I was driving my new 1976 6 cyl (250cid) home yesterday in Phoenix on the freeway and the temp outside was normal hell like and I lost power. The engine kept running and when I let off on the gas and reapplied it picked back up again. This was the way I got home the remaining miles. The engine light came on about a mile from home and runs fine today with no light. So is this vapor lock? I was not running the A/C. What can you do to remedy this? We are using oxygenated fuel here and I think that adds to the problem. Anyone heard that putting wooden clothes pins on the metal fuel tube feeding the carb will help?
Vapor lock has not been as much of a problem in modern times as much as in older days. The way they used to halp defeat it was to wrap the exposed fuel line to insulate it. Asbestos materials were used then so all you need to find is a heat resistant insulating material to use, if vapor lock is the real problem. How old is your fuel filter? A partially blocked filter can cause problems also similar.
I just purchased a fuel filter and will put it in so that may help. I will be having the car painted tomorrow and then tuned up the day after that and will put in the fuel filter then. I guess all I can do after that is to take it out on the freeway on a hot day and see if it happens again. Kind of scary when that happens. Thanks.
sounds like the float in the carb may be adjusted too low, or a bad fuel pump. If the float in your carb is adjusted just a little too low, car will run fine on the streets, but once you get up on the freeway and drive faster for a couple of miles or so, it will suck the fuel out faster that it can replace it. If it happens again on the freeway, you may want to check that. I once had the identical problem, and it turned out that the screen had come off of the fuel pickup in the tank, and was being sucked against the pick up, and was too clogged to let enough fuel go through, had to drop the tank and remove the crap. Good luck, let us know if it happens again.
