Is it safe to put a 1Gal. fuel cell under the hood?
Posted by Blu_yello_husky@reddit | askcarguys | View on Reddit | 13 comments
If not, where should I put it? I'm not gonna take up trunk space and have a ghetto rubber fuel hose going through my interior. This is going to be a permanent installment to fix my starting issue.
Needed context: I have been fighting a lean start issue on my car. Can't fix it, can't find what's wrong with it, so I've been trying to install an auxiliary fuel system primer so I can get gas to the engine before I turn it over. Ive tried setting it up with line Ts in line with the OE fuel system, but what ends up happening is it just pumps the gas in a big circle and sends it back to the tank, getting nothing to the engine. My next idea is to install a small fuel cell with a separate pump and line to the engine, and rig it to a switch I can flip for a few seconds before going to crank the engine.
Please don't tell me this is stupid or a band-aid to a bigger problem, I already know that. Just answer the title question
Daniele323@reddit
This is stupid and a band aid to a larger problem.
thirdeye-visualizer@reddit
Figuring out how to engineer this solution in seems way more complex than fixing whatever the actual problem is
Blu_yello_husky@reddit (OP)
If I don't know what the actual problem is, how tf am I supposed to fix it?
thirdeye-visualizer@reddit
Honestly just spending more time diagnosing. Break it down to the simplest components. Define what you mean by a lean start. Maybe you can find someone with a similar problem and see what they did online. I’ve learned a lot just from trolling forums
Blu_yello_husky@reddit (OP)
I've already ruled out all the common stuff. As far as I can find, no one else has had this issue, including me, I've owned over a dozen cars and never had this problem.
All the fuel is evaporating out of the bowl vent whenever the car sits for longer than a couple hours, making it so when I got to start it again, there's no fuel in the bowl so the accelerator pump doesn't have any gas to spray into the intake to start. I have to first crank the engine for 10+ seconds to get fuel in the bowl, then pump the shit out of it and try starting. It will always stall at least once after starting, after which it runs great and has no issues. Until I shut it off again.
It's fine after only a few hours but when it sits outside for 10+ hours while at work or sleeping, getting it started again is a major PITA. I'm concerned about burning up this starter and killing my battery this winter when cold starts are already going to cause issues. Ive had this car 4 years and I've only been dealing with this issue for the last 7 or 8 months. I'm at a total loss.
I need to find a way to get fuel into the bowl BEFORE I start cranking, so all I have to do is pump it once or twice to start it, like a normal car. Electric pump with fuel cell is the best way to do that, since I obviously can't fix the real issue
Blu_yello_husky@reddit (OP)
No shit, if I cared about that, I'd just get another car. Almost every system on this car has been band-aided to some extent or another. That's what happens when you buy cars from the junkyard that have been sitting 10 years outdoors
Aggressive-Bed3269@reddit
Lmao.
Please get a professional or someone adjacent to help with this
Blu_yello_husky@reddit (OP)
They'll just redo all the tests I've already done and charge me for it. Then they'll tell me they have to fix all my aftermarket shit before they can start to properly diagnose the problem, which I already know none of my other band aids have anything to do with this issue. No thanks. I'm not gonna send my car to someone who is just going to tell me they can't fix it and charge me a grand in labor.
Plus, I'm afraid some kid at the dealer is gonna get curious and start flipping switches and turning valves and blow up my engine or cause an electrical fire. I'm good without risking any of that
daveypaul40@reddit
Fug no it isn't.
Blu_yello_husky@reddit (OP)
Damn. I'm fresh out of ideas
Flenke@reddit
No, putting a makeshift tank of gas under the hot hood near an even hotter engine is not a good idea
Blu_yello_husky@reddit (OP)
It's not makeshift, it's going to be a custom made steel box with a vented fuel cap, with flare nut fittings at the bottom of the tank for the line to the pump. If not under the hood, then where do you suggest? It needs to be easy to access so I can regularly refuel
sysop042@reddit
No no, let's see where this goes. I am curious how big a fireball it will create when it goes up