No Idle 88 Festiva!

[hiway3]

Hey Group,

I have a 1988 Festiva (carbed), 1.3 ltr LX and have rebuilt the engine. When
I get it all ready to start It will not idle unless you constantly pat the
gas, but as soon as you let off it will die again. I have gone through all
of the vaccum lines and checked or replaced all the lines and all are routed
correctly. I also did a kit for the carb. I have checked & replaced the slow
idle cut solenoid on the carb and the idle switch as well as the abcv. The
egr valve was clogged so I cleaned and made sure the diaphram was working
correctly. Also replaced the bowl vent solenoid. All the card linkage seems
to be correctly adjusted. While performing all of these changes I also
checked to be sure that there were no leaks due to carb gaskets, causing it
to draw in extra air and mess up the fuel mix. I noticed that when I have a
remote starter switch in place and am trying to start it and keep it
running, if I hold down the butterfly completely closed the engine will idle
beatifully, but as soon as you let go it opens 1/16th of an inch and then
stalls again. I have set the choke to specs several times to be sure I
didn't miss something. I rechecked the float adjustment, and also it has a
new carb pump diaphram and it has not been pinched. I also used a spray
bottle of gas to spray in the throat of the carb, and it will idle fairly
good that way, again as soon as you stop it will die again. It has got to be
a problem with something controlling the gas into the carb at idle range. I
have worked on this little engine so much that I am probably missing some
stupid little thing, and will kick myself when I discover what the problem
is......can anyone think of anything I missed or might need to check?


desperate...........

[Joe G]

Hi,

Well if you hold the choke plate closed, and it idles, it sounds like you
have an air leak somewhere, as the carb isnt supplying enough fuel to
compensate for the higher air flow, I'd check to make sure you havent
forgotten a gasket, or have a clogged fuel filter, that could do it too..
but mainly i'd check for a air leak somewhere

Keep us posted!
Joe

Post by hiway3
Hey Group,
I have a 1988 Festiva (carbed), 1.3 ltr LX and have rebuilt the engine. When
I get it all ready to start It will not idle unless you constantly pat the
gas, but as soon as you let off it will die again. I have gone through all
of the vaccum lines and checked or replaced all the lines and all are routed
correctly. I also did a kit for the carb. I have checked & replaced the slow
idle cut solenoid on the carb and the idle switch as well as the abcv. The
egr valve was clogged so I cleaned and made sure the diaphram was working
correctly. Also replaced the bowl vent solenoid. All the card linkage seems
to be correctly adjusted. While performing all of these changes I also
checked to be sure that there were no leaks due to carb gaskets, causing it
to draw in extra air and mess up the fuel mix. I noticed that when I have a
remote starter switch in place and am trying to start it and keep it
running, if I hold down the butterfly completely closed the engine will idle
beatifully, but as soon as you let go it opens 1/16th of an inch and then
stalls again. I have set the choke to specs several times to be sure I
didn't miss something. I rechecked the float adjustment, and also it has a
new carb pump diaphram and it has not been pinched. I also used a spray
bottle of gas to spray in the throat of the carb, and it will idle fairly
good that way, again as soon as you stop it will die again. It has got to be
a problem with something controlling the gas into the carb at idle range. I
have worked on this little engine so much that I am probably missing some
stupid little thing, and will kick myself when I discover what the problem
is......can anyone think of anything I missed or might need to check?
desperate...........

[Mark]

Check Idle solinoid. Maybe discontected or not making good contact.
It regulates fuel to carb at idle.
Car will accelerate and run fine above idle, but take your foot off the gas
and she will shut down.
Note part is generally unavailable via Ford unless you find NOS, ford price
for new was $249. Yes, more than the car is worth! But worth fixing! Try
junk yards or ebay!

Your post led me to the answer to the same problem. It wasn't the solenoid
itself, just the wiring that led to it. The insulation scraped off, exposing
bare wiring. It was hard to see with dirt and grease on the wires, but
compulsive cleaning occasionally pays off. The solenoid is connected with a
square connector right next to the distributor. The fault was right by this
connector, where the wires are twisted together. A little electrical tape to
protect the wires and it idles just fine. I was sure it was a vacuum leak.

Thank You,
Mark

Web site: http://www.mavn.us

[Pu241]

Glad I could be of service!

Check out Festiva under Yahoo Groups
Many more knowledgeable people there!

I have about 14 of these cars for parts and
what not, so I have some experience with them!
Great little cars! Not fast, not good looking, not a lot of things, but
good, cheap, reliable, transportation!

Post by Mark

Check Idle solinoid. Maybe discontected or not making good contact.
It regulates fuel to carb at idle.
Car will accelerate and run fine above idle, but take your foot off the gas
and she will shut down.
Note part is generally unavailable via Ford unless you find NOS, ford price
for new was $249. Yes, more than the car is worth! But worth fixing! Try
junk yards or ebay!

Your post led me to the answer to the same problem. It wasn't the solenoid
itself, just the wiring that led to it. The insulation scraped off, exposing
bare wiring. It was hard to see with dirt and grease on the wires, but
compulsive cleaning occasionally pays off. The solenoid is connected with a
square connector right next to the distributor. The fault was right by this
connector, where the wires are twisted together. A little electrical tape to
protect the wires and it idles just fine. I was sure it was a vacuum leak.
Thank You,
Mark
Web site: http://www.mavn.us