TreeSeeker wrote:
I need to remove the engine cover and air cleaner and check for gas when the pedal is pressed. If there is no gas, then maybe there is a leak in the gas line, or the fuel pump is not working, or there is a plugged up fuel filter (although I remember looking for one before and couldn't find one).
Yup, that's what I would do ... and meant to suggest but forgot.
Your fuel pump
is working. Otherwise, your engine just wouldn't start, no matter how much pumping and cranking you do.
You should have an inline fuel filter. Some are small and difficult to recognize. (Some are roughly a half inch in diameter and inch long.)
However, I've encountered far too many cases where someone has replaced the inline filter with a chunk of hose. Those who do so invariably use the wrong type of hose and don't clamp it firmly. Gasoline and especially ethanol (i.e., 'gasohol') will dissolve the wrong type of hose, versus one made specially for fuel systems. The result initially is small fuel or air leaks. Failing to clamp the hose firmly ... or at all ... frequently causes the same leaks.
Ideally, your carburetor bowl holds enough fuel to start the engine and get the mechanical fuel pump working. This small 'starting reserve' will eventually evaporate but should last several months to a year or more. An empty bowl any sooner indicates a bowl leak or a faulty bowl float. (A visible squirt of gas in the carburetor throat indicates the bowl and float are acceptable.)
Likewise, the fuel line should remain full of fuel. Otherwise, the mechanical fuel pump needs to suck all the air out of the line before it can start pumping fuel. (Sounds like what you're experiencing, right?)
A small, barely perceptible (or imperceptible) fuel leak can partially or completely empty the line. (Your description sounds like the line is completely empty.)
As I mentioned before, as small air leak in the fuel line can allow the fuel to be siphoned out of the line and back into the tank. (By law, openings are only allowed in the top of motor vehicle fuel tanks ... I've been forced to replace the tanks that were in my RM350 because they have plugged pipe-thread bungs in the bottom.) The compliant arrangement of fuel pickups are ripe for siphoning, provide an air leak allows that to happen.
In addition to allowing siphoning, inadequately clamped hoses make it harder on mechanical fuel pumps. In addition to sucking all the air out of the line, the pump needs to remove any air coming in through the leak. In the worst case (large enough air leak), the pump is never able to draw fuel out of the tank.
Bottom line: The fuel line needs to be completely sealed from the tank pickup to the pump. Pushing fuel is easy, sucking -- especially air -- isn't. That's why electric fuel pumps -- in or close to the tank -- have become common practice.
One of the (unacceptable) reasons people replace the inline filter with a chuck of hose is they believe the filter is creating a restriction that's hampering the pump's ability to draw fuel. (The filter does restrict fuel flow, especially if it's clogged, but nowhere near the problems caused by an leaky line.) So, what they actually do is make the problem worse.
It's very common to find the filter between the tank and mechanical pump. A better place is between the pump (mechanical or electric) and the carburetor. This is a change I often make, while ensuring the fuel line is sealed tight.
BTW - there's probably a small, sintered bronze fuel filter on your carburetor. This is a final line of defense and not meant to replace the fuel line filter. Assuming you have an adequate fuel line filter, these almost never need replacement.
Idiots also tend to throw these away. Knowledgeable mechanics replace missing ones.
Carburetors vary so yours may not have one. They're fairly rare on one and two barrel carburetors and common on four barrel carburetors.
If a carburetor doesn't have one, knowledgeable mechanics tend to add one, especially if they care for the vehicle they're working on.
Enough, this should keep you busy for a week or two. (Your significant other can thank me later.)
