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94 Lefty

Discussion in 'Mitsubishi Minicab' started by Jerk2work, Mar 7, 2008.

  1. Jerk2work

    Jerk2work New Member

    Just got my first one 1994 left hand drive 9600 miles 3 cylinders 3 speed was being used at Boling Air force base. Problem I’m having is the truck starts and runs great for about 20 minutes rough idle at first until it warms up than it is smooth. Than it sounds like it’s starving for gas and stops. After about 2 minutes it will start and stops like it is again starving for gas. Changed the gas filter on top of the gas tank with no help. Disconnected the gas line at the carb and plenty of gas is getting to the carb. Anyone have any ideas?
     
  2. Dan

    Dan Member

    another lefty!! welcome.

    sounds to me like the low idle circuit in the carb is clogged. check the solenoid on the front of the carb near the top. that shuts of the idle portion of the carb and i have had them gum up in the past. pull it out and remove the tip be careful not to lose the spring and plunger. clean them up with a shot of carb cleaner and test it across 12v to see that it is opening and closing under power. other than that , there is a mixture screw on the very top of the carb for the idle mix. clip off the tab so you can unscrew it. and clean the orfice and needle. before you take it out, turn the screw to fully closed and count the revolutions and write it down. this will get you back to the ballpark adjustment that the factory used. i have been adjusting mine closed until the rpms begin to drop and back it off 1/2 turn from there...works for me. Those are the simple remedies, otherwise its time to open it up.Hope this helps, good luck. also be very careful if you end up taking the carb apart or out. the diaphragm kit has been difficult for me to find. The rest of the gaskets are readily available so far. I have a few new gasket kits in spare parts if you're interested.
     
  3. Jerk2work

    Jerk2work New Member

    I'll try that and see if it works. The best I can tell the unit was serviced in July 07. The unit was put up for sale in January 08. The gas was drained and the unit was put aside for sale.
     
  4. Jerk2work

    Jerk2work New Member

    Cleaned out the low idle on the carb, no help I still have the same problem. The truck run fine for about 20 minutes either driving or sitting idling than stops as its starving for gas. It will start right back up and run fine for about 5 minutes than stop again. Checked the oil for water thinking it may be a blown head casket but its fine. I’m thinking now that it may be electric. Are there any dead man switches or areas I should look for?

    Any ideas?
     
  5. Dan

    Dan Member

    Sounds typical of a clogged filter or sediment in the tank. it will collect debris on the filter or screen in the tank and shut down. while it's off, the sediment falls away from the element and allows it to run momentarily until it packs up again. you mentioned a filter on top of the gas tank. there should be one on the passenger side (right) just after the fuel pump on the inside of the frame.. check your filters again or look inside the tank and see if theres anything on the screen for the pick-up tube.. a tank that was drained and removed from service might have seen some condensation and rusted on the inside. I like to use the clear fuel filters so i can easily inspect,
    There are no deadman switches, just the idle solenoid/valve on the front of the carb and the fuel pump relay/governor under the glovebox. you can temproarily bypass the fuel relay/governor by leaving the plug off and linking the blk-wht wire to the blue-blk wire. this will run the pump in the key-on position for testing...dont get excited...there are two other systems that will hold you to a nice safe 25mph. I'll post a fuel schematic in the gallery.
     
  6. Jerk2work

    Jerk2work New Member

    Thanks for the advise. I ran the truck and it stopped (ie choked down or starved for gas....stopped) I took the gas line off at the carb and tried to start it and more gas came out of the line than I knew what to do with it. Do you think it might be a carb problem? If so any idea where I can get a rebuild kit?
     
  7. Wolfman

    Wolfman Member

    Check the coil. It may have a break in one of the windings, that opens up when it gets hot. Run it untill it dies, then pull a plug wire. Put a tester on plug wire and crank. Weak or no spark will mean bad coil.
     
  8. Dan

    Dan Member

    I have a few of the gasket kits. I posted a fuel system chapter from the service manual in my gallery that you might be interested in.
     
  9. Jerk2work

    Jerk2work New Member

    Seems like I'm back to square one. Cleaned the gas tank and put on a new coil. Same problem. Unit runs for about 20 minutes and stops. It appears that once the truck gets to temp it stops. Are there any over heating switches? Checked the oil and there is no water it it, checked around the head and no signs of a blown head gasket. Any other ideas?
     
