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Petrol issues on 1960 Morris Panelvan.

Posted: Thu Nov 14, 2019 4:05 am
by Gibby
Hi Morris buffs.
working on my daughters 1960 morris minor panelvan. It has been idle now for about 5 years. put a new battery in the other day and starter works great. petrol pump under the back section seems to be working fine. I turned it on the other day just to check the starter motor and was surprised to see petrol filling the in line filter in motor compartment. Did not realise there would still be petrol in the tank. But after about 2 minutes fuel was leaking out of the hole above where the fuel pipe connects to the carbie. and then the petrol stopped and the filter is fairly empty. I presume this is due to dirty fuel clogging the carbie and probably the petrol pump. the pump still operates but has a very quick clicking sound. i was wondering whether anyone could advise me on how to clean out the petrol tank and i guess the carbie also. Is it the needle and seat in the carbie that is gunked up. am not conversant with the SU carbies. but if anyone can help i would appreciate it.

Re: Petrol issues on 1960 Morris Panelvan.

Posted: Thu Nov 14, 2019 5:46 am
by don58van
Hi Gibby
Is it the needle and seat in the carbie that is gunked up
Yes! SU carbs are very easy to work on. Just undo the screws on top of the fuel bowl and the lid will lift off. It might need a bit of gentle encouragement if the gasket has bonded to both surfaces. You will see the needle valve attached to the lid. Depending on its condition, you might want to order a new one and a new float bowl gasket before reassembling.

Look in the bowl. What does the petrol look like? I have seen cases where the petrol has turned to jelly when it has been sitting in the carb for years. Is there a lot of sediment in the bottom of the bowl? If so, now is the time to use some petrol and a lint-free cloth to clean it out (this is unlikely to be causing the problems you refer to--it is just a good chance to do some periodic maintenance).

You had two problems: overflowing petrol, then no petrol.

We have dealt with the overflow problem. Now the no petrol problem. The pump hammering away without bringing more petrol up can mean a range of different problems. Could the pump have pulled up the very last of the petrol in the tank when it overflowed the carb and now the tank is empty? Fuel filters can add more possibilities for supply problems: blocked? air leaks at the connections? After checking that you have a reasonable amount of petrol in the tank, try disconnecting the input hose to the carb, put it into a bottle and turn the ignition on. Do you get a good flow?

Let us know how you get on so that we can eliminate certain possibilities and make further suggestions.

Don

Re: Petrol issues on 1960 Morris Panelvan.

Posted: Thu Nov 14, 2019 7:21 am
by philthehill
Google Burlen Fuels Ltd http://sucarb.co.uk/?SID=kkhr9caom2781a ... re=surough to find the SU carb technical and overhaul instructions.
Burlen Fuels are the successors to SU carbs and manufacture, supply parts and recondition all types of SU carbs.

Re: Petrol issues on 1960 Morris Panelvan.

Posted: Tue Nov 19, 2019 4:14 am
by Gibby
Cheers Don,
am away from the car at present but your advice will be very helpful. Did not know how to attack the carby problem. will do what you say and maybe get a new top gasket as I have done some carby work on an old pilot with the new kit it was a breeze. Thanks again and will start with the carby then do as you suggested after that. I have replaced the petrol hose from the solid line (via the tank and pump) to filter and then onto the carby. Will also add a new in line filter too. Will get back to you shortly.

Re: Petrol issues on 1960 Morris Panelvan.

Posted: Tue Nov 19, 2019 4:16 am
by Gibby
Thanks Phil for your help. Always good to get info to add to my files.

Re: Petrol issues on 1960 Morris Panelvan.

Posted: Tue Nov 19, 2019 12:13 pm
by simmitc
Could you please post a picture of the engine bay showing all key areas? It's not going to add anything to the current diagnosis, but would be interesting in the context of some other topics and also aid in case you have any further problems. Many thanks.

Re: Petrol issues on 1960 Morris Panelvan.

Posted: Sat Nov 23, 2019 2:13 am
by Gibby
Hi Don,
Have taken the top cover off the carby as suggested.Seals seemed real easy to separate. Petrol did not look too bad. Cleaned the bowl out and yes a bit of sediment in the very bottom but none floating. Cleaned the bowl out and refitted top. Did find the piston under the top a little loose. Does that affect the petrol flow. all else looks ok. Also took the petrol pipe off the carby and after turning it on the petrol seemed to flow ok. I also added a new in line filter. Did not replace the piston above the float. is there a local place in Melb. where i can grab one of those. Phil gave me a good site for SU but i am running out of time to get the old girl running. Not sure of the carby model. The car is 1960 and motor is standard i believe. It has a large aircleaner with vent to rocker cover and air intake via tube near manifold. A conical hat looking cleaner.

Re: Petrol issues on 1960 Morris Panelvan.

Posted: Sat Nov 23, 2019 2:53 am
by Gibby
Am Having trouble downloading pictures. Sorry. Not real computer literate.

Re: Petrol issues on 1960 Morris Panelvan.

Posted: Sat Nov 23, 2019 8:51 am
by philthehill
I suspect that the carb fitted to your van is type:- AUD 13. There should be a tag on the float chamber which should confirm that the carb is in fact a AUD 13 item or other.

The float needle is prone to leak past leading to flooding of the carb. I would suggest as a first off that you change the float needle and seat.

Re: Petrol issues on 1960 Morris Panelvan.

Posted: Mon Nov 25, 2019 2:14 am
by Gibby
Hi Phil,
That seems correct. The carby looks like an AUD13. I am thinking I should take it off the manifold and check it out for operation and change the needle over too. could the motor be 1100. there was no tag on the fuel bowl area. but I am sure you are correct at the model.

