I have an old 180B Datsun Wagon up for sale, the engine hasn’t run for a couple of years, any tips for restarting after this time please?

I advise petrol (or diesel as appropriate; ask Arts and petert for advice on this).

OCDC said:

I advise petrol (or diesel as appropriate; ask Arts and petert for advice on this).

rofl

OCDC said:

I advise petrol (or diesel as appropriate; ask Arts and petert for advice on this).

I only did it once because I’ve got the learning gene and I’m clever.

bob(from black rock) said:

I have an old 180B Datsun Wagon up for sale, the engine hasn’t run for a couple of years, any tips for restarting after this time please?

Make sure there are no dead animals or their nests in the engine bay. Check the air filter is clean-ish. Check there is oil. Check the battery turns the motor over Charge or replace if it doesn’t. It may even start then, but unlikely.

Pour some petrol down the throat of the carby (say a couple of table-spoons). (I’d expect the bowl to have no petrol in it.) Use full throttle. Crank it over. It’ll probably start if the ignition system is still good. It may only run for a few seconds, and you’ll have to take your foot off the throttle and control it running rough. You’ll likely have to do that a few times to suck petrol from the tank. All going well, it’ll run OK eventually

If it doesn’t start, you likely have ignition system problems, and will need further advice.

I have an old 180B Datsun Wagon up for sale,
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Handy hint.

Buy 20 foot of 2 inch chain, secure to car with Titron bolting system.

Wrap other end around a rotten fence pole… and pray somebody wants the chain.

Michael V said:

bob(from black rock) said:

I have an old 180B Datsun Wagon up for sale, the engine hasn’t run for a couple of years, any tips for restarting after this time please?

Make sure there are no dead animals or their nests in the engine bay. Check the air filter is clean-ish. Check there is oil. Check the battery turns the motor over Charge or replace if it doesn’t. It may even start then, but unlikely.

Pour some petrol down the throat of the carby (say a couple of table-spoons). (I’d expect the bowl to have no petrol in it.) Use full throttle. Crank it over. It’ll probably start if the ignition system is still good. It may only run for a few seconds, and you’ll have to take your foot off the throttle and control it running rough. You’ll likely have to do that a few times to suck petrol from the tank. All going well, it’ll run OK eventually

If it doesn’t start, you likely have ignition system problems, and will need further advice.

Michael V thanks, would it be a good idea to squirt a bit of WD40 into the spark plug holes, and hand crank the engine for a couple of turns?

bob(from black rock) said:

Michael V said:

bob(from black rock) said:

I have an old 180B Datsun Wagon up for sale, the engine hasn’t run for a couple of years, any tips for restarting after this time please?

Make sure there are no dead animals or their nests in the engine bay. Check the air filter is clean-ish. Check there is oil. Check the battery turns the motor over Charge or replace if it doesn’t. It may even start then, but unlikely.

Pour some petrol down the throat of the carby (say a couple of table-spoons). (I’d expect the bowl to have no petrol in it.) Use full throttle. Crank it over. It’ll probably start if the ignition system is still good. It may only run for a few seconds, and you’ll have to take your foot off the throttle and control it running rough. You’ll likely have to do that a few times to suck petrol from the tank. All going well, it’ll run OK eventually

If it doesn’t start, you likely have ignition system problems, and will need further advice.

Michael V thanks, would it be a good idea to squirt a bit of WD40 into the spark plug holes, and hand crank the engine for a couple of turns?

I wouldn’t bother. You’re selling it after all. So any extra wear on the engine you’d never notice. And the WD40 could (just maybe) oil the plugs when you go to actually start it.

If you are really concerned about that extra wear, you could crank it (using the starter motor and battery) a good few times with the coil-to-distributor high tension lead removed. That way it wouldn’t start, but a bit of oil would get splashed and pumped around.

Prolly a good idea to consider the flushing petrol tank as well. If it’s been sitting for a couple of years the tank may have water and will most likely have sludge in the bottom.

Teleost said:

Prolly a good idea to consider the flushing petrol tank as well. If it’s been sitting for a couple of years the tank may have water and will most likely have sludge in the bottom.

Teleost, thankyou.

Michael V said:

bob(from black rock) said:

Michael V said:

Make sure there are no dead animals or their nests in the engine bay. Check the air filter is clean-ish. Check there is oil. Check the battery turns the motor over Charge or replace if it doesn’t. It may even start then, but unlikely.

