first of all a big hello to all, this is my first post so forgive me if im in the wrong place etc, if so then please tell me lol. this is my problem. i have a 1990 1.3 ford escort eclipse and today gave it a good look over and a valet as i had an mot booked for 2pm. i got about 200 yards from my house when the car sort of died on me, if i let my foot of the accelerator then it would die, i had to rev it high to move very slowly. its hard to explain but its like there is a flat spot in the carb. id have to rev it several times to get it over 2000 revs. i after a while i just about managed to crawl home. my original thought was a blocked fuel filter maybe, as it will start up but is really struggling to rev, if that makes sense. i dont know a great deal about fords, but looking online has baffled me a bit with the different engine types. i have the car booked back in for an mot tomorrow so am gonna try and fix the problem in the morning. if anyone has any idea as to what the problem may be or where the filter is then id be really grateful. been pulling my hair out all day. any suggestions are welcome. many thanks.

 

sorry i meant to say as well , i cant find the fuel filter anywhere, im stumped

 

Halfords do them, or should do get mine from there for my xr3i.

With it being a carb im no help sorry

 

thanks mate, i will go there in the morning, but i dont know if this is the problem or not, im just guessing. one of my worries is that i cant even find the filter, am i being stupid or have a missed something lol.

 

Not sure what they look like on these. I have one thats a similar size to a can of coke but i think the 1.3s have a small in line plastic filter with a papery element inside.
As i say im not sure tbh. I doubt its that anyway id say theres a problem with the carb
With it being a small engine people don't seem to help as much on here i find

 

thanks for all your help mate. i know its only a 1.3 but at least you replied. cheers for your time. gotta feeling tomorrow is gonna be a long long day lol,

 

did you pressure wash/soak the engine bay?..

does car idle ok or does it just die off?..

 

no mate i didnt, it feels like i did pressure wash it if you know what i mean. it just wont rev smooth, i takes me ten or 20 revs to get to 2/3000 revs. really tryin hard not to stall it. its strange and i cant even find the fuel filter chris. any suggestions are welcome mate. oh yes if i leave it then it will just die if i dont keep hitting the throttle.

 

How did you get on this morning? is it any better?

 

Fuel filter not fitted as standard on this car, may be a blockage in the jets. try cleaning the carb out & blow the jets to clear any dirt.

 

thanks to all that replied and gave me some pointers. i got up this morning and decided to take the carb off after finding out it doesnt have a fuel filter?(strange) took the carb to bits cleaned all the jets, adjusted the needle valve, put it all back together, crossed my fingers and it fired up lovely. it may sound easy when i put it like that, but it was dark when i finished, and doing it in the snow was no fun at all believe me lol. but i felt good after, all the frostbite seemed worth it. all it cost me was a can on wd40 and a can of air. great?. i have only just logged on, but your suggestion was right sallan81 and fordmad!,it was the carb. thanks to all of you that took the time to answer my thread. many many thanks.

 

replied to your pm, nowt better than a free fix.. did you get to your mot?

 

thanks for the pm chris, sounds good advice to me, no too late mot will be monday now i hope. i am only moting it as it was going to be my summer project and hasnt been on the road for 2 years , but i know i wont get around to doing it as i have too many cars on the go. and dont want it sitting on my drive this weather. and as it has fsh and 54000 miles she has to go on the dreaded fleabay next week im afraid. i will be sad to see it go as i love the car but i have to start thinning the fleet down somewhere as i have another 2 cars on the way lol. but i will make sure i tell the new owner what you pmd me mate. all the best and thanks for all your advice chris.

 

and all the best with the ticket..

 

Carbs are terrible on these, especially if it's a "Ford VV"?

Martin

 

hi martin, no its a webber, which i found a bit strange as according to the haynes manual it should be for the 1600 and mine is 1300. wouldnt of thought anyone had changed it from new as its one family owned with full history, so not like a boy racer had tried to put a bigger carb on. maybe ford did this on some models when they were coming to the end of the production run, unless you may know any different martin.

 

These came with a webber as standard, must have different jets than a 1600. good news that the card clean sorted your problem.happy motoring.

 

If your planning on keeping the car id get the carb rebuilt as you will probably always have problems with it!

 

thanks mate, but as i said earlier iv got to thin the fleet down so as much as it pains me its goin on fleabay next week when i get the mot, or might even try it on here. thats if you can advertise it on here, not too sure but will have a look and see if i can find a for sale forum. thanks for all the the replies. its been a great help.

 

Love these mk4 eclipses. Glad u got it fixed. Glws

 

thanks mate

 

The "HCS" engines have the "Weber 2V TLDM" carb.

They usually are good, it's just the Ford carbs that are problematic.

Martin

 

thanks for clearing that up mate.

 

Is that ur eclipse on eBay just now?

 

yes mate , thats the eclipse on ebay . 1990 escort eclipse 54000 miles fsh. il be happy when a new owner gets it and gets it in the garage, i hate seeing it sitting outside.