The bellows under the rear seats are there and look good.
I have basic handtools, Muir's book and a Bently and a multimeter still in the package because I'm not quite sure how to use it. That's pretty much the extent of it. This car is also my daily driver. I am fairly new to aircooleds, have only the most basic mechanical knowledge and don't have a whole lot of extra cash to replace a ton of parts that may not need it. A winning combination!
1. Leak on driver's side at heater vent/channel area. It's been raining here forever and that area is getting soaked. Not just a little leak, but puddles form. Mildew is starting to become an issue. It even runs underneath the pedals and I think I have to tear up the old sound deadening because I don't know if it'll ever dry out or if it'll hold moisture like a sponge. Newer windshield seal, door is dry on the inside, can't figure out where it is coming from! All I can think of is maybe it's running down the front doorjamb and in instead of out. The metal runner on the bottom of the door is pushed back slightly from where it looks like it should be, but doesn't really look like it'd be funnelling water in instead of out.
2. Pass. door filling with water. Hasn't been too bad lately, but I think it's running between the window and the door. I do still have window scrapers, but they're cracked and old. Thought about putting plastic betwen the door and the doorcard, but then I was afraid my doorcard would just get wet. On super hard rains, water will come inside as well, in a similar spot as above.
3. After sitting for a few days, the engine sounds weird. I don't usually drive the car from Fri night to Mon morning. When I start it, the engine sounds kind of clogged/muffled I guess, as if you were listening to it run while underwater. This happens rain or shine, but more often when rain is/has been involved. Revving it for a few clears it out and power and normal engine sound returns. Usually good until the next Monday.
4. Gen light on. Sometimes it will go off and stay off, sometimes it stays on. Sometimes it goes off while driving and comes back on at idle, only to go off again. (99% of my driving is in-town). No real noticable effect, although so little electricity is used it's hard to say.
5. Unhappy when it heats up. This has been a long standing issue. When I drove it in the winter, the colder the day the better it drove. Now that it's summer, after sitting in traffic and whatnot for a bit it starts idling poorly. Developes a bit of a hiccup, sometimes will seem about to stall for a second but then rumble back to life. Merely resting my foot on the pedal will bring the idle up high enough where it doesn't happen, but my idle doesn't seem low to begin with. Sometimes doesn't like hot starts. Backfires once in awhile when decellerating/downshifting. Loses power as it heats up.
6. Trunk leak. Appears to be coming in from where the ECU is, pooling in the trunk and running under the rear seat. Water might be coming in on the opposite side in the same spot but I can't see how. Trunk seals are there for the most part, but pretty much shot.
New Parts-
Generator
Battery
Fuel Filter
Fuel Lines
Spark Plugs
Head Temp Sensor
Voltage Regulator
Spark Plug Wires
Some other info:
When I replaced the plug wires, 1 came broken in the package. I happened to already have a new one, so I didn't return them. Once while checking to make sure the wires were secure on the distributor cap (they where), I got zapped. Cracked cap or just crappy wires?
The heat used to sort of work, but doesn't work at all any more. Cool air will blow through, enough so that I feel a draft around my ankles, but that's about it. I've replaced the heater hoses (I call them dryer vent hoses) a couple of times and the current ones are shorter than stock, but uncracked and securely fit. At least 1 cable connected to the flap works. The bellows under the rear seats are there and look good.
I have basic handtools, Muir's book and a Bently and a multimeter still in the package because I'm not quite sure how to use it. That's pretty much the extent of it. This car is also my daily driver. I am fairly new to aircooleds, have only the most basic mechanical knowledge and don't have a whole lot of extra cash to replace a ton of parts that may not need it. A winning combination!