Ran Out of Gas

[fbnksrover]

Okay,

So, I moved to Virginia, shipped my 1969 Land Rover via a transportation company that will remain unnamed, and they let him run low on fuel. I had just enough fuel to get him on the tow trailer, and then he sputtered out.

I filled him back up when I got home, but now the little guy won't start, and I can't figure out how to bring him back to life.

[SafeAirOne]

The transportation company drove your Rover to Virginia? Or did they go through a full tank driving it on and off their trailer?


I'd check to see if all that rust in the bottom of the tank got siphoned into the fuel delivery system when it ran out of fuel. Presuming everything's good and obstruction-free, I'd get a can of starting fluid and, with someone cranking the engine, briefly squirt a bit of it directly into the carb to see if it catches.

If it catches, then I'd keep giving it tiny squirts of starting fluid till it either self-sustains or you figure out that it's still not getting fuel for whatever reason.

If it DOESN'T catch with that first little squirt of starting fluid, I'd see what's wrong with my engine electrical system.

[fbnksrover]

The company trailered it from Alaska to Virginia. Had to give it to them 1/4 tank full of gas.

I tried the starter fluid technique initially, but couldn't get the engine to fire. The engine turns but won't catch. All of the electricals seem fine, lights, blinkers, working, etc, and the battery is fully charged. The ignition coil, distributor, and points are less than a year old.

[o2batsea]

First off stop using starting fluid. Please use only gasoline. If it will not fire by drizzling some gas down the carb then you have an ignition problem. If you put a couple gallons in the tank and crank the engine, the fuel pump should get enough gas up into the carb to allow it to fire after a short while. Never just crank the starter for long periods. If it doesn't go within a few moments, stop and find out why.

[SafeAirOne]

I stand by the use starting fluid as a troubleshooting tool.

While it's true that starting fluid, if used in ways other than I described, can be hard on an engine, I believe it is an excellent troubleshooting tool for you folks with gasoline engines. When the engine doesn't try to catch, there's no wondering if you have poured enough gasoline into the carb or not--it ALWAYS squirts out a combustible mixture, that you, the operator can precisely control. A tiny squirt (about as long as it takes to say the word "tiny") will tell you if your engine electrical system is producing a sufficient spark at the plugs or not.

[lumpydog]

Is the fuel sediment bowl full? If not, pull the fuel line off the carb and use the manual lever on the fuel pump as follows:

- put your finger over the end of the fuel line that you just removed from the carb and pump fuel manually using the lever on the fuel pump.
- let your finger off the end of the fuel line - you will hear pressure release
- place your finger back on the end of the fuel line and pump manually
- repeat
- the fuel bowl will fill first - then, once gas spurts out the end of your fuel line, reattach to carb

I've found that, once the fuel line runs empty, you need to prime it by creating suction in the fuel line as you use the manual pump to draw in new fuel. I had my pump out for rebuild last weekend. Also replaced the in-line filter. This caused the entire line to drain...