Town Sedan not liking hills!

[Ken MA]

Driving my 30 Town Sedan, stock engine, carb and ignition, on a 130 mile club tour today over some hilly terrain. Reaching the top of a long climb the engine started to stumble, felt like the ignition was shorting out. On the down hill and level motor ran fine for a while but condition got worse on short hills and flat roads. Stopped and re gapped points which helped for a while but even a slight incline caused engine misses and backfires through the muffler. We limped home below 30 mph. I figured it was an electrical problem but cannot figure why engine misfires mostly on hills. Points and condenser were new 1500 miles ago. Any comments are appreciated. Ken

[mcgarrett]

Sounds like my '31 Town Sedan when rust in the tank clogged the fuel line and shut off the flow of gas. Started backfiring, stumbling, etc. Once I cleared the fuel line and got the gas flowing again, ran just fine.

[slatgrille]

Ken MA....were you at the Model A Dust Off at the Bean Farm in NH? I was there for the first time and was quite impressed with the number of cars and people.

Glad you made it home and hope your fix is an easy one....

[Ken MA]

I was on a tour in the Berkshires. If I was at the bean Farm I would still be limping home. That's a 3 1/2 hour drive modern from here!

[Brentwood Bob]

Stock ignition?
Any recent repairs?
Frequently driven?

[nkaminar]

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Bob is hinting at a secrete of a good running car on tours, and that is to drive it frequently at home, like ever week at least. McGarrett is pointing at a fuel problem. I would second that. As you know, going up hills or driving fast will require more fuel while slowing down or going down a hill will require less. So if there is some kind of restriction in the fuel supply that will cause the symptoms you describe.

[Ken B]

I had this problem years ago with my 31 tudor. The problem ended up being a small piece of brass in the fuel shut off valve. At slower speeds everything was fine. But at higher speeds, it would loose power and backfire. Do you have a filter on top of the fuel valve?

[jack backer]

I’m in West Virginia, you can’t drive without encountering grades some as steep as 9%..you have to keep the car in top condition. A Mitchell gear splitter really helps so does performance modification… and a temperature gauge..not to mention brakes for the other side..

[1931 flamingo]

Try changing the condenser.
Paul in CT

[eagle]

When you re-gapped the points it helped for a while, also you recently changed points. Id look there first. Points that wear down and close up cause exactly the problem you describe.

[katy]

Did you grease the distributor cam when the points were replaced?

[Ken MA]

I drove the A 30 miles a week ago without problems after taking it out of hibernation. My spring ritual is to grease chassis including distributer cam . The points were too close when I checked them on the roadside, but re gapping did not help much. Even moderate grades were difficult to climb without stumbling. I do have a fine fuel filter inside the gas tank. Fuel in the sediment bowl is clear, but I will check the fuel lines for any debris. I also have a new spare condenser from Brattons I will install if the fuel lines are clear. Thanks to all for your opinions. Ken

[katy]

Old gas?

[Ken MA]

The doctor says the Town Sedan has the same problem as most 92 year old's, weak flow! The pencil filter in the gas valve was pretty much plugged and not allowing the tank to easily void. The filter was not the brass or stainless screen type, but made of acrylic fibers and phenolic resin, so fine light will not pass through. Worked fine for years but time to replace.
Ken

[Ruth]

Originally Posted by Ken MA

The doctor says the Town Sedan has the same problem as most 92 year old's, weak flow! The pencil filter in the gas valve was pretty much plugged and not allowing the tank to easily void. The filter was not the brass or stainless screen type, but made of acrylic fibers and phenolic resin, so fine light will not pass through. Worked fine for years but time to replace.
Ken

Thanks for the follow up. Glad you found the problem.