F100 advice
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F100 advice
Hey guys,
I just purchased a low-mileage automatic v8 360 F100(1972) from a one owner family. Not a scratch or ding on the body - well taken care of.
Am having an issue starting it. It turns over, but you have to gas it to get it going. This never happened the numerous times that I test drove it. You could reach right in and it would start up cold and the engine sounds incredible.
Driving it home, I ran the a/c which they said works and was blowing cold. Ever since, I can't start it without laying on the gas and quickly throwing it into gear.
This is my first truck (my 5th Ford). Any ideas on what it could be before I have to blindly take it in?
Also - this is my first vintage car. Should I be looking for a specific mechanic for this truck or should any good mechanic know it's way around this truck?
Thanks guys!
Ashley
I just purchased a low-mileage automatic v8 360 F100(1972) from a one owner family. Not a scratch or ding on the body - well taken care of.
Am having an issue starting it. It turns over, but you have to gas it to get it going. This never happened the numerous times that I test drove it. You could reach right in and it would start up cold and the engine sounds incredible.
Driving it home, I ran the a/c which they said works and was blowing cold. Ever since, I can't start it without laying on the gas and quickly throwing it into gear.
This is my first truck (my 5th Ford). Any ideas on what it could be before I have to blindly take it in?
Also - this is my first vintage car. Should I be looking for a specific mechanic for this truck or should any good mechanic know it's way around this truck?
Thanks guys!
Ashley
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I would recommend you find a small independent shop to work on this. Most of the big shops I have taken mine to have no real interest in working on this. Parts may be harder to find and they don't want to have to look to hard. Drive around and see what type of cars you see in the shop, stop in and talk to a few. You will get a feel of how the shop operates and the interest of working on an older vehicle. Sounds like maybe a bad fuel pump, dirty fuel filter or carb. Have you checked the air cleaner. Good luck
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I have not checked a thing yet. I have a rec for different garages in town. I stopped by one of them today and the mechanic I talked to seemed very psyched to take a look at the truck but he was too backed up. I took that as a good sign that he is into older trucks. I live in farm country (Kansas) which helps as there are A LOT of old trucks around.
I will keep you posted on what they say on Monday = and def won't leave it with them if they don't seem into it.
Thanks darlin.
Ashley
I will keep you posted on what they say on Monday = and def won't leave it with them if they don't seem into it.
Thanks darlin.
Ashley
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From: salt lake
did they have it wormed up when you went to test it out? also is it a manual choke or electric one?
on your a/c. am i hope i understand you right when you turn it on it will kill the motor unless you go full throttle and have it in neutral. your compressor may be going out. but before you go and spend the $$ on that. how does the motor idle when you put it in gear w/o the a/c on? does it try to die or not change at all?
on a auto shop do as joco says. look for a shop that deals with older cars.
on your a/c. am i hope i understand you right when you turn it on it will kill the motor unless you go full throttle and have it in neutral. your compressor may be going out. but before you go and spend the $$ on that. how does the motor idle when you put it in gear w/o the a/c on? does it try to die or not change at all?
on a auto shop do as joco says. look for a shop that deals with older cars.
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Once I get it going - it runs great! I can let it idle forever once I get it going. It's just getting it started. I literally have to floor it and throw it (automatic) into drive with the foot on the gas. I realize that this is horrible for the engine -but it's better than being stuck.
As I am a gal - I wanted to get advice before I take it in somewhere and have someone take advantage of me and say I need a million things done, etc. So any advice is appreciated.
As I am a gal - I wanted to get advice before I take it in somewhere and have someone take advantage of me and say I need a million things done, etc. So any advice is appreciated.
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From: salt lake
the hard start could be due to a few thing. if a manual choke is present then you need to us it, if it is on there but not hooked up in the cab you need to have it hooked up so you can use it. if its a electric one then it needs to be ether adjusted needs to be hooked up.
