Mopar Muscle Association UK

My car is a 1969 barracuda, 318 engine. filled it up with petrol last week, ESSO supreme plus 99. Octane free. Did about three miles home. Before I got home, about three miles, fuel gauge started to fall and eventually reached zero. Two days later, went to car meeting, about seven miles away, car ran steadily worse and I barely made it home, had to use choke to even keep it running. On arrival home, noticed temperature gauge was on zero. Both gauges have always worked perfectly. Had the car thirty four years, never had trouble before . I suspect bad fuel from ESSO station, but temperature gauge??. Anyone with ideas??

Maybe Poor fuel, possibly the Dashboard Ballast Resistor has failed. Usually also affects the oil pressure gauge if fitted.

Interesting, I’ve been using Esso 99 and have been having running problems. I wonder if there are some new additives in it causing problems.

By your description I’d suspect an electrical issue of some sort, corroded connections on the bulkhead connector or faulty ignition switch are possible culprits. It is also possible the instrument ballast resister has failed at the same time as you’ve filled up with with some bad quality fuel but I think it’s unlikely.

Got to be an electrical problem, as fuel gauge moved from full to empty after you filled up.
and now the temperature gauge is showing low when engine is hot.

The running side of the car must be the petrol, they are just making more money as adding other stuff to expensive fuel

sounds like some earth strap and connector cleaning necessary

you will find old connections all go on the fritz at the same time, triggred by the action of humid or damp air followed by a dry hot spell..

22 * rainy day and then nice sunny day when the car gets hot to touch perfect for electrical gemlins

this causes virdigris on copper alloy contacts, it, the nasty green stuff, conducts when damp, it gets worse, more is created, when warm, thickens and then disrupts the connection causing high resistance when dry, resistant enough to cause heat and melt connectors....
my car lived by the coast in austrlia i had no problems a month in the UK and i had a fire under the dash casued by /resistance and then HEAT. melted my igntion switch wireing and set the dodgy bodge that was there on fire...

so you situation worse if the car ever lived near the coast...salty air.

its the copper/brass equivelent of rust...is greeny/blue powder or a black tarnish depending on moisture content.

i'd start with the easy stuff
1) check battery clamp connectors. soldered onto leads...ok they are standard, should be fine, aftermarket bolt/clamp onto fat wires? take em off clean wire back to bright copper put back these are subjected to acidic battery fumes and can be nasty
2) wire from engine to engine mount. undo, wire brush both ends and the mounting point and do up again nice and tight. do the same for the battery negative lead where it bolts to the body.
3) wires at the stud on the starter solenoid, undo nut clean and put back, these are subjected to acidic battery fumes and can be crispy.
4) wires at ballast undo press each female spade with pliers, reconnect, do the same for wires to oil sender and temp sender
5) wires at coil...do the same
6) bulkead. clean sockets with a thin roll of wet-n-dry clean pins with similar, wire brush or brasso, even jus scrapeing with a small screwdriver helps
7) remove clean and refit each fuse. their ends and clamps should be shiny

ifyou really have time you can pull and re connect every wire on the back of the fuse box as well.....but leave that for a day when somone suggested going to ikea.

all connections can be smeared with vasaline or basic grease don't use copper slip. it sounds like a good idea but its not. more copper to go green.

after that it should run the best it can.. so if its still not right suspect petrol or at least the NEW petorl cleaned some old crap out of your tank, blocking filter or carb or it melted the rubber pipes, tank outlet to body hard line or near the pump or the diaphragm and valve flaps in your fuel pump.. how old are both?

most UK pipe from the early 2000 onwards should be fine fuel pump....well US has had ethanol fule for a long time so....depends

If the dash don't work as stated by blue pete etc above could be the regulator or ballast resistor in the dash pod

with the igntion on you should see 5 volts out of one of the connectors on the back of the fuel guage on most US cars
12 volts for cars with VDO brand guages and hella senders.

Dave

As said previously gauge fault sare probably this,
poor running more likely a coincidence.

It hasn"t affected the alternator gauge, oil warning light or handrake warning light, or the wiper switch, wipers, lights, radio, etc, nothing but the two gauges mentioned.Its a RHD so valiant dash. Don"t know where to find dashboard ballast resister. Electrics is definately not my strong point.

It only controls the voltage to those 2 gauges and it should be on the back of the instrument cluster, well that's where mine is.

sounds like the regulator has had it , so need to find it behind the instrument panel and replace, then hope all is back to normal.

A mate filled his 318 Plymouth with that Esso 99 a couple of days ago and it’s now backfiring and running rough.