1974 CSI Stalling issues

B

Brian Muzzy

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Georgetown TX, United States
My 1974 3.0 CSI has recently had the original engine rebuilt and I have been enjoying driving the car for about 2 months, but the past few days, the car will die for no apparent reason. It will idle for about 2 minutes and then just die. I have even had it even cut out while accelerating. There is no misfiring or other symptoms prior to it shutting off. All electrical items (lights, radio, etc) are not affected when the engine cuts out.

I am looking to get my car back to Terry Sayther Automotive in Austin (although Terry has recently retired, his son has taken over), but this could be a while since they are limiting 'vintage projects' at the current time... they did a great job rebuilding my engine, but I am unaware of anyone in the area that is knowledgeable on the fuel injection system.

Any advice, references, or areas to troubleshoot would be appreciated.
 
I'd check electrical first.

CHeck all grounds (ECU may be sensitive w/poor grounds).

CHeck points (or are you running electronic stuff?), cap, rotor, wires, plugs.

Check timing.

THen we'd have to look at the D-jet stuff, which SFDon can be best helping out with.
 
Thanks for the response.
I will start making a list and working down it this weekend.

I think the only thing not replaced when the motor was rebuilt was the ignition coil. Probably just get a new one of those for good measure at this point...

-b
 
Rob has good advice- do the “wiggle test”
while engine is running go around and move all your connectors.

I will be in Liberty Hill (15 miles from you) on July 30th if you want any spare parts for diagnosing.
 
The moment it quits running- check your fuel pressure.
 
If you are running a Pertronix (1868), switch back to points & condenser. My CSi hated Pertronix & Crane Fireball ignitions. Went back to points & eventually a 123 unit

Remove the rear passenger seat, that's where the ECU & Fuel Pump Relay are. If the Fuel Pump relay is loose or not properly grounded it will cause a myriad of running to immediate non-running problems. It is the relay above the ECU attached to the bulkhead.

If you have the original fuel pump, it could be failing. Can substitute an E28 Fuel pump which is less expensive & has the same flow rate. Will have to make a small adapter wiring harness as the original plug will not fit the E28 pump, inlet & outlet are different too.
 
Thanks again for all the direction. I inherited the car from my father who brought it back from Germany back in 1986. When I picked it up in November 2020, it went straight to have the motor rebuilt and be roadworthy. Been a lot of fun up until this. I will be trying to inventory what and how this car is put together so I can provide better details going forward. Thanks for the support.
 
You should have Peter C. drop by on the way home.

you have his number?
 
The CSi I had had a bad pump. It seemed to work for the seller, but when I got it, it ran, then died, etc.

I replaced it with a cheaper E28 pump I believe and made up the difference in the holder bracket w/some 2" ABS pipe cut:

Electric fuel pump problem

The e28 in line pump is smaller in diameter then the original pump and the bracket will not work. You can order a bracket for an e12 inline pump which fits tight in to the mounting tabs under the car. The bracket is identical with 2 exceptions- 1.the e28 pump fits 2. The bracket also has a...
e9coupe.com e9coupe.com

20180113_125606-1-jpg.39034
 
There has been a great number of responses and I truely appreciate them all. I also have talked to Peter and he gave me some insight as well. We discussed also meeting up when sfdon is in the area at the end of the month.
I will let you guys know what I can mark off the troubleshooting list once the weekend rolls around.
 
Brian Muzzy said:
My 1974 3.0 CSI has recently had the original engine rebuilt and I have been enjoying driving the car for about 2 months, but the past few days, the car will die for no apparent reason. It will idle for about 2 minutes and then just die. I have even had it even cut out while accelerating. There is no misfiring or other symptoms prior to it shutting off. All electrical items (lights, radio, etc) are not affected when the engine cuts out.

I am looking to get my car back to Terry Sayther Automotive in Austin (although Terry has recently retired, his son has taken over), but this could be a while since they are limiting 'vintage projects' at the current time... they did a great job rebuilding my engine, but I am unaware of anyone in the area that is knowledgeable on the fuel injection system.

Any advice, references, or areas to troubleshoot would be appreciated.
Click to expand...
Does it idle for 2 minutes without being able to rev/no respons on gas throttle?

And when you had your cut out during accelerating there were no backfires?
 
An inline fuel pressure gauge might eliminate some of your guesswork. Adequate fuel pressure would cause you to look elsewhere for the source of the problem.

Your second post mentions an untested ignition coil. A failing coil (or a failing ballast resistor or loose/corroded connections) could easily account for your symptoms, separate and apart from any fuel delivery issues. The coil may not be the problem, but your mention of it and the relative ease of replacement with a known functioning unit, suggests this is a simple/viable approach.


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BMW3.0CSi said:
Does it idle for 2 minutes without being able to rev/no respons on gas throttle?

And when you had your cut out during accelerating there were no backfires?
Click to expand...
I hope listing the sequence of events may help give you all the most accurate picture:
Upon startup, there was backfire and didn't start, almost like no gas was being delivered.
After 2 more attempts to start the car, it fired up. I drove out of the garage immediately and while driving through my neighborhood, while accelerating, the car stalled.
I popped the clutch, the car was running again. I drove back to the garage, with the car struggling most of the way.
Next day, i started the car in the garage and let it idle. It died 2 mins in. I did not touch the gas pedal during this idle time.
I attempted to drive the car again, and while accelerating, the car stalled. Popped the clutch and limped home.

As of this morning, I have changed the fuel pump since it was easiest to get delivered before the weekend.
I also found out that during the engine rebuild, a replacement was put in. Bosch 0 580 464 070. I pulled this out and replaced with suggested pump from other threads Bosch 0 580 464 013. After some sputtering while revving the engine, everything seems to have settled (fuelwise at least). Let the car idle for over 3 mins with no issues.
No noticeable issues when revving the engine.
I have not gone on a test drive yet.

I have an ignition coil on order, so will replace once it comes in.

I like the idea of adding a fuel pressure gauge prior to the filter and will add it to my list of projects.

Terry Sayther mentioned that my fuel injectors were likely dirty and to run injector cleaner through to try and get things a little more dialed in. I am looking to get replacement fuel injectors sometime next week

Thanks again for all the input and support - please keep it coming.
 
tochi said:
An inline fuel pressure gauge might eliminate some of your guesswork. Adequate fuel pressure would cause you to look elsewhere for the source of the problem.

Your second post mentions an untested ignition coil. A failing coil (or a failing ballast resistor or loose/corroded connections) could easily account for your symptoms, separate and apart from any fuel delivery issues. The coil may not be the problem, but your mention of it and the relative ease of replacement with a known functioning unit, suggests this is a simple/viable approach.


View attachment 122337View attachment 122339
Click to expand...
I am definitely going to be putting in a fuel pressure gauge. Thanks
 
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