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MG TD TF 1500 - Gas shooting out float bowl vent pipe

Has anyone had the situation where fuel shoots out of the float bowl vent pipe (the float bowl closest to the fuel pump)?

I had that happen about two weeks ago and I took apart the float bowl and cleaned some gunk out of the bottom of the bowl and cleaned out the passageway between the bowl and the carb and it took care of the problem. But now it's back again.

Any suggestions?

Larry

LE Becker

Yes, I had the problem. The fuel pump would click away and then it would shoot out of the overflow pipe.

I had the float needle in upside down. The sharp pointy bit points up. Otherwise, it won't seal properly and the fuel pump will continue to pump fuel until it exits via the float bowl.

Hey, I'm a newbie.

Geoff Baker

Sounds like your float valve may have stuck. Taking it off probably knocked the gunk out. I'd make sure they are both clean and working smoothly, as well as fully sealing. Worst case, replace the valve. Don't forget to set the float height afterward.
Steve Simmons

Float lever dropping too far when all th fuel evaporates from the float bowl and jamming against the needle, keeping it from closing. The fix is covered in the article, Float Lever Drop in the Other Tech Articles section of my web site at: http://homepages.donobi.net/sufuelpumps/ Note: This is a completely different adjustment than the float level adjustment. Cheers - Dave
David DuBois

Sometimes the obvious doesn't get noticed right away.

Today I took the float bowls off, cleaned them again and put them back on, but the fuel still pumped out the vent in the rear float bowl chamber in rhythm to the fuel pump. Then I just took off the top of the rear float bowl and noticed that the float wasn’t floating. I had a spare set of carburetors and float bowls from a disassembled car I bought from Bob Seymour at Abingdon and I replace the defective float with one of the old spares and that fixed the problem. Once the float was floating it worked fine.

Larry
LE Becker

Always nice when you solve the problem!
Geoff Baker

I had a similar problem with my MK2 Jag. When you shook the float you could hear the fuel inside.

Cheers
Dave
D Moore

To save the original, I guess I have to find the source or sources of the leak and then make darn sure all the gas is fully vented from the float, and then figure out some way to braze the leaks shut. Ah, another fun project.

Larry
LE Becker

Larry, I stuck my sunken float in near-boiling hot water, and tiny air bubbles came out of the leaking spot. I took a small drill, drilled a small hole through the leak, and shook all of the gas out that I could. I then took a propane torch to warm it up to evaporate the rest, and there was evidently some gas left which made a nice jet of flame! Lucky it didn't blow up I guess. Then soldered the hole shut, tested and no bubbles so should be a good spare. Use a tiny small torch to solder, because the regular propane one will melt the solder most of the way around, which makes a big mess and a really ugly repair! George
George Butz

Um...once you drill...fill it with water and shake it around a few times...and maybe some soap and water....
George...glad I didn't see you on the Darwin Awards website....
Careful with gas.......
gblawson

Thanks for the advice.

Larry
LE Becker

Yep....Fun with carbs :
10 years ago ...1 float upsidedown and the other leaking/full of gas....one wrong size jet and one bent.
Never have figured out how the car actually ran after some of my PO's mods!
But it did!
David Sheward

This thread was discussed between 07/12/2009 and 25/12/2009

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