Not Starting When Hot

[5lugnuts]

You guys know more than I about this stuff but here is my story that might help. If not, I tried. Years ago I had a 51 Ford with exactly the same issue. I checked everything and could not find a problem and I checked over and over again for months. Then one day in the warm weather I was cranking it with the hood up and looking under the hood from the drivers seat as it was cranking I saw what looked like smoke or steam coming off the engine as it cranked. Then as I stood outside and jumped the solenoid to crank it I saw smoke coming from the carburetor linkage where it attached to the carb.

Long story short, a previous owner had disconnected the ground strap that ran from the fire wall to the intake manifold bolt. When I connected that back up, hard starting when hot went away. The only thing grounding the engine and the starter was the carburetor linkage attached to the firewall which would get hot at the connection to the carb (highest resistance) and then burn off the gas from pumping and cranking at the same time. Now I always make sure the engine has a good ground not just the battery.

[WestCoast]

if you smell gas it because the heat from the engine is heating the carb and boiling the gas out of the float chamber and flooding the engine, next time you shut motor down look down the carb throat to see if any fuel is dribbling down the carb into the intake manifold, have you plugged the exhaust manifold gas cross over channel that runs thru the intake manifold just behind where the carb mounts, that channel was used to help warm the carb for better running in real cold weather, also aluminum intakes transfer more heat to the carb than cast iron one, put a phenolic spacer between carb and manifold, the thicker the better to stop the heat transfer to carb, the reason the engine will start right back up is because not enough fuel has perculated out of carb into the engine

[TagMan]

Coil, coil, coil !

[Capt Kirk]

My not starting when hot was due to the old original coil. I don't know anything about pertronix

[Fritz]

Thanks guys. I tried just pressing on the gas while hitting the starter button. When it's real hot, like within 30 minutes of running it, it takes a few cranks, but it starts! Otherwise, a little gas pedal will get it going easy.

Thanks for the suggestions. I think I was afraid of flooding if I gave it gas, but this has worked for several hot starts now, and hasn't failed.

[50fordcoupeman]

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I agree with mike42 and GM.............a bad coil will act like this when it gets hot from ambient engine temp. Good luck!!

[WestCoast]

put at least a one inch phenolic block under the carb to insulate from the intake manifold, and plug the carb pre heater passages in the intake manifold, , it runs just behind and under the carb in the manifold, it was designed to warm up the carb faster in real cold weather, its not needed, aluminum manifolds transfer a lot of heat to the carb and causes the carb to boil the fuel out of the fuel bowl and cause a flooded condition