Re: Petrol issues on 1960 Morris Panelvan.

Posted: Mon Nov 25, 2019 6:18 am
by don58van
Gibby

Am I correct in thinking that you are in Melbourne, Australia? (makes a difference to what resources you might have locally)
could the motor be 1100
It is unlikely in a 1960 van, but possible. They weren't available in 1960 and there aren't many 1100 engines available in Australia to use as an upgrade. What is the engine serial number (near No 1 spark plug)? Is there an aluminium tag below the front branch of the exhaust manifold with '1100' embossed on it?

You can very easily replace the float chamber needle and seat without removing the carby. Just take the lid off the float chamber as before, undo the assembly on the underside of the lid and replace the old parts with new. BTW. Be careful when talking to parts suppliers about getting a new needle--there is a fuel-mixture regulating needle in the heart of SUs and this must not be confused with the float bowl needle.

Other aspects of correct operation of the SU carb are easily checked in-situ.

Is it still flooding? If not, there is no urgency to replace the float-bowl needle and seat. If you are under time pressure, you need to concentrate on getting it running.

Don

Re: Petrol issues on 1960 Morris Panelvan.

Posted: Mon Nov 25, 2019 11:18 pm
by Gibby
Cheers Don,
The guy who had it previous changed the motor. My daughter spoke to him and I will confirm with her what he said. He also changed the front brakes to discs and the stearing column is Marina I believe. will check for numbers and confirm myself. the numbers on the block are very hard to read but will try. I am located in Oakleigh victoria. have had a chat to Classic Carbies and am getting a set of float needles and gaskets sent. Thanks heaps for your help. really invaluable.

Re: Petrol issues on 1960 Morris Panelvan.

Posted: Tue Nov 26, 2019 3:07 am
by don58van
Hi again

It is really just the first few characters I was interested to know. These will nearly always indicate which version of the A-series engine it is (the exception being where the engine has been commercially reconditioned and the reconditioner has put their own code there. The other indicator is the aluminium tag I referred to above ( as opposed to the digits '950' cast into the side of the block).

That said, it is a side issue to determine which version it is because it really makes very little difference in terms of the steps to getting it running properly.

Don

Re: Petrol issues on 1960 Morris Panelvan.

Posted: Tue Nov 26, 2019 9:50 am
by oliver90owner
The situation here, unless we have not been supplied with all relevant information, is that it was running and nothing basic (physically) has changed regarding its condition in those 5 years of storage.

Therefore, it should run just the same as the last time it was run, after making sure everything is cleaned and operational. There are a limited number of parts which would be likely to deteriorate seriously in that time.

Re: Petrol issues on 1960 Morris Panelvan.

Posted: Sat Dec 14, 2019 9:32 am
by Gibby
Thanks to all those with helpful info. You will be pleased to hear that the red panel van has started. I believe the issue was the float in the fuel bowl. The petrol kept coming out the overflow above the bowl. took the carby to the local carby guy in Clayton and he replaced the needle actuator. And apart from loosening the top screws holding the cover above the bowl which i was told it would eliminate any major air pockets. A very good idea. The electric fuel pump worked ok and i put a few litres of 98 petrol in the tank. I also took the spark plugs out and found they were gunked up a bit. Maybe flooded also. tightened the leads to the spark plugs too. Hey presto the old girl fluffed a couple of times and the 3 rd pull of the starter she fired into life. Sounds like it may have a new high performance cam. runs a bit rough to start with but increasing the revs she settles down. I also put oil in the carby down the shaft where the piston comes out. was fairly empty. It does have a bit of a dry sound around the front of the motor. but it does seem to sound ok. thanks again for all your help in the past. It is up on stands so checked the clutch and all forward and reverse gears work ok too. Brake pedal sits flat on the floor, figure there is no fluid in the lines. I need to move it into the garage so I was going to use the hand brake as a stop. only 20 feet or so.

Re: Petrol issues on 1960 Morris Panelvan.

Posted: Sat Dec 14, 2019 9:39 am
by Gibby
Thanks to all those with helpful info. You will be pleased to hear that the red panel van has started. I believe the issue was the float in the fuel bowl. The petrol kept coming out the overflow above the bowl. took the carby to the local carby guy in Clayton and he replaced the needle actuator. And apart from loosening the top screws holding the cover above the bowl which i was told it would eliminate any major air pockets. A very good idea. The electric fuel pump worked ok and i put a few litres of 98 petrol in the tank. I also took the spark plugs out and found they were gunked up a bit. Maybe flooded also. tightened the leads to the spark plugs too. Hey presto the old girl fluffed a couple of times and the 3 rd pull of the starter she fired into life. Sounds like it may have a new high performance cam. runs a bit rough to start with but increasing the revs she settles down. I also put oil in the carby down the shaft where the piston comes out. was fairly empty. It does have a bit of a dry sound around the front of the motor. but it does seem to sound ok. thanks again for all your help in the past. It is up on stands so checked the clutch and all forward and reverse gears work ok too. Brake pedal sits flat on the floor, figure there is no fluid in the lines. I need to move it into the garage so I was going to use the hand brake as a stop. only 20 feet or so.

Re: Petrol issues on 1960 Morris Panelvan.

Posted: Sat Dec 14, 2019 12:43 pm
by philthehill
Glad to hear that you have got the panel van started. :D
Loosening the screws holding the float chamber top to the bowl will not eliminate any air pockets because air pockets cannot form in the float chamber if the vent is clear. As you have already found out the float chamber vent is clear by the way of fuel exiting through the vent; any excess air in the float chamber will be pushed out of the vent by incoming fuel.