I have a classic Fiat500 with hot start ( and run ) problems. The engine has been recently reconditioned ( about 50 miles) which might be part of the problem, but I have run some tests that might be of interest below.
I have fitted an Attwood in-line marine bilge fan taking air from bottom of the engine compartment onto the float chamber. The graph shows the temperature rise at idle until boiling occurs in the float chamber for three fuels, leading to miss-firing that progresses until the engine stalls. The plugs showed a white central insulator after stall, agreeing with Paul's predictions in his book. Before stalling, the plugs showed a good straw colour.
Thanks for a very useful book that has increased my knowlege of the mysteries of internal combustion engines.
Tests on Fiat500 at Idle ( May 2021 )
Tests performed at idle with electric fan thermistor ( RS 706-2743 ) on outside of float-chamber and connected to digital thermostat (W1209) set to 28 on / 26 off driving elec. fan Attwood 3000 bilge.
The thyristor and the small ( cheap ) digital thermostat printed-circuit board enables the carburettor ( or any other ) temperature to be displayed inside the car while driving which I found useful, if somewhat distracting !.
Red curve was with bonnet open, rest with bonnet closedLight blue=Anglo American ‘Storage 99 RON’ ,Dark blue=BP Super E5, Brown=BP premium 95RON E5
Comments