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Reply to "Calling all 'high altitude' guys . . . . ."

 

As noted, fuel percolation in our cars is a common problem.

It's worst when you stop for a short while after driving hard because the engine compartment is at its hottest then - a few minutes after you park it. The engine is then as hot as it ever will get, but there's suddenly no air running through the compartment, so things like carbs and fuel lines get even hotter than when you're driving.

A quick and painless test is to simply leave your engine compartment lid open when you park to see if that makes any difference. I often do this in hot weather.  I have also insulated some fuel lines that run near the fan shroud, but I don't know if that has made any real difference.

But here's the thing. The effects of this problem (air in carb passages and fuel lines) should quickly go away after you start driving again (within five minutes or so). If they don't, the rough running may be caused by something else. It could be your carbs were never jetted or tuned right for high altitude and that high temps are just making things worse.

It's also possible (but less likely in a new car) that your ignition coil or the electronic module in your distributor are breaking down at high temps and correcting themselves when cool.

Did you tune the carbs (or have it done) after the car was shipped from Arizona? I live near sea level, but drive in the Sierras quite a bit. At elevations above 5000', the car is not as happy as at home. If I'm staying in the mountains for a few days, I'll tweak the carbs a little for the altitude and then reset them when I get home. But if you live at 6000', the jetting, idle mixture settings, and maybe timing should be different than they would have been in Phoenix.

PS: Here in northern California, virtually all gas is 10% ethanol.

 

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