Chris_C wrote:1.4 top plate comes loose, it does sound like either that or a crack in your spaceman tubing to me. Grab the air filter and give it a wobble, if nothing apart from the engine moves all is good, then look down drivers side to the ali tubing that goes to the air filter. After that, just look at the vacuum hoses around the air filter and carb.

cheers chris man.
ive checked the hoses with my retards eye and cant find any "splits" per say.
But a pipe junction thing (really shouldve got a pic) under the air filter housing on the passenger side (if youre standing looking at the windscreen) seems to have some grey sealant splodged around it libberally. Possibly the cause? What should I use to try and reseal?


IN THERE^^^

There IS a wobble if you wiggle the air filter too. Not much, but a wobble.

That stub was cracked, and the car was doing what you describe as a result of that, the grey stuff is pukka high temp epoxy to hold the stub together, take that off and the little pipe on the side of the stub won't have anywhere to go, the chrome-plated extension tube was my bodge too, since the reason the stub broke off in the first place was that the rubber was stretched and did keep coming loose.

The carb was fine to start with, but was checked & retightened a couple of thousand miles after I got the car home, it was fine all the way up the road but then started crunching into drive as that stub supplies the declutching servo, the filter pan does rock about a bit as there are only two studs to hold it on but there are also some spare studs in the spare carb and they could be swapped in, I hadn't done that as I figured that, if the pan could move a little without leaking, then the carb would be far less likely to loosen itself off, that's also why there are two seals under it; to accommodate the movement of the pan.
The carb screws are loctited into the manifold and indexed with a tiny chisel in an effort to keep it there, so chances are it's just another pipe somewhere that's loose.
Could you have caught one when reaching down to fit the starter?

JPB wrote: Could you have caught one when reaching down to fit the starter?

Cheers for all that John.
This all started ON THE WAY TO change the starter. So not guilty there.

Further investigations will be made.

Dude, there should be no wibble on the airbox.

Remove the lid of the filter thingy, and see if the filter housing moves relative to the 3 bolts and the 2 square choke holes, or if all that moves together. If they are sep, nip (very bloody lightly, it's thin ali that loves to strip threads) the 3 bolts you can see up. If they all move together, take those 3 bolts out, big screwdriver up the 3 screws you can now see. Then bolt the filter housing back on.

Chris_C wrote:Dude, there should be no wibble on the airbox.

Remove the lid of the filter thingy, and see if the filter housing moves relative to the 3 bolts and the 2 square choke holes, or if all that moves together. If they are sep, nip (very bloody lightly, it's thin ali that loves to strip threads) the 3 bolts you can see up. If they all move together, take those 3 bolts out, big screwdriver up the 3 screws you can now see. Then bolt the filter housing back on.

Brilliant. Cheers dude. Will do this in the morning.
Looked in there today. Think there was only 2 bolts inside the air filter housing and a hole full of sealant opposite, but will check tomorrow.

Cheers again chris.
Your 'go and do this' directions are much appreciated.

No worries bud. I havn't got a B14 laying round I can grab some pictures of atm but it's super simple. Just make sure when you put those bolts back you do it *gently*. They strip if you sneeze to hard.

Worst case if they have already gone there are ways and means of fixing it.

You could check the carb solenoid valve under the air filter next to the plastic T piece you mentioned earlier. If you pull the wire on and off with the ignition switched on and the engine not running you should be able to hear the solenoid clicking. I've also known the terminal on the solenoid body to come loose - a drop of superglue will sort it. I had exactly the symptoms you describe with my old green B plate 340 which you owned for a while and it was a just loose connection to the solenoid. Otherwise you need to be checking vac pipes etc - if it was a distorted carb base it wouldn't have happened all of a sudden.

Ian Mac wrote:You could check the carb solenoid valve under the air filter next to the plastic T piece you mentioned earlier. If you pull the wire on and off with the ignition switched on and the engine not running you should be able to hear the solenoid clicking. I've also known the terminal on the solenoid body to come loose - a drop of superglue will sort it. I had exactly the symptoms you describe with my old green B plate 340 which you owned for a while and it was a just loose connection to the solenoid. Otherwise you need to be checking vac pipes etc - if it was a distorted carb base it wouldn't have happened all of a sudden.

Cool, cheers muchly Ian. I'll check that while I'm in there too.

Chris, there are only two studs securing that filter pan, the third has had its hole blocked to stop it leaking so the pan was mounted in a way that would allow it, rather than the carb, to move slightly and it worked like that. There isn't the bracket at the back of the rocker cover on these late cars so if the pan were rigidly mounted, that might loosen the carb base. Idle solenoid could well become disconnected, I like that theory.

Ah, ok. The reason I say it is it's a hell of a problem on the 1.4, for some reason it shakes itself loose a huge amount more than the 1.7 and is very sensitive when it does so (http://www.volvo300mania.com/forum-uk/v ... ?f=6&t=571) My old 1.4 needed a re tighten fairly often (carb to air filter bolts) until the threads went completely. As soon as those went loose it'd shake the top plate screws loose too

No idea why they didn't keep the early style bracket on them, they are sensitive as hell to air leaks to having a huge mass flapping about in the wind is about as sensible as... well, pretty much everything else on the car!

Probably no help to you (as it's my 82MY) but here are some pictures of a carb/airfilter assembly.




(Jumbo sized pics can be viewed if you click 'em )

Right, I'm off to bed. Gotto go to Sligo tonight.

Any further updates on the air leak?

macplaxton wrote:Any further updates on the air leak?

Woke up late today and didnt have time to check the car over today before I headed out.

Ran it to Sunderland Air show (15 miles) and back today and had NO problems

Like I said in the origonal post, it only started happening near the end of 2 long joureys yesterday.

Could it be something getting very hot, and expanding causing an air leak?
I havnt run as far as I did yesterday, and the ambient temp was lower today?

Intermittent fault then.

Theres now an interesting smell of petrol in the cabin too.
Very bad in the boot.
So im guessing theres perished hoses somewhere. (whys all of this just started happening this weekend??!)

Will investigate everything further tomorow.

Could you have overfilled it? Very important that you pull the hose at the first click, or the breather system (that plastic tank with loads of hoses attached) will be full of petrol and that may possibly explain the stink, if not the mysterious running problem.

Are you certain it's an air leak though? Fetch it to Kirkley tomorrow and I'll check it over if you like.

Meantime; next time it gives this trouble, take the fuel cap off and try to restart it. Does this make it easier?

Well dude, on the way back from the airshow (on the warning light) I stopes at a garage opposite Boldon greyhound stadium where a friendly chap keen to pump my petrol asked 'fill er up ?'
Astonished to see anyone actually see pumping petrol for a living I said Yes.
So I'm sure it couldve been Overfilled.

No more running problems pleases AND infuriates me!
I'm not making it up!

Have to attent an inlaws birthday meal tomorrow so I can't make kirkleyhal dude. Wish I could !