horrible running engine

[trabant]

My rather lovely series 11 has the following problem when idling its not what id call lumpy as such by sounds rather like two of the ht leads are on the wrong ( they aren't) its got naff all to offer in terms.of acceleration.even for a series 11 the slightest of gradients and your in third I'm.not talking hills here I'm talking road with a very slight incline it wont accelerate at all in top gear unless pointing down hill. I'll be honest I've not touched the igintion system other than changing the plugs which made no difference and number two came out a bit sooty compared with the other three it misfires under strain I doubt the dashpot oil has been checked in ten years possible cause ? Other than that I'm thinking frazzled valve or possible blow between 2 & 3 thoughts and any suggestions welcomed.

[The vast minority]

Might just be running too rich
Try it with filter off to confirm or eliminate,
Also clean and set points as they need regular checking
Al

[bmcecosse]

First off -check the valve gaps and reset them. Then 'feel' the compressions (possibly a misnomer on the 803 engine, I grant you) to decide if there are any cylinders less than others.. The real test of course is with a compression test gauge. I do suspect at least a burned valve - or possibly a blown head gasket - which would be between 1 & 2 or 3 & 4.. It 'never' blows between 2 and 3.. But - it could simply be a rotten HT lead... Another simple test is to remove each HT lead in turn while the engine idles - to decide if any one (or two) cylinders make no difference when the lead is removed. But this doesn't tell you if it's an Ignition problem - so a low compression. If gasket is suspected - it is IMPORTANT to NOT run the engine till the head has been lifted for inspection.

[trabant]

Now its odd you say that I've dealt with two a-series engines in the past where the head had actually eroded between 2 & 3 I've ordered basically a complete ignition system I've only just got this car and its suffering from the curse of having been under the care of the local mechanic in the village where it previously lived usual stuff clutch so badly out of adjustment to get it to bite your knee had to be touching your chin and brakes that had apparently been bled and adjusted last year with a pedal that flattened the carpet before I even thought of stopping. It starts exceptionally well first spin of the handle ( battery also knackered ) so I'm rather hoping a damn good service might sort it.

[bmcecosse]

A 1275 may blow between 2 & 3, but on the others there is plenty of meat there... I suppose I should say 'unlikely' rather than 'never'...