series 3 stalling and stopping , poss diagnosis

Took series 3 out for a Sunday drive today , drove about 5 miles and it started spluttering as if it was running out of petrol , stalled whilst on the busiest crossroads in the west midlands and I had 2 small children in car , Landy owner dragged me to safety (legend). MY local mechanic said looked as if points werent sparking up and condensor poss needs changing , He eventually charged me £0.00 for towing me home! , Im assuming this could be a possibility as he has quoted £30 for parts and labour so hes not scamming me and shaking his head and tutting ,
Do the symptoms match the poss diagnosis.

Any advice would be helpful ,

Thanks.

Yes or if oil filled HT coil failed- epoxy coil better

coil was quite hot , however I put this down to me panicking big time and trying to start car poss a few times too many without success.

neilcmusic said:

coil was quite hot , however I put this down to me panicking big time and trying to start car poss a few times too many without success.

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Unless ballasted coil it should not be hot.

Electronic Ignition kit Powerspark Lucas Bosch 45D 25D 35D 22D

Works every time.

plus 1 for electronic conversion its nearly impossible to get good quality points and condensors now i have converted mine and all my mates series to powerspark kits

Castor said:

Electronic Ignition kit Powerspark Lucas Bosch 45D 25D 35D 22D

Works every time.

Click to expand...

...but check it's not a Ducellier distributor before ordering that one...

Another vote here for the Powerspark kit - and the symptoms I was getting from my (very) knackered points do sound very similar to those the OP's describing. But if the coil's hot to the touch...?

TBH, I'd just chuck electronic at it first, with replacing the coil in mind if necessary. Especially if paying for labour, it's not worth spending much time in diagnosis when the kit's only £35. Swapping the coil takes about two minutes later.

If the condenser is short circuit or the points have closed up them the coil may well be a bit warm. Go electronic - if it turns out to be fuel related you'll at least have good spark!

ok here is where I am with this , ive installed new points (non electric) and when it starts its splutters slightly but doesnt cut out , so I now how 2 problems
The first is that when I try and start it it turns over really slowly as if it has a dead battery until I put my foot on accelerator and it finally kicks in , the second is that it splutters which is an issue I think ive resolved in the past by adjusting the idle screw, any ideas would be appreciated .

Thanks ,
Ps can I add a sound file or video to posts so you can hear what it sounds like?

Battery fully charged ?

OK now it starts , mechanic had put wire to coil on wrong connector . still spluttering though , I think I just need to spend hrs adjusting idle screw

shouldnt have to spend hours playing with the carb if you can make it idle look for an air leak i find a can of brake cleaner used to spray around the base of the carb best it will make the engine cut out if there is 1 which carb do you have on it webers have a little filter on the inlet pipe which becomes easily blocked as do the jets inside the carb easy fix

Search for vapour lock. I never got mine running right until I got rid of the mechanical pump and fitted an electric pump. Symptoms were that if ran fine until warm then acted up, usually but not always after a stop or wait. I tried all the usual stuff oints, distributor, coil, plugs,leads etc. Since fitting a lottery pump has been good. It used to do what you said wait until you were at a busy junction or joining a motorway and then decide to run like a bag of ****e whilst a lorry flew at me. Good luck

Got some carb cleaner didn't do any good , I bought new plugs 4 weeks ago and was told they were pre gapped , have now been told they probably aren't so I'll give that a go .

carb cleaner wont do a thing mate you need to split the top off the carb and remove all the grit and sand from the float chamber just spraying cleaner down the top does nothing although it will help you find air leaks if sprayed around the carb base with the engine running

OK guys I still need help so far I've ruled out spark plugs as I've put new ones in and gapped then didn't make any difference , when I remove leads one at a time whilst car is running , no change , manifold isn't cracked , would dirty glass fuel filter or bad coil cause spluttering , I'm assuming they could

Pop out a spark plug, rest it on the block and turn the engine over when it's getting a bit dark - you should see a fat and temporally extended spark. If that's OK take the fuel pipe off the carb and turn the engine over - is there a good spurt of fuel? No? - check the filters in the pump and on the end of the tank pickup pipe. All OK? No? replace or overhaul the pump.
Good fuel supply at the carb? remove, strip, clean and reassemble. You'll need a gasket set or a full overhaul set.
let us know how you get on.....

Thanks for that , one other thing that might be a clue I'm having trouble starting it , it turns over really slowly then sometimes kicks in when I put foot on accelerator

Is it timed right? You want 6deg btdc static. Check that before you do anything else.

Ok so this is where I am , I think slightly adjusting the idle and mixture screws is improving the backfire and also plugs are black so ill clean them up , put them back in and slowly adjust both screws . Other problem now is wont start without a fight , turns over , however without choke and a good kick of accelerator doesnt start , someone looked at engine whilst I tried and apparently there was a puff of smoke from starter solenoid , should I just buy a new solenoid and be doen with it or should I try cleaning it up first , does need for gas and choke indicate poss solenoid.