Broke down on the M1 TWICE!!!

[DRobbo]

On my way to work (Bedford Autodrome  ) tuther day... Steady at 90 (where the law allows  ), then the speed drops off over about 5 miles (this happens most dramatically at 3/4 throttle when it feels like I've down shifted to third), before the engine starts to splutter a lot.

Pull onto hardshoulder, car splutters and stalls. Start up again, vary the revs for a couple of min, then drive on again as if nothing had happened.

This happened twice in one hour!!! And once on the M4 two weeks ago 

My theory is dirt in the carb... Could it be anything else???

[hobbiniho]

would help a lot if you told us what car with what engine and what age 

[Dolly]

carb iceing? it is getting colder now

[benji mk2]

get urself an rac membership dude, never know when it'll be more serious!!!! Well worth it (trust me)

[DRobbo]

Woops!  ... Its a 1.6 Driver running with a Weber carb...

Don't reckon its iceing up as I had already been driving for over half an hour.

Don't worry I've already got membership with the RAC 

[jimmy1182]

Sounds like what was happening to my old Driver a few years ago, mine was the carb icing up, the tube putting hot air from the engine to the air intake was missing. Would splutter and would have to pull over, sit for a couple of minutes and it would be fine, my theory was the hot engine defrosting the carb.

I broke down 4 times once from Manchester to Leeds - rubbish.

So i'd check to see whether that pipe is missing.

Good luck

[Mr Ed]

I'll second that, my MK2 did the same thing!

The pipe is the thing with the green arrow, BTW.

Would also suggest checking the flap thingy here - red circle. When the engine is cold, it should be closed to cold air and fully open to warm air to come in through the elbow connection, as the engine warms up it should slowly open to cold air.

Mine had the warm air pipe there fine, but the flap had siezed open...

[Dolly]

my driver i replaced the pipe from the exhaust but found the diaphram for the flap had failed, so i put the flap halfway open and put a screw to keep it there, no more carb icing last winter.

[DRobbo]

Yay broke down another three times - M1 and A43 this time! 

It's been running faultlessly since last time, but today is a serious hate day for the Golf, has to happen after a few weeks of loving it I spose!

The pipes there but need to have a good luck at the flap I think... It's a pain being at uni with no tools 

(Anyone know a specialist near Loughborough who could sort out a carb rebuild for me BTW?)

[rubjonny]

Yep defo carb icing! check that the metal shroud around the exhaust manifold is there,if not it'll ice up even if the pipe & flap are present & working!
Also check that the carb heater has been fitted to the webber and that it works.  Make sure the carb is earthed to the rocker cover and that the heater gets 12v with the ignition on