Odd stalling sympton

Can't go anywhere without a working drivetrain
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Abie Sea
Weekend Camper
Posts: 40
Joined: Fri Oct 23, 2015 6:29 pm
B190 Year: 1989
Location: Seattle

Odd stalling sympton

Post by Abie Sea »

WE just came back from a long trip back and forth across the Rockies from Kicking Horse to Glacier. This was the first trip after replacing the fuel pump in the front tank of an 89 b190. The pump unit was replaced to correct an problem with stalling under load and usually only when the front tank was in use. We started out from Bellingham on the front tank and had several instances in the first 40 miles when the engine began to stall and several pumps of the gas pedal seemed to correct the issue. It finally stalled out completely as we turned east on Highway 20. For the next two days we drove without problems using only the back tank. We hit a stretch of the Trans Canada Highway east of Golden BC where we had to go to the front tank after a 4 hour delay in traffic as they dealt with a fatal accident. Very soon after the restart on the front tank, the engine stalled. After a half hour cooling off, it worked relatively well for about 9 miles and got us to a gas station where we were able to get gas for the back tank. As we were approaching Lake Louise I decided to try the front tank, and it ran for about 10 miles but stalled again in town. It would not start immediately after that stall when I switched to the back tank, but when it cooled down the back tank got us to the nearest available campsite in Banff. It was late at night and the van's dependability was in question, and the wife was not particularly happy. After looking at options, and hundreds of miles from home, decided not to try and have a shop look at it at great expense and time taken out of the limited holiday time, we decided to go forth only on the back tank. It was a pain because one had to stop twice as often for gas, but 4 days later and three more times across the Rockies and back to Bellingham we had no problem.

The question is, does anyone have thoughts on how one the problem would occur only in the section between the front tank and the engine, while the line from the back tank seemed to get the fuel to the engine with no problem. The problem seems to be associated with heat, and temporarily cured by cooling? I am assuming that the replacement pump is functioning properly. I guest my best guess it that the switching mechanism has a problem in the front tank line which restricts the flow in a manner that is exacerbated by heat.

I did check the forum and saw several discussions but none seem to match my diagnosis

Any fresh ideas or similar experiences?

On this trip I caught a glimpse of a 2 B190s, at Lake Louise on August 31, but was not able to get a better description than one was older and had a orange and brown trim, while the other had blue trim, appeared to be a newer version. I could have sworn that the logo was B160, but I was tired and driving at the time. I am going to try and log in the B190s I see. I was in Okanagan country.
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Choptop
Seasoned Traveler
Posts: 390
Joined: Sat Aug 26, 2017 8:28 pm
B190 Year: 1990
WBCCI: 0
Location: Midwest

Re: Odd stalling sympton

Post by Choptop »

Possible vapor lock develops in the front tank line ? Had that issue w/ a '76 Caddy a lifetime ago, when it was hot out it would die quite often till it cooled down. This article has some decent idea's, hope it helps. https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1089 ... ngine.html
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weekender
Seasoned Traveler
Posts: 162
Joined: Mon Aug 25, 2008 12:00 am
B190 Year: 1993
WBCCI: 0
Location: Northampton MA

Re: Odd stalling sympton

Post by weekender »

Doesn't seem like a match, but recently had an issue with running rough, and stalling when hot. For me, it was the ignition module. Once cool, all was good. At temp, rough running and stalling.
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Choptop
Seasoned Traveler
Posts: 390
Joined: Sat Aug 26, 2017 8:28 pm
B190 Year: 1990
WBCCI: 0
Location: Midwest

Re: Odd stalling sympton

Post by Choptop »

[quote="weekender"]Doesn't seem like a match, but recently had an issue with running rough, and stalling when hot. For me, it was the ignition module. Once cool, all was good. At temp, rough running and stalling.[/quote

Had an ignition module on a Harley that did that, sit along side the road till it cooled, go a couple of miles... :x
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skater
Site Admin
Posts: 2569
Joined: Thu Mar 08, 2007 1:00 am
B190 Year: 1991
WBCCI: 13270
Location: Annapolis, MD

Re: Odd stalling sympton

Post by skater »

I like the theory about the fuel switch unit, maybe it's not fully switching and starving the engine of fuel. (I don't know if that's possible.)
1991 Airstream B190 - bought, 2005; sold, 2011; bought 2017
1995 Airstream Excella 30' trailer

WBCCI #13270, Washington, DC Unit
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Choptop
Seasoned Traveler
Posts: 390
Joined: Sat Aug 26, 2017 8:28 pm
B190 Year: 1990
WBCCI: 0
Location: Midwest

Re: Odd stalling sympton

Post by Choptop »

Was going to take my 1st adventure w/Aunt B today, didn't work out. After 15 minutes of driving she just lost most power, gas starved, not getting spark, I don't know, but after some reading I think it may be the fuel pressure regulator, symptoms seem the same, fairly easy to get at w/the dog house removed, project for next week w/plugs and what ever I feel qualified to do. :roll:
brefmint
Weekend Camper
Posts: 15
Joined: Wed Mar 15, 2017 9:00 pm
B190 Year: 0
WBCCI: 0

Re: Odd stalling sympton

Post by brefmint »

We fought a similar issue with our B190. It drove fine on the front tank but would stall out on the rear tank. After cool down, it would run fine again but then stall. We replaced, fuel pumps, switch valve, plugs, wires, ignition control module, distributor cap, and the problem persisted. We were very close to giving up until the culprit was discovered. Our issue was solved by replacing the rear gas tank. The van had been sitting for a long time with gas in the tank. The inside of the tank was ruined and was basically pumping sludge to the engine. We went ahead and replaced both tanks and now it runs fine. Good luck with your issue. I hope you discover the root of the problem faster than we did.
1990 B190
slapthecat
Seasoned Traveler
Posts: 130
Joined: Wed Dec 25, 2013 4:18 pm
B190 Year: 1990
WBCCI: 0

Re: Odd stalling sympton

Post by slapthecat »

I'll add to the previous post - I had a problem with the rear tank pump as well. When I took down the tank to replace the pump, I found the inside of the tank had some pretty widespread rust. I used POR15 tank sealer on that, replaced the pump, and she's been great every since! Been a year or two now...
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