[C320-list] Fuel

[Graeme Clark]

I’m not sure if this will help but we had a problem with the engine cutting out intermittently on our last C320 with a Westerbeke engine. It also tended to happen only at ‘less than full’ fuel levels and this led me down a blind alley as I assumed it was dirt in the bottom of the tank being picked up when the fuel sloshed around ina  half empty tank.
In the end we traced it to an intermittent connection on the fuel lift pump. (the connectiuon was internal to the pump not the external one).  I suspect that when the tak was full there was enough static head of pressure to supply the injection pump so that the engine would continue to run OK for a second or two until the loose connection made itself again, but when the tank was more empty this didnt happen -  just a guess.
One of the odd symptoms was that having failed, if you tried restarting the engine two or three minutes later, it satrted fine.

This may be completely irrelvant to your own issue, but maybe just worth checking that the lift pump is working OK.

By the way I ddsocovered in the process that there is a third fuel filter as part of the lift pump. As far as I know this ios never mentioned in the manual and never replaced on any scheduld maintenance program. Worth a check of that maybe?

Graeme
#366 Jaskar, 1996
On 3 Sep 2016, at 12:33, Dprudden <dprudden at comcast.net> wrote:

> Thanks for the suggestions to check. 
> 
> The reason I keep thinking the air comes free m sloshing is that both times this has happened is when I had half a tank of fuel, and those were the ONLY times I have been that low on fuel. I almost always keep the tank full.
> 
> David Prudden
> #787
> 
> Sent from my iPhone
> 
>> On Sep 3, 2016, at 6:23 AM, Warren Updike <wupdike at hotmail.com> wrote:
>> 
>> Just a thought... if a loose connection before the fuel pump, perhaps it is tight enough that it doesn't leak, but there is negative pressure when running that is sufficient to pull air in.
>> 
>> Warren and Pattie Updike
>> 1994 C320 "Warr de Mar" #62
>> Middle River, Chesapeake Bay
>> 
>> 
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: John Meyers [mailto:jcmeyers7 at gmail.com] 
>> Sent: Saturday, August 27, 2016 1:40 PM
>> To: C320-List at catalina320.com
>> Subject: Re: [C320-list] Fuel
>> 
>> David,
>> 
>> I had a air-in-fuel problem this spring. I saw a few drops (less than a
>> teaspoon) amount of fuel in the tub below the engine which got wiped up.
>> Got the engine started by bleeding. Later there was more drops of fuel in
>> the tub and engine didn't start right away. Bottom line is that I tightened
>> the fuel line connections and the leaking stopped completely and since then
>> no problems with starting or keeping it going.  So I wonder, as in your
>> instance, if there are leaks where fuel comes out is it possible that air
>> is sucked in?
>> 
>> By the way, there was something about some of the Yanmars needing some sort
>> of fuel system recall/fix that was a possible cause for the hard starting.
>> I looked on my 1997 engine and didn't see the item that needed removing so
>> was must have been fixed by PO.
>> 
>> Hope your problem goes away one way or the other.
>> 
>> John Meyers
>> #406 Wind Chime
>> 
>>> On Sat, Aug 27, 2016 at 1:19 PM, Dprudden <dprudden at comcast.net> wrote:
>>> 
>>> For the second time in two years, while under power, the engine died with
>>> about a half tank of fuel. Apparently, air got into the fuel line, as
>>> bleeding the air out got her going again. Anyone else have this problem?
>>> 
>>> I know some have said they never run with less than half a tank of fuel.
>>> That effectively leaves the boat with at most 9.5 gallons of fuel before
>>> refueling. For most coastal cruising, that's fine-they are sailboats, after
>>> all. But that does restrict some trips-can't risk having to power too long.
>>> Any thoughts?
>>> 
>>> David Prudden
>>> #787
>>> 
>>> Sent from my iPhone
>> 
> 

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