68 Mustang, I’m looking for help in Camden S Carolina

[Gino]

Hi, I have a 65 Falcon with a 68 200 ci, 6 cyl: I can not get it to run properly.
I’think it is a carburetor issue but I’ve tried so many things to get it to not skip or hesitate I’m at a loss. I am not a mechanic but i have some mechanical skill. I’d really like some one who is knowledgeable to help me. I live in Camd n s. Carolina thank you very much.

[paul2748]

Was it running good prior to the troubles? Have you checked the gap on the points (did 68 still have points)? How old are the plugs and the points. Possibly bad spark plug wires ?

[Gino]

Ok , I’m going to give the long story! This is actually a 65 Falcon. I put a 200 ci engine in it about four years ago. I’ve never been able to get it not hesitate. I’ve changed the wires, checked the new fuel pump, plugs are ok I believe. Last week I received a rebuilt Autolite 1100 from Universal Carburetor out of Norwood Ma. Initially it ran without hesitation ( road test included) but it was idling retook low and the choke was not opening fully. Got the nod from Universal toyed with the fuel air mixtur screw and the idle screw and set the heat choke adjustment to open fully. Now it runs( hesitates) poorly. Funny thing is I can’t get it back to run where it was when I first installed it. I could say more but I’ll stop here. Thanks for any help

[58Yeoman]

Do you have a fuel filter on it? If so, did you change it to a new one after the installation of the new carb?

[rotorwrench]

I take it that the hestitation is upon acceleration. Most carburetors have three basic circuits whether they are a single venturi design or more. Idle, Acceleration, and Higher Speed. It could be several things if the acceleration system is at fault. The accelerator pump could have fault or the power enrichmment valve could have fault. If it idles good and maintains a good speed forward then those circuits are likely OK.

The distributor is also tied into the acceleration system on many carbureted engines. There could be a bad diaphragm in the spark control system or a vacuum leak. Another thing that can go south on a distributor is the shaft bushings but they will cause intermittent missing if the bushings get too loose due to the point dwell jumping around too much.

Always check the easiest thing first. Also, does this engine have a stock 200 6-cylinder carburetor installed or is it an aftermarket carburetor? An aftermarket carb may not be set up to work well right out of the box. Adjustments may have to be performed.

[miker98038]

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I don’t disagree with the above. But I had a very similar problem with a new 4160 Holley 45 years ago. The fact it drove with the choke not fully open makes me think it was lean. The Holley I had was shipped with the primary jets 10 numbers lean. Installing the right jets solved it. Just because they’re new doesn’t mean they’re right.

[KULTULZ]

Just because they’re new doesn’t mean they’re right.

No truer words have ever been uttered ...

The CARB has to be calibrated for/to the application. A one-fits-all ain't happening.

You're using the CARB and DIST from the 68 engine? PRE-1968 was LOAD-O-MATIC.

[KULTULZ]

You're using the CARB and DIST from the 68 engine? PRE-1968 was LOAD-O-MATIC

... chirp ... chirp ...chirp ...

[Flathead Fever]

It's always better to rebuild the original carb and distributer because you know its correct. You know it worked at one time so with a rebuild it should work again.

This could be a fuel or ignition. It's hard for me or anybody to say without being there. A video would help us out a lot. I need to really need to hear it to know what you mean by hesitation. You can remove the fuel line, disable the ignition and crank the engine, letting the fuel flow into a glass bottle. It should be flowing well. Does it hesitate at idle, raising the rpm in neutral, at steady cruise or under acceleration.

My dad had a '65 Mustang with a 200 6cyl he bought new. It always ran great. Those were good running engines. My sister still has her '64 1/2 original paint convertible Mustang with a rebuilt 170 engine. You couldn't give me that engine and trans combo. There was a very steep hill by our house. The little 170 could not pull that hill in second gear. You had to drop it into first and first gear was not synchronized like it is with the 200 ci engine. You had to come to a complete stop on that hill, put it first gear and practically smoke the clutch to get it moving again. Dads' 200 engine was never rebuilt, the carb was never rebuilt, and it had 120K mile on it when he sold it. The only time I remember the Mustang breaking was the ignition rotor broke in half. I was mechanic for 30-years and that's the only time I ever saw a rotor actually break in half. He had a spare in the trunk along with a points file and we were on our way again. It was either an Autolite or Motorcraft rotor that broke. If you stuck with the factory recommended tune-up intervals those engines were dependable. I've have had fifteen 1965-1970 Mustangs. Drove them everywhere and never had one leave me. The last one I kept, it's a real '66-GT-350 that's been hiding in the garage for 41-years. I got into flathead Ford hot rods, and it's been sitting ever since, waiting for me to come full circle back to the Mustangs.