  10. greg0187

    greg0187 Moderator Staff Member

    I had this problem on a old Nissan car once. It turned out to be an electronic distributor was shutting down. After it stopped and I tried to restart it would misfire etc.. until it cooled down. If it doesn't start back up then check to see if it is getting spark and/or fuel to pinpoint what the engine is missing in order to run.

    -Greg
     
  11. Jerk2work

    Jerk2work New Member

    Its getting plenty of gas
     
  12. Jerk2work

    Jerk2work New Member

    Are there any heat sensors or switches? I feel the problem may be electrical.
     
  13. Dan

    Dan Member

    You may be right about it being electrical. there are no switches or sensors that would shut it down though. hows the cap and rotor? it could be there.... how about a good ground to the battery? and to the transmssion too. ground problems are a bit wierd like this. take them off and clean them up good and re attach. check connections at the dash next to the steering column. there are 3-4 large connectors there that it could be. I had a guy on our grounds crew that couldn't restart his truck one day and he said "This has been working until today" and he grabbed a fist full of wires under the dash and shook them. I opened up each of the connectors and re-connected them and the truck never shut down again. another one of those mystery problems... then zip-tied all of the wiring back up under the dash so he couldn't yank on it anymore
     
  14. golfcartguy

    golfcartguy New Member

    I have a cushman lhd, 2wd, ac, that does the same sort of thing. It will idle while full choked, and die at no choke. Fuel comming out of the pump. Do you think that it could be the governor/limiter? Also, anyone know the correct firing order?
     
  15. Dan

    Dan Member

    sounds like it's starved for fuel. does it consistantly run with the choke on and only die when you release it? Is it a manual choke? If so, i might look in to thouroughly cleaning out the carb.
     
  16. golfcartguy

    golfcartguy New Member

    It is a manual choke. I will try to clean it out as best I can. Yes it consistently runs with choke on, and dies when choke is released. Thanks for the direction Dan. Are there any tricks to cleaning these carb's? Anything to look out for?
     
  17. Dan

    Dan Member

    It's a variable venturi carb. it will have a few diaphragms you should be careful with when taking it apart. some brass tubes that are prone to bending if you pry it apart unevenly. Test all of the different styles of screwdriver bits and use the one that fits properly or the screws will damage easily. watch out for all of the small pieces. there are some checkvalves using balls and weights that are vital and easy to drop when rolling around the opened chambers. avoid using an air compressor and a blowgun if there are any holes plugged with metal caps (welch plugs). I usually work with things like this on a bench with a large towel that will stop things from bouncing or rolling off unexpectedly and when it is ready to go back together, lube all of the o-rings on the tubes and gently work the sections back together or the edges of the o-rings will shear off and probably not seal properly. take note of all of the vacuum lines and don't reverse any. some have one way valves and are easily flipped around. might be a good idea to contact a Jacobsen/textron/cushman/dealer and see if there is a gasket kit available just in case.
     
  18. gregw98

    gregw98 Member

    Jerk2Work, did you ever get your problem straightened out?
     
  19. golfcartguy

    golfcartguy New Member

    Not Yet

    I have not had a chance to clean or rebuild the carb. Frankly, I am a little aprehensive. Any ideas? or know where to send one out?
     
  20. Dan

    Dan Member

    Check with the local ez-go/textron golf equipment vendor. They were trained to work with the cushman white trucks. Or find a golfcourse mechanic, many of the pieces of equipment for that industry are powered by the 3-cylinder engines, all of which are very similar. (thats where i got my start with these in the 80's) maybe check the turf forums. I was involved with a few that may help you out with the lefty cushman...turfnet and turftech
     
  21. bradrenea

    bradrenea New Member

    I have an 87 lefty and it has an ignition relay under the dash near the fuse box. It could be getting hot and causing your problem.
     
  22. Jerk2work

    Jerk2work New Member

    Finally got got.. I took the truck to a local BMW shop in April and told him to try and the problem. He charges $70/ hr. and I told him he has only 15 minutes to fix it. 2 hours later is was running like a top. He took the carb apart and its was filled with crud. He had to use an impacted driver to get the screws out.
    Thanks for all the suggestions and help. Best $140 I've spent.
     
    Last edited: Oct 17, 2008
  23. Mark Peeples

    Mark Peeples New Member Supporting Member

     

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