Oxygenated Gasoline Problems
by: eli mishuck
i wish to inform fca/foc of recent problem i have encountered with the new oxygenated gasoline in my dino (?72) and daytona (?73) ferraris. as you may be aware, these gasolines contain 15% mtbe (methyl tertiary butyl ether) and are mandated for use in california and certain regions in other states (new york, connecticut, new jersey, etc.)/
dino problem - during a sunday drive in san diego, my wife said she smelled gasoline. "don?t tell me all ferraris with multiple carburetors smell of gasoline," evelyn said. i pulled over to the side of the road, stopped the car, opened the hood, and there it was. gasoline dripping all over the engine and in standing pools around the spark plugs. wow!
i got in touch with my mechanic friend. he came out and replaced, with new rubber, the older ferrari standard fuel line which the gasoline had penetrated. we drove home relieved over not having been burned alive. (i promise to pay more attention to evelyn?s comments from now on!)
all rubber hoses in contact with gasoline have been replaced and will be monitored on a regular basis and inspected for integrity.
daytona problem - driving north on i-5 we noticed the car losing power and starting to slow down. hesitation increased on acceleration. the car had major service recently: webers, timing, plugs, filters, etc. i pulled over to the side, stopped and the engine died. on restart, the accelerator pedal felt like fuel starvation was occurring.
i called my mechanic again. yes, it was sunday! we barely made it to his garage, he found the fuel filters, fuel passages, etc., packed with plastic or paint fragments. these were suspected and later confirmed to be the polymer coating on the interior of the aluminum fuel tanks which had disintegrated. the tanks had been coated about two years ago. presumably, the new gasoline had chemically broken down the liner coating.
as an aside--the coating/lining had been applied by a supposedly knowledgeable restoration shop to prevent fuel leaks at the tanks weld joints. i question the wisdom of coating the inside of aluminum tanks. it would have been better to have fixed the welds. it cost mucho dollars to have the tanks removed, opened up, cleaned out, rewelded and recoated on the outside only. yes, they were pressure tested. moreover, the entire fuel supply system, webers and all, had to be recleaned and reset. also, all rubber hoses have now been replaced and will be monitored regularly.
other experience - i was searching for other relevant experience with older cars and oxygenated fuels when joe drummond of drummond coach and paint, el cajon, found a report by hemmings, p. 793-795, january 1997.
this reference is well written and documented and implies that mtbe is a potent solvent for rubbers and many plastics, unlike hydrocarbons like iso-octane. this reference reveals similar experiences to mine with many makes of automobiles as well as motorcycles. mysterious fires with classic cars have been reported.
it also questions the validity of government mandates on use of oxygenated gasolines from environmental, health and safety standpoints.
conclusions - could this be a plot to rid the nation, and in particular california of older classic cars, motorcycles and perhaps the people who love and drive them? are there adequate data to support the mandated use of oxygenated gasoline in ferraris and other cars?
finally, let me raise some questions. do we have the same problems with ferraris that the hemmings reference describes for other makes of older cars and oxygenated fuels? are the problems i described with my ferraris in line with hemmings message or are they due to other causes?
if hemmings? message is correct, what can we as ferrari clubs do? shall we approach ferrari north america? do we play russian roulette and wait
Tech Tip - Carburetion
by allen bishop
in vol. 2, issue 7 (august 1995), i outlined some of the essential factors that affect proper carburetion. what i neglected to mention is the most fundamental and obvious function of the carburetion system: to deliver the correct mixture of air and fuel over a wide range of engine speeds and loads. weber carburetors combine simplicity with an unparalleled ability to fulfill the above requirements on hundreds of different engines. they became obsolescent when the requirements for fuel mixture ratios and delivery could only be managed by computer-controller systems. a weber carburetor is essentially a "slave" device within its range of adjustment, while the current fuel injection systems are information-gathering devices that deliver fuel to the engine based upon what they are programmed for as the optimum amount for best power and emission levels for thousands of rpm/load, air density and temperature conditions.
the adjustment process for weber carburetors is necessary only when they have been removed from the engine for disassembly and cleaning, or whenever the engine exhibits erratic running. remember, the ignition system must be performing correctly prior to any adjustments to the carburetors, and the engine itself must be in reasonably sound internal condition. the following is an outline of the adjustment process.
since the ferrari engines use multiple carburetors operating synchronously, the first consideration is that all three, or six carburetors must be adjusted to flow the same amount of air to each cylinder. the most commonly used device to measure the airflow is the "synchrometer," a flowmeter of very simple design having a speedometer-like needle that moves across a scale. this meter is placed successively into each carburetor intake directly, or with the aid of an adapter. the process is as follows:
ensure that all linkages are correctly assembled and with all connections tight, make sure that when the throttle pedal is floored that all throttle plates are wide open. do not make this test by any means other than depressing the throttle pedal "to the metal." use a flashlight to look into each carb; have a helper hold the pedal down. do not use a brick or any other artificial means to verify full throttle position. activate the electric fuel pump and allow it to fill the carburetor float bowls. if the carbs are newly overhauled or the ferrari has been standing idle for some time, gently tap the carburetors with the handle of your golden screwdriver. this will unstick a bottomed float/needle. watch for fuel leaks! if a leak erupts, either have your helper cut the ignition, or remove the ground strap from the battery immediately. have the clamping bolt loose for this purpose, but always maintain a snug fit on the battery post. none of the fuel delivery connections need to be brutally tightened to effect a seal. remember, the threads do not create the sealing effect. a word here about the washers on the fuel manifold rail itself. ferrari seems to have used red fiber washers on the three-carb setups; copper ones on the six-carb cars. i prefer the copper washers, but in either case the washers must be an exact fit. parker hall at kilimanjaro designs has an excellent fiber washer replacement kit for three-carb engines, while metric supply companies can provide replacement copper washers. all sealing surfaces and flanges must be smooth and parallel. fiber washers, new or old, may seep fuel slightly for a short time until they swell. again, this applies only to cars with new washers, or ones that have been out of use for some time.
carefully watch for flooding! if a float(s) is not sealing, the carburetor barrels will begin to fill up with raw gasoline. cut off the fuel pump instantly. if the throttle adjustment screws are fully backed off and the plates are fitting co
