Engine cutting out on curves... not getting fuel?

[hotrod4x5]

My girlfriend just picked up a 1990 323 with the 1.6l engine. It has fuel injection, low miles for the age (87,000), shiny paint from being garaged and runs really well, so we felt good buying it.

We test drove it around the guys neighborhood and it did great. When we drove it home to her house in the mountains, we had problems on RIGHT hand curves ONLY it will cut out, like it is not getting fuel. The tank was 3/4 full, so I don't think a low tank was the problem. And it only happens when we are going over say 20 mph, if slower, it doesn't seem to do it at all, or as much.

UPDATE: When I saw the problem, the tank was at 1/4. She SAID it did it even when fuller, but I wanted to make sure, well when we filled the tank, it no longer did it. So this tells me that when the tank is very low, something is keeping fuel from reaching the engine on right turns...

What could this be? The car sat for about 6 years the owner said. It was his dad's car and it was hardly driven at all in the past 6 years, just started periodically.

Anyway, I am hoping this is a small problem, or maybe a known issue with an inexpensive fix.

I find it interesting, and perhaps (hopefully) telling that it only happens on right hand curves, not on left.

Looking forward to hearing from you all. Thanks for reading!

Rodney

 

[jamesk]

If it had to be fuel related, I would have to say the fuel pump. If your taking turns, maybe the pump is not able to pick up the fuel and causes the car to cut out.

One of my old employees at a repair shop was working on his 400 hp fox body, and the car would not start and we knew that it was because the car was not getting fuel, but we did not know why because the fuel pump was working, but he just decided to fill up the car with gas and that actually made the fuel pump start to finally pick up fuel and allow the car to start.

The point of the story was that the car was not empty on gas, but the way the fuel tank was designed on the fox body, was if sometimes the fuel in the gas tank was not to a certain point and if the fuel filter in the fuel filter was not 100 percent clean at all times, the pump would have trouble picking up the fuel.

But before you buy a new pump make sure that is the problem. Drive around and do the same thing and at the same time look at the fuel pressure and see if it dips down when you take that turn. Good luck

 

[hotrod4x5]

Thanks. We have no fuel pressure gauge unfortunately, this is a totally stock, base model 323. I'm a weekend type mechanic, but my knowledge is limited to brakes and other maintenance items.

She want's to replace the fuel filter, so I will start with that.

Hoping someone out there has had or seen or heard of a similar problem. Thanks! Keep the replies coming!

 

[hotrod4x5]

I am new to this forum and had hopes that it was active enough to give me more replies.

Does anyone else have any ideas?

 

[tsunami]

could be something in the tank getting in the way of the pick up when you take right hand turns (rust i would imagine) it may need a new fuel tank not a new pump.

 

[niky]

May be a problem with the pump. In my experience, with the shape of our tanks, you'd have to be down to just one gallon over empty before it starts cutting out in hard cornering... and just two quarts or so before it starts cutting out in modest cornering.

 

[hotrod4x5]

Thanks for the replies!

Speedsixxx, would it be just as good to buy Chevron with techron gas a few tanks, then at least once a month? Looked up the techron cleaner on amazon and it's 7-10 bucks a bottle, but Chevron gas isn't that much more expensive, maybe 10 cents, so that's only an extra $1.20 for a full tank. Just curious...

 

[Jas00x]

Be sure to inspect the air intake tubing. My brother had a similar problem on an old Toyota FX16. When he made right hand turns the flex in the engine compartment would open a hole in the intake tubing that caused the car to cutout and stumble.
Given the age of the car and that it hadn't been driven regularly, dry rotted and cracked plastic parts could be a possibility.

 

[hotrod4x5]

Well, the fuel pump finally died and we discovered it WAS the problem.