Yeesh!

Okay, as you may or may not know, ever since I picked up the '85 GSL I've been fighting a lack-of-power concern. Car basically slow, not much power.

Things I've done...

- Ensured timing is correct. It is.
- Ensured throttle cable not loose. It wasn't.
- Removed secondary actuator spring. Helped a little.
- Repaired binding rear brakes. Helped a lot, car now able to exceed 70mph.
- Re-set toe in the front. It was way off, but didn't do much other than make steering feel better. (So it was still a good move)
- ENSURED tires have proper pressure. Nothing.
- Installed fuel pressure regulator, thinking the new pump was at too high of a pressure and was making it run overrich. Power somewhat improved (top speed now about 85-87, same as my 85hp 4wd Subaru) and MPG substantially improved

So I've been thinking of really esoteric things, like excess accessory drag, of exhaust restriction, or maybe binding in the transmission or engine.

All along, I noticed the throttle felt funny - in the '80 I could feel a difference in the throttle as I pushed through the secondaries, but not this one. I didn't think much of it - maybe it was gummy, maybe the carbs were different, I dunno.

Last night, while working on computer problems (okay, I was munching pizza, smoking some rather nice rolled-in-Holland cigarillos, and working on some St. Pauli Girl since there was no Guinness Stout in the vicinity, while watching my friend work) I thought of the throttle return mechanism.

Ah yes, that. I know that there was some trickery going about with the T-bar, and something about backyard mechanics putting things a certain way that looked appropriate but in fact wasn't, and it WAS something that I looked at and it seemed OK.

So, after I got home, I looked at the carb I had from the '80. I inspected the mechanism. I checked out how it worked. For what it's worth, here is a description: The main throttle return spring is under tension, and is attached at one end to one of the pulleys on the throttle shaft, and at the other end to a pivot. On the opposite end of the pivot, the T-bar is also pulling, under tension from a very stiff spring. The T-bar is the safety return. If the main throttle return spring should break, the lack of tension on its end of the pivot causes the pivot to flip up and the T-bar to be released. Then, its spring will push on a linkage on the throttle shaft and act as a (rather stiff) return.

Now that I understood how it worked, I popped the T-bar off to see how it worked if the T-bar was improperly positioned. The T-bar acted as the throttle return. Opening the throttle pushes the T-bar up. At about 1/2 throttle (just after the secondary opening point) the T-bar hit the pivot and prevented the throttle from opening any more.

So, now that I fully understood how the mechanism worked, I went to the '85 and had a peek.

The T-bar was off the pivot. 10 seconds later it was back on the pivot. I jumped into the car and pushed the throttle down... Now it goes down further, and you can feel the "hard spot" when the secondaries open.

Son of a b!%@#!!! That was the problem the whole time! Just to confirm it, I popped the T-bar back off. Stiff, doesn't go down too far, can't feel secondaries. Popped it back on. Light, more travel, can feel secondaries.

Once again, we go looking for problems in all the bizarre places instead of checking first things first... Oh well, now the car will move out of its own way!

Sheez, I was spinning the tires shifting into 3rd... downhill.. with only 1/2 throttle! I cannot wait to drive it now!

 

You know I mentioned that t bar a few weeks ago. Seen the pic in Haynes and knew mine was not the same. Really inproved the midrange

 

Congrats on your award! (and fixing your car.. )

 

How the heck to you all burn rubber in second and third. I had the cluth replaced 2 years ago and I can barley get it to burn out in first much less 2nd or 3rd...
Ugh..im sure if i had a compression test done it would be horrible..i wouldnt be suprised if the car is only putting out 80Hp ish..

 

Bald tires and a downpour

 

that would do it

 

got any pics? maybe thats why mine doesn't seem to do anything over 5k rpms. i notice a "hard spot" but it is like an inch off the floor. i'm guessing i have the same problem like you but i'm barely activating mine. its like i have a nos switch under the pedal while cruising down the highway. the only problem is its on or off. floored or not. no halfway. real fun on hills.

 

hell bald tires and a dusty road and i can grab third pretty easy. drive through a puddle and i can spin even more through third.

 

Heck, horrible tires and I can almost sit still through 3rd in the pouring rain! I don't think the people behind me like it much though. :p Our cars can do all sorts of things when the clutch is dropped at 3K in pouring rain with almost no tires... my only problem is sometimes it is scary!

Chris

 

good to hear,,and good work,,the answers always come
to mind,,,when were ******* off,,,'those bastards' !!

 

Unfortunately my camera is acting **** but I'll see what I can do!

I'm half tempted to buzz it up and down the street just to see how nice it is, driver's license be damned!

 

Well dear friends I gingerly warmed it up in my driveway and putted down the sidestreets... Then I let 'er rip in First gear..

OH MY GOD.... the car just LEAPT towards the redline! It feels as powerful as my friend's ZX2. Just INCREDIBLE.

I am very, very, very, VERY pleased right now!

I can't wait until I get my driver's license reinstated! This weekend I'll see if I can get the clutch swapped out for one that doesn't slip when you shift. I didn't bother going past 1st gear because the clutch slipped bad before when shifting...

And all this time it was because of that stupid little T-bar!

 

props to the zx2 owner!!!

 

LOL

Funny thing is he's contemplating getting a 1st-gen... at which point I'm going to try to persuade him to put a bridge ported engine in it Emissions laws be damned!

 

Dude, I had the exact same thing happen to me last summer... mine slipped out of where it should have been, and the T-bar would constantly loosen and move down the rod preventing the throttle from opening all the way. I'd know when I had to pull over and re-adjust it when the gas pedal would only move an inch lol - but then someone more knowledgeable showed me how to hook it up properly lol.

Enjoy the speed!

 

Congrads.
Now get yer damn license back, you crazy bastard!

 

The Felix site mentions the return spring in his FAQ. Mine was off at one time too - had to adjsut it so it wouldn't slip off as easily. I can see a lot of people not even realizing it because it's easy to flip off by accident when you're under the hood messing with your carb. Those secondaries come in handy don't they??

 

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OH MY GOD.... the car just LEAPT towards the redline! It feels as powerful as my friend's ZX2. Just INCREDIBLE.


lol
.........i just get a kick outta that.

glad you fixed your problem

 

LOL yeah... I'd sorta given up on it, figured that's just how a loaded GSL was going to feel, and that I was just too used to my light SA with the ported engine.

Now I'm kinda upset that the ported engine wasn't better than it was