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A manual choke will have a **** inside the truck cab marked 'choke'. You must physically pull on the **** to set the choke on the carb to make starting easier in the morning or if you have not driven for a few hours depending on the temp out side. You then need to manually shut the choke off after the engine has warmed up. An electric choke will do all this automatically, all you do is turn the key to start the engine.
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From: salt lake
the manual choke you have a cable hooked to the carburetor that runs to a leaver on the cab. the leaver pulls in and out. this is what the **** looks like it is on the right side of the steering wheel
the electric choke is well electric
you dont have to worry about it. you just mash the gas to the floor once before you start it. then mash the gas when worm to unactivated.
the electric choke is well electric
you dont have to worry about it. you just mash the gas to the floor once before you start it. then mash the gas when worm to unactivated.
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You guys are great! Are there ways to find mechanics (locally) who work on older trucks? Online things - etc?
Drove it this morning to get coffee. Had to floor it and throw it into drive as usual. Then it stalled on the st. shortly after (I assume that this is bc I didn't let it warm up enough?)
When I test drove it, it had literally been sitting for days on the lot and started up right away everytime I drove it over a two hour period. So what is the connection between me turning on the a/c when I drove it out of the lot (first time I did that) and it now not starting up for me? What is the a/c connected to? (again - total beginner here)
Thanks guys!
Ashley
Drove it this morning to get coffee. Had to floor it and throw it into drive as usual. Then it stalled on the st. shortly after (I assume that this is bc I didn't let it warm up enough?)
When I test drove it, it had literally been sitting for days on the lot and started up right away everytime I drove it over a two hour period. So what is the connection between me turning on the a/c when I drove it out of the lot (first time I did that) and it now not starting up for me? What is the a/c connected to? (again - total beginner here)
Thanks guys!
Ashley
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I have a '71 F100 with similar issues. Mine has the 302 V8 in it. Every time I try to start it cold I have to pump the gas a lot. I have a manual choke that I use and still doesn't really help. The choke seems as though it doesn't open and close all the way either. is there a way of adjusting that? I've never owned a carbureted vehicle before so I assumed that this was just a normal symptom of its age. Should I be concerned?
because every thread needs a picture
because every thread needs a picture
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Sounds like a problem I had in my car. The car (Treveler) would not start easily, and when I tried to put it in gear it would die. It turned out the alternator was seizing when I tried to start it. Sometimes I could tighten the belt enough to make it work. I would not recomend tightening the belt too far and leaving it that way, but you might tighten it and see if the truck goes into gear easier. If it is the alternator, a new one can be bought at Auto Zone, or most other auto stores. And changing the laternator is an easy job, even for a beginer.
Jason
Jason
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adrf100,
Try this, go to your local superstore and buy a can of carburetor/choke cleaner. Warm your truck up and follow the directions on the can for cleaning the carburetor and choke. Just in case. . . to do this, after it's warmed up, remove the air filter from the carburetor then spray the choke, linkages and inside the carb good while giving it a little gas to rev it so it doesn't stall and die on you. It'll only cost you a couple of bucks and 10 minutes. Hope you the best.
Try this, go to your local superstore and buy a can of carburetor/choke cleaner. Warm your truck up and follow the directions on the can for cleaning the carburetor and choke. Just in case. . . to do this, after it's warmed up, remove the air filter from the carburetor then spray the choke, linkages and inside the carb good while giving it a little gas to rev it so it doesn't stall and die on you. It'll only cost you a couple of bucks and 10 minutes. Hope you the best.
Cargo Master
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From: North Pole, Alaska
These trucks never came with an electric choke. They came with a manual choke or an automatic choke that uses a metallic spring that left the choke off when it gets warm as it expands. The spring might be going bad or it has been wound too tight, meaning the case has been turned to far. I did that once after putting in a carb kit on my 72. Also make sure that the heater hose runs next to the black cap on the side of the carb (which holds the auto choke spring) as this makes it warm up faster.