Pour some petrol down the throat of the carby (say a couple of table-spoons). (I’d expect the bowl to have no petrol in it.) Use full throttle. Crank it over. It’ll probably start if the ignition system is still good. It may only run for a few seconds, and you’ll have to take your foot off the throttle and control it running rough. You’ll likely have to do that a few times to suck petrol from the tank. All going well, it’ll run OK eventually

If it doesn’t start, you likely have ignition system problems, and will need further advice.

Michael V thanks, would it be a good idea to squirt a bit of WD40 into the spark plug holes, and hand crank the engine for a couple of turns?

I wouldn’t bother. You’re selling it after all. So any extra wear on the engine you’d never notice. And the WD40 could (just maybe) oil the plugs when you go to actually start it.

If you are really concerned about that extra wear, you could crank it (using the starter motor and battery) a good few times with the coil-to-distributor high tension lead removed. That way it wouldn’t start, but a bit of oil would get splashed and pumped around.

Michael V thanks

You’re well away from the coast, aren’t you?

If so, I wouldn’t worry about the tank thing. Even if it were mine and I lived near the coast, I wouldn’t bother.

You only want to start what I guess is an unregistered vehicle for a potential buyer. Let it be their problem. For a short period of running, the in-line fuel filter should handle any dirt or water. How much fuel has it got in it anyway? Dirt and water are only a problem when the tank is nearly empty. The fuel will have become stale, but will most likely work anyway – unless it has almost completely evaporated.

Really, do as little as you need to. If it starts and runs, you have a win. If it doesn’t then consider the next set of options.

And, as pointed out earlier in the thread, 180B wagons are not a highly desirable motor cars – despite them being great, reliable cars in their day. It’s unlikely to be worth much and therefore not really worth much effort.

However – if it were 100% perfect and in mint condition with just 8,000 km on it it might just be worth a bit more. Then you’d enlist the help of a local trusted motor enthusiast, not an internet nutter like me…

Check oil and water, and that has a fan belt fitted, have it in neutral or park. turn key clockwise to “start” position, give accelerator pedal few pumps just before and maybe while cranking it, crank til starts, or if doesn’t fire up within maybe five seconds wait maybe ten seconds then try again, this you can repeat maybe six times at which point you may want to rest the starter motor for few minutes to cool (if the battery is holding up).

If there’s still no sound resembling a running engine pop the hood, off with the airfilter lid and get someone to spray aerostart in the intake (while cranking is OK for this), or some petrol (not this one though, do it before with the key in the off position), but encourage them not to hang over the intake while cranking incase of backfire out the intake, which may alter their appearance or render them uncomfortable in some way, or the fuel container may catch fire, which could get complicated.

If the battery is flagging leave it on the charger for a few nights, clean the terminals maybe, or get a new one.

If it doesn’t fire at all, pull off a plug lead and jam a screw driver in it (or a good spark plug) and rest it near something grounded metal (2-3mm) and get someone to crank it and see if it has little lightning across the gap, if it don’t you got no spark and you’re on a repair journey, so all the cranking in the world wont get you the sound you want. Don’t do this test if you have spilled petrol all over the engine.

Interesting thread, this. Thanks for starting it Bob.

I’d also like to get the engine of my old 1985 Corona running again. The car’s been sitting in the driveway for the past couple of years after the water pump seized :(

However, as the rego has lapsed and I doubt it’d get a roadworthy very easily, all I’m using the car for now is storage. (Gotta have somewhere to keep the stuff away from SWMBO, who would likely turf it without a second’s thought.)

AussieDJ said:

Interesting thread, this. Thanks for starting it Bob.

I’d also like to get the engine of my old 1985 Corona running again. The car’s been sitting in the driveway for the past couple of years after the water pump seized :(

However, as the rego has lapsed and I doubt it’d get a roadworthy very easily, all I’m using the car for now is storage. (Gotta have somewhere to keep the stuff away from SWMBO, who would likely turf it without a second’s thought.)

When you say the water pump seized, how long afterward was the engine running?

My beloved ED Fairmont blew the head gasket last weekend. Just got it towed back home today. Have it for sale / wrecking like it is but no takers so far; I figure I might have to do the head on it.

Back to basics, fuel, timing and spark. I know from personal experience a seized engine can be recovered if thin oil and petrol is put down each sparkplug and left for a week or so. Rotate without plugs so no worries about compression.