Morris Minor Owners Club

well as you know I went to Brooklands on the austin morris do well I left at 4.30 sat morn to go to ace cafe and then on to sussex to run up sun morn with scmmoc half hour after setting off I lost power and it would run a bit better if I put my foot down to the floor bringing in the second choke but on 1st choke all I goy was a very loud sucking of air sounded lie an air leak on a compressor stopped let it tick over while I lifted bonnet and it stopped this happened 5 more times all the way down to the ace cafe. I am told this is the carb iced up I have a K&N filter and the engine is a pinto 2ltr with a twin choke webber. do you think the guy was correct telling me this he even said I bet you have a K&N filter so he seemed to know what he was on about and even said try to feed a bit of warm air into it and that will cure it. It did do it a few times coming home and this is not the first time I have taken it on long trips but that was in the summer of last year and no problems then

I used to have carb icing problems on my old Ford Escort; it mystified me for ages. It only happened in cold weather or at night; there would be a serious dropping-off of power and a grinding to a halt, then after a while the engine would start again and off I would go again until the next time.

I read about carb icing in the Telegraph Motoring section, and a light bulb went on just over my head. Pinggg. Like that. The Escort has, or is supposed to have, a corrugated metal hose leading from a collector (technical term? ) at the exhaust manifold to the air intake. Mine had come away. I reconnected it and ...problem solved.

I had a Polo fitted with a twin choke Weber that ran very well with a standard filter. I decided to try a K&N and come the cold weather it would run rough and then stall if the revs dropped anywhere near idle.
The problem was the seal on the filter was too large and doubling over in one spot leaving a gap. Water was condensing on the domed filter cover and dripping down into the carb and drowning it at lower revs.

I had the same problem with a K&N fitted to a 1300 A+ engine.

I got the hot air feed kit from K&N... this was the biggest pile of c**p going! it consisted of a plastic strip to block 90% of the air filter and a piece of paper tube to act as a trunk..I can not remember what i paid but if i had seen it before i certianly would not have bought it.

Certainly sounds like icing - and the weather just now is ideal for it. Hot air is the answer - however you arrange it. Either a 'stove' on the exhaust and a trunking - or just a trunking to behind the top part of the radiator. Blanking off the grille may help of course - perhaps a good old fashioned 'radiator blind' is the answer!

Tog,
If you google "Caruretor icing" and go to Wkapedia and then on their link to the Civil Aiviation Authority's "Carburetor Icing Chart" you'll the range
of the problem. Its much feared on piston engines arcraft. It can occur from about -2C to over +30C, but typically, of course, requires cool wet and conditions - just like that Brooklands Sunday!
(But the car looked great!) MikeN.

Well thanks to you all I never thought I would end up with this problem unless I was flying aircraft but you have convinced me this is the prob cheers for the link Mike will look at it. what I was thinking is to get a bit of warm air from the breather and pipe it into the filter do you think that should do it.My other project Bettis [stupid name] it has the breather piped in so it looks like the answer

The engine needs far more 'warm air' than anything reasonably coming out of a breather! Radiator blind is the answer.

fate must be with me as a minor turned up in the scrap yard with a blind in the boot so I shall get it the only thing is I dont have full inner wings so it,s getting more air around the carrb than it should

Well you can use the more traditional radiator blind which is a suitable sized piece of cardboard with a loop of string to go round the radiator filler neck and you can trim the cardboard size to suit the weather conditions or make 2 or 3 of different sizes.

Re Kevin's "bits of cardboard" I've found HARDboard with a 10 inch diameter circular hole that lines up with the fan very successful.. (That's on a standard 1098.) The fan's actually about 12 inch in dia, but in cold weather, ie from November to Easter it works well, having the advantage that when in slow traffic most of the air moved is by the fan which of course line up with the hole - so no overheating. I've used a 9 inch hole in very cold weather, but then a water temp gauge is essential to prevent the odd over cooking. MikeN. (Mind the hardboard doesn't cover the starting handle hole!)

Aaah. I think your lack of inner wings is the main problem! Far too much cold air washing around the engine. Can you not install inner wings - even just non structural ally sheet would do ?

it,s a bit awkward as I have triumph suspension but I will look again the only other thing I was thinking of was to fit the original filter for the colder times and fit the heat tube to the exhaust

The Triumph cars have nice removeable side screens in their engine bays!

Good thinking will look into it Thanks

I think you just need to use a Tea Cosy

http://www.demon-tweeks.com/products/Pr ... K/N85-5158

How about one of these?

thats given me an idea make a clip on bracket like the one on demon tweeks and get a lenght of that silver flexy pipe you get under your air filter you know the stuff pipe it over to the exhaust manifold and pop it on the heat sheild over the exhaust that should do it do you think I have been told by someone who rallys that if you can get a bit of hot air going in as well as yhe normal amount it will work

Hot air is what you want! Can't see how the Demon kit is meant to work exactly - but yes the idea is to gather hot air from a 'stove' fitted around the exhaust pipe(s) - and feed that into the carb. Ideally of course - it will have a thermostat which switches to fresh cold air when the general airstream has warmed up.

I was thinkink just for the colder months worth a try