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TR4/4A Cylinder head issues?

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TRspitfirefan

TRspitfirefan

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Working on a 65 TR-4 with several issues.
The car seems to run pretty good when cold, however once the engine warms up, it will not run well and will sometimes stall. When this happens, the car will not restart until the engine cools off some. Also the engine diesels/runs on after shutting off the ignition with the engine warm.
The engine seems to maybe run just a little warm at times, though it never really overheats.
Initially, I suspected a faulty fuel pump or a vapor lock issues in the fuel line. However, after replacing the pump and rerouting the line to the carbs, the problem still persists.
Despite not noticing any clear overheating issues, I began to wonder if the cooling system is circulating properly. Perhaps this is causing hot spots in the cylinder head that could be contributing to the dieseling as well as the running issues at warmer temps? Also while running the engine with a coolant pressure gauge installed, I noticed strangely fluctuating coolant system pressure, which usually indicates combustion gases leaking into the cooling system. I checked to make certain that the radiator was flowing sufficiently and also checked that the water pump impeller fins are intact.

So here's my Question. Am I on the right track, or am I looking completely in the wrong direction?
Has anyone had similar issues before?

I'm just getting back to working on the car, after it sat all winter.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. :encouragement:
 
A little more information and another question.
Another problem this car has, is an oil leak.(imagine that on a British car.:smile:) It seems to be leaking mostly around the back of the cylinder head/block joint.
I decided to replace the head gasket, figuring that even if the running issues are not sorted, at least the oil leak might be slowed. I also hoped that by cleaning any carbon build up on the piston, that I could solve the dieseling problem.
I pulled off the valve cover today, and found antifreeze standing around the head studs and valves.
Under pressure, the leak seems mostly to be coming from the aluminum plug that is on top of the head.
Neither Moss or Vic British sells this plug.
Does anyone know if it is available anywhere?
 
This may be silly but a very easy check. Pull the ignition cap and clean the rotor contact with a Scotchbrite pad (or similar). Certain rotors in the past years had a known issue when they got older. When hot, they would arc and engines would die when under load and hot. Had to let engine (rotor) cool before it would start again. Just an idea.

Bob
 
Good possibility. The cap and rotor look OK, but it would be a good idea to replace them.
I also wonder about the condenser in the breaker point distributor. A 73 Ford Mustang 2.3L, that I was working on last fall, really kicked me around, before I finally replaced the condenser. The Mustangs spark looked great, but it was just enough intermittent to prevent the car from starting.
Thanks for your help.:cool:
 
TRspitfirefan said:
pulled off the valve cover today, and found antifreeze standing around the head studs and valves.
Under pressure, the leak seems mostly to be coming from the aluminum plug that is on top of the head.
Neither Moss or Vic British sells this plug.
Does anyone know if it is available anywhere?
Click to expand...

Ken,

Check out this thread on replacing that plug.

https://www.britishcarforum.com/bcf...-top-of-the-head&highlight=aluminum+plug+head

I have not done this myself but I think the consensus is to replace it with an NPT plug.

Scott
 
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