Difficulty starting after sitting a long time
hollasboy
Jeeper
My '79 CJ5 (I6/AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l ) has difficulty starting after about 5-6 days of sitting. Anything less than that, I experience no problems. After that time period, I can sit there and crank away for sometimes over 30 seconds before the engine officially starts (which I understand is terrible for my starter). Once it's up and running, I have no problem restarting it for another 5-6 days. One workaround is to pop off the air filter on the carb, drop in a little gas, then it cranks right up. That's a pain tho because I have to pop the hood, and my air filter has 4 spring clips that I have to pry off with a screwdriver, and they sometimes fly off or fall down in the engine bay.
I thoroughly read the technical thread on starting issues (https://www.jeep-cj.com/forums/f99/engine-wont-start-troubleshooting-guide-19494/) but have a few follow up questions. It seems I have a fuel supply problem that only occurs after sitting for a long time. I also have an electric fuel pump the PO installed. I bought a replacement OEM mechanical fuel pump, and would like to go back to that if possible, mostly to put it back the way it is supposed to be, but also because I want to eliminate all possible complications - which another electric device only adds.
My questions are:
1. What might be the pros/cons to switching back to a mechanical fuel pump?
2. What conditions would cause this problem with starting after sitting for some days?
3. Is there a way to charge the carb with gas without having to remove the air filter box on top of it?
I thoroughly read the technical thread on starting issues (https://www.jeep-cj.com/forums/f99/engine-wont-start-troubleshooting-guide-19494/) but have a few follow up questions. It seems I have a fuel supply problem that only occurs after sitting for a long time. I also have an electric fuel pump the PO installed. I bought a replacement OEM mechanical fuel pump, and would like to go back to that if possible, mostly to put it back the way it is supposed to be, but also because I want to eliminate all possible complications - which another electric device only adds.
My questions are:
1. What might be the pros/cons to switching back to a mechanical fuel pump?
2. What conditions would cause this problem with starting after sitting for some days?
3. Is there a way to charge the carb with gas without having to remove the air filter box on top of it?