[Gino]

Hi all, sorry to take this long getting back. Well I’ve been on a road with thief’s engine and carb, please let me say a few things. This engine does not use the load a matic distributor and as such, I’m not using the load a matic now. However this distributor does rely on vacuum from the carburetor or the manifold. Some performed testing shows no problem in this area.The hesitation is at the initial point of putting a load on it, or when you would be attempting to accelerate in first second or third gear. Also when the vehicle is in neutral and at an idle a quick “ gunning” or step on the gas pedal will cause a noticeable severe hesitation. I’ve got a tough question. There are “check balls” required in theses auto lite 1100 carbs, I am told it can be confusing to know how many, where they belong and the balls have different weights. I’m told that ford had identifying tags on these carbs originally but too many backyard mechanics cut them off and this could be problematic for rebuilding.
I’m thinking a qualified rebuilder would recognize and differentiate the “ subtle” differences in theses carbs. Otherwise how could a rebuilder be confident in his or her work, not knowing if and un tagged carburetor was messed with before and therefore not know what they might be dealing with. So any thought? I hope you find this twice as interesting as I find it to be a pain in the @#$&

[KULTULZ]

There are three main reason(s) for TIP-IN hesitation for this era engine -

1) Bad and/or mis-adjusted accelerator pump -

2) Bad and or mis-adjusted vacuum advance - breaker plates binding -

You are using a SINGLE DIAP canister and not the IMCO canister?

FORD uses ported vacuum signal for the vacuum advance -

3) Bad or lazy EGR VALVE (73/ )

[Gene F]

Originally Posted by Flathead Fever

It's always better to rebuild the original carb and distributer because you know its correct. You know it worked at one time so with a rebuild it should work again.

This could be a fuel or ignition. It's hard for me or anybody to say without being there. A video would help us out a lot. I need to really need to hear it to know what you mean by hesitation. You can remove the fuel line, disable the ignition and crank the engine, letting the fuel flow into a glass bottle. It should be flowing well. Does it hesitate at idle, raising the rpm in neutral, at steady cruise or under acceleration.

My dad had a '65 Mustang with a 200 6cyl he bought new. It always ran great. Those were good running engines. My sister still has her '64 1/2 original paint convertible Mustang with a rebuilt 170 engine. You couldn't give me that engine and trans combo. There was a very steep hill by our house. The little 170 could not pull that hill in second gear. You had to drop it into first and first gear was not synchronized like it is with the 200 ci engine. You had to come to a complete stop on that hill, put it first gear and practically smoke the clutch to get it moving again. Dads' 200 engine was never rebuilt, the carb was never rebuilt, and it had 120K mile on it when he sold it. The only time I remember the Mustang breaking was the ignition rotor broke in half. I was mechanic for 30-years and that's the only time I ever saw a rotor actually break in half. He had a spare in the trunk along with a points file and we were on our way again. It was either an Autolite or Motorcraft rotor that broke. If you stuck with the factory recommended tune-up intervals those engines were dependable. I've have had fifteen 1965-1970 Mustangs. Drove them everywhere and never had one leave me. The last one I kept, it's a real '66-GT-350 that's been hiding in the garage for 41-years. I got into flathead Ford hot rods, and it's been sitting ever since, waiting for me to come full circle back to the Mustangs.

I had a 67 Mustang coupe (the 1 torgue box version) and it was a great car. Rust was the only issue.

[cousinjd]

A couple of things come to mind, accelerator linkage for initial accelerator squirt, timing set correctly, and plugged or restricted of fuel cap. As said before timing set with vacume hoses disconnected, and then connected with carb vac to dist and not full manifold vac. These few easy and cheap checks will cure many nagging problems. Good luck and please let us know the outcome. Jim