help with '76 MG midget

[DrewCoolness]

Ok it's been sitting for 8 years and i have been working on it for the past 4 months trying. Right now I am trying to get it started and it won't quite catch(it turns over but won't start up). The carburator is getting gas and i just put in new spark plugs. Could anyone at least point me in the direction of the problem?

 

[clint]

check the diaphram in the top of the carb for holes or being completely stretched out, and check the needle. If the needle is covered with green crap, the carb probably needs to come off to be cleaned. Remember, any solvelts, cleaners, or starting fluid has rather negative effects on that diaphram.

 

[aeronca65t]

1) check spark (new plugs won't mean a thing if the distributor/coil aren't producing spark).

2) check compression

3) find out why it's been sitting for 8 years (you didn't say why?.....did it blow a head gasket?...snap a timing chain?)

We'll assume you're not trying to start it with 8 year-old gas.

 

[kmcormick9]

i had a big problem with that on mine. is there fuel leaking out of the carb? if there is you probably need to either replace the needle, check which direction the holes in your piston are facing, or adjust the floats. you may also need a new needle valve if the one in the carb has been sitting that long.

 

[kmcormick9]

the spring return blocky thingie in the metering needle tends to break making the car run super rich and not even start in some cases

 

[William]

Fuel pump? I had problems with the mechanical pump in my '76. It also has a rubber diaphragm that stretches and goes bad with age. It'll pump gas, but not enough to actually start or run the car. Are the spark plug wires hooked up correctly (a mistake I made)? That'll goof things up mightily.
-William

 

[Dale]

Welcome Drewcoolness!
As you can already see, help is just a post away on the best LBC forum on the net. I'll bet you get your MG going in plenty of time to enjoy nice spring weather.

 

[DrewCoolness]

First off, It has been sitting because my dad died in 1994 and I was too young to do anything with it.

How do I check spark and how do I check compression?

And it has fresh gas in it

Fuel is not leaking out of the carb.

I'll check the diaphragm. All the spark plug wires are hooked up correctly. \

And what is the proper gap for the spark plugs for it? (Had a girl i kinda had a crush on helping me change the plugs, So i never even thought about the gap)

And thanks for the welcome

 

[DrewCoolness]

Ok So far so good. i adjusted the gaps to .8 like it said on another web site and it worked!!!!! It came to life for about a second and a half then died. So I am guessing it is the fuel pump. My dad had problems with it too before he passed on. This is a huge boost in my confidence. And as for checking if it was getting spark i kicked my self when i got out there. It was obvious, But I'm not sure baout checking the compression though.

The diaphragm is in perfect shape.

Also, What goes in the place with the yellow cap on top of the carb?(zenith)

[ 03-10-2003: Message edited by: DrewCoolness ]</p>

 

[aeronca65t]

If it "fires", the engine obviously has spark and compression that is "good enough"....you're probably not getting fuel.

Remove fuel line to carb and turn engine over for a few seconds....fuel should squirt out of the line (always a good idea to have fire extinguisher handy in case of fire).

If no fuel squirts out, you need a fuel pump or have a clogged fuel line, clogged filter or clogged tank. If fuel squirts out of the fuel line, the carb is probably gunked up inside the float bowl. The float bowl works like a toilet tank (shuts off fluid as the level raises). The float or float valve can get stuck or dirty....may have to remove the carb to get at the float bowl.....you should probably do this anyway after 8 years of sitting.....clean the carb out with carb cleaner.

You can put regular motor oil in the top of the carb....10W-30 or similar will work fine.

To check compression:

1). Remove spark plugs
2). Remove center wire from distributor cap and be sure it's touching the car frame (any metal "grounded" part). This prevents damage to the coil and ignition system.
3). For a "quicky" test, put your thumb over a spark plug hole and have someone turn over the engine. You should feel enough pressure to blow your thumb off the plug hole.
4). Better way....buy a compresssion tester (or borrow one) and screw it into a spark plug hole. Crank the engine over for about 15 seconds. You should have at least 100 psi (more like 150 to 175 would be good). Test each cylinder to see if you have any "low" ones.

 

[DrewCoolness]

After digging around in my garage, I found a compression guage and all are over 150.

 

[mts3]

Those are good compression readings. It's also important that they are pretty close to eachother (within 10%).

I don't believe anyone has mentioned ignition timing yet. Do you still have the original electronic distributor (standard in 76) or was it converted to aftermarket electronic ignition or points?

Make sure everything inside the distributor is nice and clean and that you are getting a strong spark. That helps in starting a cold engine.

 

[DrewCoolness]

right now i am doing what i should have to start with, getting the varnish out of the gas tank. Now Just need to put tank sealer in it.

 

[Felipe]

I don't know if you alredy got it started but...I just got a Midget that was sitting for a while,
brought it home, put a new battery some gas(dried out ofcourse) and tried to start start it but... nothing, I mean the engine turned, just like yours but no go.I don't know if they where in the right order but I changed the order of the plug wires not actually knowing the exact firing order, once I found out what it was I plugged them in the right order( I had them wrong...) and PAM it started right up. I did pump the gas a few times though... good luck

[ 04-03-2003: Message edited by: Felipe ]</p>