Vintage Thunderbird Club International

I spent the first couple of years that I had my ‘57 trying to diagnose and fix a similar issue. Background info here: https://www.vintagethunderbirdclub.net/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?t=20407&hilit=Float And ultimate solution here: http://vintagethunderbirdclub.net/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?p=132102&si...

Thankfully if the booster fails you still have brakes that act like the booster was not there. A booster rebuild may be in order. Maybe. When the booster failed on my ‘57 a couple of years ago, it resulted in the braking being completely gone. Fortunately, it was at the shop for something else when...

If the black smoke is only occurring during startup and while warming up, everything I’ve read and experienced indicates that that is “normal.” (In the sense that it’s normal for the way we mostly drive these cars now: short driving sessions, long periods of inactivity, etc.). If I haven’t driven it...

When you say fuel “floods out,” how much are we talking about? A bit of moisture? A steady trickle? Or is it really a gusher/flood of fuel?

Indeed!

ward 57 wrote: ↑Thu Nov 16, 2023 2:50 pm Don't you know that it is a rule of auto mechanics that the symptoms rarely show up when in the shop. Even so it sounds like the preventative service was sound.

Quick follow up for others’ future reference; Because I had to take the car in to have something else looked at, I asked the mechanic to look into this issue too. Turns out that whoever in the comments above guessed that the problem was the exhaust contacting the frame was correct! The mechanic foun...

Thanks for all of your advice! Quick report back: I finally got the car in to the mechanic yesterday. He was not able to reproduce the leak, but he is replacing the rubber line (which he said is not a “flared line,” as it should be) and installing stronger/better clamps. Those steps are preventative...

It could be as simple as the assembly was working well until something broke the seal where the rubber met the steel. Tighten the fitting and I'll bet you have solved the problem. Been there done that. Age is not kind to rubber elasticity, especially if not formulated to ethanol fuel. Fuel pump, ca...

Nope; doesn’t seem to change depending on the fill level…

Thanks for your responses, all! I appreciate it. So, I let the car sit undriven for a day, and every few hours went to check the Tupperware container I’d put under the spot where the leak is. It’s been bone dry; so, either there’s currently no gas leak at all or it’s now so small that it evaporated ...

Thanks, Joe. I’m not sure which “rubber hose” you’re referring to. More importantly, I have no way of getting under the car sufficiently. I’ve been avoiding using the drilled cap for environmental/courtesy to others reasons (to avoid raw gas fumes spewing) and to avoid the smell in the garage from t...

Hi all, Looking for your insights into the following: My ‘57 had been sitting undriven for a few weeks due to weather, travel, etc. Because the weather was nice and I had some time, I took her out for a drive on Monday (today is Thursday). Importantly for the rest of this story: in going in and out ...

There are different length's of valve stems that I have seen so you don't need extenders. Check with a tire store. Hm. Interesting point; hadn’t thought of that! Maybe I’ll call a couple of tire shops and see how much it would cost for them to install longer valve stems. And per Ward’s point, I cou...

Hi all, My ‘57 has the “turbine” full wheel covers on it. They’re pretty, but they can be a pain in the butt for at least a couple of reasons: (1) if not installed properly, they can fly off when driving (which has only happened to me twice in three years, granted); and (2) for reasons I still canno...

A related article about sound deadening was posted on Hagerty’s website a couple days ago: https://www.hagerty.com/media/maintenance-and-tech/what-is-sound-deadening-and-how-does-it-work/?utm_source=SFMC&utm_medium=email&utm_content=MED_UN_NA_EML_UN_DailyDriver_Monday&hashed_email=96c992...