Fuel Tank half filling & non-starting after a few weeks

[Joe-Bob]

Er, Not sure where you make an initial introduction so hi, hello! I'm Joe and I like to stare at my van...

I have owned my Petrol Watercooled 1.9 Litre DG Otto Motor (1913cc) 57 Kw 78PS 5 speed manual gearbox Komet Karisma T25 since October and she is a beauty but...

1. Starting after an absence
After being left for a few (2-3) weeks I can only get her started by force-feeding petrol straight into the carb (electrics and fuel checked, all fine, runs great all other times). Is this just the way it is, should I just start her once a week or is there something I should check/fix so she starts even after being ignored for weeks.

2. Half full tank
I can only fill my tank half full. I've tried filling to half way and then driving a bit and trying to fill again, but this doesn't work either. Is it a breather issue? What would you reccomemend (I've not done anything with this bit yet).

Thanks in advance - great site!

Joe

[T25Convert]

Hi,

Not sure I can help with point 1 (or your love of staring at your van) - if there is fule and spark it should start!!

With respect to point number 2 - how do you know the tank is only half full? If you go to the petrol station and fill as full as you can, I'm assuming the gauge reads half full. How many miles do you get before it is then showing empty? It may well be that the gauge (or the sender, or the wires on the back of the dash) is knackered.

Cheers,

Alex

[Joe-Bob]

Thanks Alex. I don't need any help with the staring at my van... I'm not an addict... (Denial...! )

I'm guessing that it's not filling more than half-way as the gauge seems to work, I can only put in about £35 worth at a time (sorry, no idea what that is in litres), and I can drive for about 150/200 miles between fills (I have ran out of fuel before so know that there is none after the gauge reads empty!).