My -68 SRL311 project

[Pjackb]

My car didn´t have washer bottle when I bought it but it is required in our MOT test so I need to add it. What is correct route for washer hoses? Where do they go through firewall?

The washer vinyl hose goes through/shares one of the big grommets for the engine wiring next to the clutch master.

I had to do both my cars to pass inspection and I found it was much easier and quicker to start from the top underneath the grill , you pass the tubing trough the hole and grab it behind the console , you then pass it behind the pedals and trough the uppermost grommet next to the clutch master
FYI the 5' (1.5m) package they usually sell will work but will be just enough , get the longer length it will give you better flexibility for install

[Pjackb]

Ok thanks!

Is there any trick to clean yellowish washer tank?

I've seen some tricks online , not sure how effective they really are , I bought a universal tank for my 67 since I did not have any

[TeemuM]

This looks quite promising video so need to try this. I don´t even want it to look new as other parts in engine bay are used also but now it is just too yellow.

[spl310]

This one looks better...

[TeemuM]

Well that looks just unbelievable! Thanks for link!

However it seems that I can´t get that H3NSO3 acid from Finland. However dishwasher cleaning tablets contains that so maybe they do the trick. I need to try those.

[TeemuM]

I have now all electrics working and have been trying to get engine running. I washed SU´s and changed gaskets and needles. I have never had car with carburetors so I have zero experience working with them but after some youtube videos and online instructions I got engine running somehow. It is still running very rough and rich but problem with tuning them is that when engine stops it doesn´t start again. Even if it only runs few minutes and stops then it won´t start again before engine is become fully cold.

What could cause that? It tries to start but only coughs. It gets spark so I quess it is fuel related then.

[jr02518]

I am going through a similar awaking on a 1970, 1600. In my case I have removed the smog equipment and sent the distributor off to a vendor for upgrade. I did request a review of the old unit and it was confirmed that in it's original condition it was never going to allow the car to run correctly.

My car would start and idle, but was not able to accelerate. Again, in my case I saved a bunch of grief, to have mine reviewed and diagnosed by a professional. What he found by looking at it confirmed the vacuum advance was not working and most importantly the plate that the points are bolted to was frozen. The advance/retarde of the timing under acceleration was never going to happen.

Again, this was my situation. Yet again one more "rabbit" whole to get my car running. Looking forward what you find as an issue, on yours.

[DAC21]

This one looks better...

Pretty amazing transformation. I'd think this could work on the Clutch / Brake reservoirs as well?

[Gregs672000]

I have now all electrics working and have been trying to get engine running. I washed SU´s and changed gaskets and needles. I have never had car with carburetors so I have zero experience working with them but after some youtube videos and online instructions I got engine running somehow. It is still running very rough and rich but problem with tuning them is that when engine stops it doesn´t start again. Even if it only runs few minutes and stops then it won´t start again before engine is become fully cold.

What could cause that? It tries to start but only coughs. It gets spark so I quess it is fuel related then.

