Are you loosing any coolant? (just in case a small leak is squirting on some electrical components). When warmed up and trying to start it have you tried holding the pedal to the floor?
19jake49, please post with feedback when you find the problem as I, for one, find this thread interesting. Have you been able to check for spark when hot? Can you run the car near home with a chase car with a tow rope or simply change out the condenser as I suggested earlier to see if that takes care of the problem?
Vapor lock was my first guess also. Needs to check the routing of the fuel line and where it could be exposed to heat. Doesn’t the size of the fuel line contribute to this also? The smaller the line, the more likely to vapor lock?
Examined my coil today & found no resistor on coil or firewall. Primary wire bundles up w/ several others & routes thru firewall If there’s a resistor under the dash, I wasn’t able to find it. The replacement coil I installed is marked NO EXTERNAL RESISTOR REQUIRED. its NAPA parts # is 704 compared to #505 0n the old one. Possible booboo? Is obviously marked 6V. Thanks.
Haven’t taken the carb apart after engine quit, but HAVE watched glass sediment bowl I installed in front of the carb. Fuel pump keeps it filled if there’s gas in the tank. Fuel lines are all original steel tube, not about to collapse. They are routed close to the engine block the first couple feet above the fuel pump. Interesting aspect about this is that I’ve been driving this old lady since 1992, and haven’t had this problem before.
I located a condenser test in my '66 Glenn’s. Very similar to points test. I’ll try it.
I will try your water technique. engine quit,however, can begin at highway speed as well as low speed. Thanks
I tried your suggestion. After turning engine to open points, I tried to twist the distributor to see whether they would close. Didn’t find any slack in the distributor. Plan to test the condenser. Thanks.
If the replacement coil is marked "NO EXTERNAL RESISTOR REQUIRED and it is a 6 volt coil, then I was mistaken about the coil resistor. Perhaps I was thinking of my 1954 Buick that had a 12 volt system. If your problem is an ignition problem, check the spark before you start the engine when it is cold. Note its intensity and color. Run the car and when it stops, check the spark again and see if it has the same intensity. One other idea–the high voltage coil wire between the coil and the distributor cap may be faulty. I had this problem on a Rambler I once owned. The car would be very hard to start when hot. Everything seemed to be in line. A great mechanic figured this one out for me.
I’ve never noticed a coolant puddle beneath the car, and I watch for that sort of thing. Yes, have tried flooring the throttle when engine is warm. That used to work well. This old lady is started by a little solenoid mounted on the carburetor (honest, there have been times when I’ve been tinkering under the hood when I’ve fed juice directly to this gizmo) which, when activated by the throttle linkage, awakens the starter. High tech,no?
I haven’t checked for spark lately, as up until recently Ms. Buick would start hot when given a snort of ether. I presumed that indicated she was getting spark. Lately she will NOT necessarily start on ether. Suppose I should check for spark to be sure. Plan to test condenser, or if a local parts store has one very cheap, I may just swap it out. Nobody here willing to follow me with a tow rope, but I can drive her about on the logging roads where I live w/out entering a public road. If she quits, that just means a walk home. Thanks. I’ll certainly update on this adventure; I very much appreciate the response I’ve received.
As a follow-up, when the car stops again when it is warm, substitute another coil wire or even one of the spark plug wires for the coil wire. If it starts up, you’ve found the problem.
Condensers are cheap and there is no test that a regular mechanic or shop can perform on them.
Something for consideration here based on your comment about starting with a shot of ether.
What kind of gas cap is on this car? Any chance the cap is a non-vented cap or a vented cap with a plugged vent hole?
Point being that the car could run until a vacuum started developing in the tank which could then prevent the pump from pulling fuel out of the tank.
If this is suspected, loosen or remove the cap and see what happens.
Here’s a long shot. Carburetor icing. I had this once with a 1971 Toyota Corolla on damp days in the middle of summer. The engine would stop after quite a few miles. Finally I found the ice by removing the air cleaner to look at the carburetor immediately after the engine stopped. Seeing ice was surprising and the amount was much more than I expected.
Run the motor until it stops and take a look.
I checked my '53 Chilton’s & found it mentioned a coil resistor on '53 Buick V-8s, but made no mention at all of a resistor on '53 & earlier straight 8s. Will try your suggestion. Thanks.
Interesting idea. I never would have thought of that.Last gas cap vent problem I’ve had was in hot weather Arizona many years ago. Will check gas cap. Thanks.
Especially since he removed the carb heat…After 54 posts, will still don’t know it it’s a fuel or spark problem…Everyone is trying to cure an ignition problem he may not have…
This fits with what others have said about not having a coil resistor. The 1953 Buick V-8 engines in the Super and Roadmaster series had 12 volt systems. The 12 volt systems did have coil resistors. I had a 1954 Buick V-8 Special. It had a 12 volt electrical system and a coil resistor. The 1953 Buick Special was an inline 8 and retained the 6 volt system. A coil resistor may not have been part of the primary ignition system. I’m sorry if I gave you a bum steer on the coil resistor.
I question a solenoid on the carburetor. Isn’t the starter switch on the carburetor? I recall Straight 8 Buicks having the starter switch attached so that when in neutral, flooring the accelerator closed the switch which operated the solenoid.
Just curious here.
This wasn’t a solenoid, but a switch that was activated when one depressed the accelerator. The switch activated the solenoid which was on the starter. There was also a vacuum lock-out switch which locked out power to the starter solenoid after the engine started. On cold starts, one pressed the accelerator about 1/3 of the way down and the starter engaged. If the engine flooded, one depressed the accelerator to the floor which opened up the automatic choke. In either event, once the engine started, the vacuum switch locked out the starter. I owned a 1954 Buick and this is how the system worked. Buick used this starting system at least as far back as 1940 and was continued through the 1960 model year.
My 2003 Toyota 4Runner and my 2006 Uplander use a variation of this system. All I do is turn the key to start and release. The starter continues to crank the engine until it fires and a vacuum lockout switch interrupts the power to the starter.