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STALE PETROL IN CARBS


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My 4a was laid up for 2 years or so with about 5 gallons of petrol in the tank.

I was advised by people on this site to empty out the old juice refill with new and then give it an Italian service, which I duly did.

 

It runs ok but I seem to need a rich mixture, talking to a so called expert this morning he told me that because the car hasn't been used much for a long time even though I have renewed the petrol there will be coating on the carbs from the stale juice and the carbs would need dismantling and sonic cleaning

whatever that is but he could do it for 200 quid.

 

Comments advice would be welcomed

 

Lee

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Hi Lee,

I'll do it for £150 :lol::lol:B)

If the petrol had evaporated out of the carbs then a residue will be left behind.

Running the car will cause the new petrol to remove this residue (usually).

 

I wouldn;t have thought it would give rich symptoms unless the piston is getting stuck if using the HS6 carbs

 

With the airfilters removed you should be able to lift the pistons to their full extent and let them drop - they must not stick.

If they do, take them out and clean them.

 

Roger

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Not if your man is Australia you wont.....

Wanna bet? Ex BA don't forget..............

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Hi Lee,

A sonic cleaner is simply of small bath of cleaning solution that has a High Frequency agitator.

 

The solution softens the muck and HF vibrates it off the surface.

 

Can either be very good or completely hopeless.

 

Roger

,

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still not sure what the sonic cleaning is?

 

Sonic cleaning is when your partner has gone out and you are using one of the large saucepans on the stove to boil up your carbs to dissolve all the gunk, you have to keep an ear out for the returning car, and upon hearing it tidy up at super sonic speed or your in the shit!

 

If Roger will risk that for £150 he is a better man than I.

 

Alan

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Hi Lee

 

Have you actually tried adjusting the carbs yet? Check for obvious air leaks around the manifold, clamp off servo hose ( if has one) check timing and slacken off links between both carbs.

 

You could also have air leaks via spindles which might be worn which all requires an artificial richened mixture to run it ?

 

Kevin

Edited by boxofbits
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I pulled my SUs apart and put them in the dishwasher one day while my wife was at the hairdresser.

I then put an old bucket in the garden, filled it with soapy water, and put the SU parts on newspaper near the bucket.

When my wife came back I said:
“ I’ve just cleaned these with Gunk and a bucket of water”.

She replied:
” Why didn’t you put them in the dishwasher, it would have been a lot easier.”


Charlie D.

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Please, what cleaner did you use?

 

I would not do this with aluminium or zinc items with salt in the cleanig powder / tablet because of high calcium carbonate in the water.

 

Better try this first with a junk item or a old aluminium kettle, tea pot or aluminium garlic press.

 

This is a worried advice from my wife.

 

Ciao Marco

Edited by Z320
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Hello Z320,

 

 

From what I remember it was a normal dishwasher tablet.

 

I think because of the speed the corrosive properties of the chemicals did not have long enough to cause a problem.

 

I also rinsed all the parts off after they came out of the dishwasher.

 

 

Charlie D.

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Hi Charlie,

sorry me for any confusion I maybe caused.

My wife told me the salt not comes with the cleaner but is filled separat in a container in the dish cleaner - if needed.

I should have known that because I already filled salt in - under her controll.....

Ciao Marco

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The problem isn't the calcium carbonate, or the salt. There is caustic soda (sodium hydroxide) in most dishwasher tablets, hence why they need to be kept away from children and items made of aluminium.

 

Pete

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