All,

The FE446 motor does not like to start cold. I have to hit it many times, feathering the throttle hoping to get it just right to where it will hold at about 2000rpm. Then I have to hold it there until the temp gauge starts to move, maybe then it will idle.

I'd really like to walk out there, hit the starter and go back to doing something else while it warms up. I don't mind that it has to warm up. I just would like for it to do it without my working the throttle for 5 minutes.

Not to mention, I now have an electric fan, fuel pump and ignition. My battery is getting worked hard enough without trying to start 10 times.

Surely, some of you have been through this adujustment process with a pretty custom motor. Maybe you can save me some tuning time.

Once warm, it runs pretty good.

 

Gtex...I run a electric choke on my Holley on the 390...All I do is turn the key to the on position..Push the gas pedal to the floor...hit the starter..and she lite's right up..runs about 1200 RPM on high idle for about 5 mins..and then hit the pedal again as she comes back down to idle at 650 rpm... Good Luck..Russ

 

Maybe , I just need to reset that high idle adjustment.

 

Ya that might work too... Is it a new carb? cause there not set at the factory?? LOL!!! Good luck and let me know what you find!!

Russ...

 

If you touch the pedal after you start it it will drop the hihg idle arm and you're screwed. I pump the pedal once and hit the ignition to let the MSD energize and then hit the key. It runs like crap for 10 seconds (due to the fuel dripping into the intake) and then it slowly works its way up to 2,500rpm or so. Once it gets there I tap the pedal and it idles down fine.

 

Gtex,

Here is a simple rule of thumb. A properly tuned/jetted engine will not run when cold. If it does it is too rich.

It is necessary to supply extra fuel to the engine through some means, a choke for example, until the engine warms up. What you are saying makes me happy for you, it means you have your engine tuned pretty well.

-Scouder

 

Gtex, if it’s any consolation my CJ is real cold-blooded too. I think my problem is the cam, it’s an old-school Crane Blazer and has a lot of overlap. When starting it cold it likes to spit back thru the carb. and when it does catch I have to feather it and hold the revs up for a couple minutes before it will idle without dieing on the fast idle cam.

 

Seems like I might just have to baby it for those first few minutes. Not that big of a deal. But I remember just after I installed the Demon carb, I went out the next morning, didn't even tap the gas, hit the starter, it went to a perfect high idle.....I just wish I could get it to do that again. I'm not sure how cold it was then.

The guy that tuned my carb, did remove the choke plate. He seemed to think that every Holley on a performance motor he had worked on just needed the high idle set correctly, and not the choke plate??? I'm not sure I worded that as he did, but I think I got the jist of what he was saying.

 

well im not sure what you are calling cold temp wise but i have 72 that had a 390 now am back to a 360 ( 390 go boom my mistake)
but i lived in wyoming and on any january morning could wllk out to my truck and fire it up first shot thanks to a pair of frost plug heaters set on a timer. i set a timer to turn them on a half hour before i needed the truck and they kick in warm up the coolant and you get easy smooth starts. (i use a pair a kats 600 watt heaters)

 

I live in Texas..South Central Texas. My version of cold is probably swimming weather for you guys :-)

 

I lowered my floats about 1/16th of an inch. It seems to have solved my flooding while sitting problem. I just did it and it was getting intermittent anyways so some more time will tell.

 

Put the choke plate back in. With it gone, you're effectively not having a choke, and it's not richening it to start/run while cold.

 

well considerin our lake water never gets much above fifty your probably right ;-)

 

Gtex, I don't think anything in Texas can be considered a 'cold start'. In northern Michigan at -42F, thats a cold start. For starters, put the choke plate back on, and it should be hooked to a manual control cable. Automatic chokes are more trouble than they are worth. You have 3 problems at the same time, I think. #1, your tune-up guy has absolutely no clue what he is doing. Get rid of him. #2, the carb is not set up correctly for the combination you have. Probably caused by problem 1. #3, the ignition is not doing the job it needs to do. I have never heard Scouder's rule of thumb, and would like to know just where he heard that ? Sounds like poppycock or balderdash to me. What size is the carb you have ? Anything less than 850, minimum, is way too small for your engine. But that shouldn't hold it back from easy starting. Are the throttle plates drilled ? or maybe slotted ? The primary throttle blades on a car with a biggish cam frequently benefit from being slotted or drilled to allow more air to pass with the blades farther closed, like the cam sizes you and BB and me and others have chosen. Then you can idle on the idle circuit, like the carb was intended to, and use the choke while starting. The choke plate in partially closed position creates a bigger draw on the main boosters, adding more fuel for easy starts. In texas, I can't imagine ever even using the choke, but it ought to be ther in case you want it. Way back in the bad ole days, we used to have to tune a lot differantly, to create the easiest possible mixture for the ignition to light. With modern CD and computer ignitions, it is a whole new ballgame. My Jacobs assisted duraspark starts the 421 instantly, even in sub freezing weather. Your MSD should have similar capability. Are you getting 12 volts at the coil ? What kind of spark plugs and what gap do they have ? DF

 

It fires every time on the first crank and early on the crank. So, I feel that the ignition is good.

If you look at the recent Dyno data, the power curve was all I could hope for. So I believe he did a good job tuning the carb for running through the powerband. But, the choke high idle cam was adjusted poorly. Can I run a manual high idle setup. I think that's all I need here in Texas. The choke plate does not seem to be necessary for my setup. I just have to feather the the throttle for the first few cranks so that it keeps running at about 2000RPM.

It's still hard to keep going when cold (I should say idle for a long period). Once the temp gauge starts moving, it will idle on it's own. Once the thermostat has opened, at about 200 sensor temp, things are good to go.

I may still be fighting fuel feed issues. I was educated yesterday, that I must run a larger feed to the pump than going out of the pump. My setup is unfortunately, not that right now. I'm running 3/8 on both sides, but it slips over the stock 5/16" metal line going to the tank, and it makes the climb up and over the in-cab tank.

I'll be replumbing next week. -10 from the tank to the pump (through an upgraded filter), then -8 to the regulator, the dual -6 feeds to the BG carb. Just another couple hundred bucks gone....