SU carbs are a very simple design with few parts, working on vacuum only... no accelerator pumps, jets etc... just a needle and seat that rely on vacuum to pull fuel into the engine. The amount of vacuum is determined by the throttle plate, and the balance of the two carbs determined by the linkage. Problems occur when something stops those pieces from working together or properly. The seats need to be nice and round, the needles equally graduated and mounted, the pistons need to raise up without binding and in a controlled fashion (the reason for the oil in the dash pot... it controls how fast the piston rises which controls the amount of fuel and air delivered), and the throttle plates need to be equally open throughout their movement (balance), the amount open to determine rpm (other than an intake leak which is bypassing the throttle plates).
Assuming spark and ignition advance are all working properly, start off by making sure everything is set the same in both carbs, making sure the pistons raise and lower without a hitch. Disconnect your linkage, look it over and understand how it works both individually to set the throttle plates, and then together to set the balance, and note what happens to the throttle plates when you reattach your dog bones (do they change the position of the throttle plates when reconnected? All they should do it connect things, not change them). The bottom dial on the carb sets the position of the needle in the seat by raising or lowering it on the needle. This is used to set idle mix. As the engine vacuum pulls on the piston, it raises the needle up higher and thus increases the amount of fuel available to mix with the incoming air.
I'm not sure why it won't start when warm, but it's either too rich or too lean. I would have a second set of clean spark plugs at hand (you'll need them someday anyway!), and read your plugs when it won't start... black is rich, white is lean, either will stop the engine from running. If the plugs are white, turn the dial so it drops the seat down lower to richen the mix. Black, then replace the plugs, turn the dial to raise the seat and lean the carbs, and start it again. Some starting fluid can help an engine start in both conditions, but go lightly if you suspect it's rich. You can individually set the throttle plates on each carb with the linkage disconnected, but you wont be able to rev the engine up. Once it's running without dying, you will be able to balance the carbs (please use a carb balancer, either a snail or a unisyn, snail is better/easier to use), then connect your linkage and make sure it doesnt change the throttle plates position, check balance and adjust the linkage at the balance screw until they are equal, then set the idle, adjusting the individual throttle plate screws to allow adjustment if necessary to make sure they are not stopping the linkage from creating the balance or allowing the engine to idle at 800rpms.
Confounding factors can be intake leaks via worn throttle shafts or intake tract gaskets (locate with carb cleaner by spraying gaskets and noting changes in rpm), screwy linkage, worn needles and/or seats, or pistons not raising and dropping normally or equally.
Hope this helps! Spend the time to fully understand how the linkage works and what does what... it will help a lot in trouble shooting!

[TeemuM]

Hope this helps!

Thank you a lot for that explanation and those tips!

I would assume that it is currently very rich. Atleast if you take notice very strong gasoline smell and smoke in garage after only few minutes running. Also it won´t need much choke when starting cold and currently it is quite cold in garage. So maybe that causes it why it won´t start when warm. It only needs to run few minutes and after that it wont start so it is not even near normal running temperature.

Need to look spark plug color next time. I don´t have yet balancer but I am going to buy that snail type.

Pistons were stuck but I got them adjusted so that now they move freely. Now they both drop all the way down with small sound when they hit bottom (when that oil damper is removed).

I have adjusted ignition advance to 16 degree. Vacuum advance hose was attached, is that correct way?

[TeemuM]

I tried to lean it so turned knob anticlockwise so that nozzle is as high as possible. Still very much smoke and gas smell. Spark plugs are also very black.

Could it be that nozzles are too worn out? Or what could cause it to be so rich?

[Egz]

What about the float bowl needle valve? If the fork adjustment is off, its possible that the float isn't cutting off the bowl fill valve at the right time, filling the bowl to a higher level than intended (but not overflowing). If the fuel level in the bowl is above the nozzle, gravity will push more fuel out than you want.

[notoptoy]

Make sure the choke is working smoothly and not stuck on.

[Curtis]

If you haven't looked already there is lots of info here.

http://www.311s.org/pmwiki-311/pmwiki.p ... Fuel-Carbs

[TeemuM]

I checked fuel level and it was on speck and choke was not stuck. Then I changed back old needles and after that it worked better and I could adjust mixture leaner. So I quess these new needlew were not correct even thought it read Roadster 2000 U20 on top of package. I bought these from our local carb shop so they might not know what they were selling as this is so rare engine here.

So now it works pretty decent. Still needs some adjustment but anyway now it looks like it might even work.
For some reason I couldnt get idle low enough and when I removed carb dog bone rpm dropped. So for some reason something in linkage was bend etc and dog bone was too long. I fixed it with adjustable linkage.
https://drive.google.com/uc?export=down ... z4zR5S31aa

I also started to fabricate trim panels.

https://drive.google.com/uc?export=down ... 9NgUbAcm55

I noticed that my brake master cylinder is leaking. I could bleed my brakes and they are working so only problem is that it leaks fluid. Can I get those piston seals separately or do I need to buy whole refurbish kit? This is 3/4 mc.