My fuel bowl (glass) is on the inlet side of the fuel pump. During this episode of vapor lock the fuel bowl was always full of gas. I knocked on the side of the carburetor in case the float needle was stuck in the closed position

I believe the BP article was back when lead was added to prevent knocking. New grades do not have this anti-knock preventive in them.

Since gasoline is a made up of hundred of compounds, it does not a a boiling point as such. It has a point at which lower boiling compounds transition from liquid to vapor and begin to distill off. It is these compounds that cause knocking in carbureted engines that makes knocking. I think premium has less of the the more volatile components. It would be these volatile fractions in regular gas that would contribute to the formation of vapors.

Decided it was time to take the car on a short test drive about town yesterday. It was a hot (90 deg.) summer day in S. Calif. After about 3 miles I headed home and 1 block from home things came to a gasping halt. Got out and checked finding the car had gas in the tank, plenty of spark, but no gas coming out of the carburetor jets. Checked the pump and it was not pumping.

Let the car cool for about 30 minutes and it started right up. Hence the Dreaded Vapor Lock conclusion.

The fuel line runs down the frame from the tank to the engine compartment so it should be OK there. There is about 2 feet of tube inside the engine area before it gets to the pump and it is close to the frame.

The car has a '33 downdraft carb & manifold system. The question I have is there suppose to be a heat shield between the carb and the exhaust manifold. If so can someone out there send me a photo so I can make one that looks correct?

In the interim, I'm going to replace the regular gas with high octane gas that has a higher boiling point.

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I took over a restoration. While I have no records that show generator had been rebuilt when I got it, it looks like it had been rebuilt. I just finished the restoration and it has never charge during the short periods that I ran the engine.

Looking into the generator issue was low on the priority list. Some people say you should re-polarize a generator system everytime the battery is replaced. I have never found that to be a problem in the generator systems I've had.

See my post '32 901 Sedan Generator Polarization it might help.

I talked to Dave Baratto (Buchanan Auto Electric in Oakland) and he walked me through the procedure on repolarizing the generator. He said to 1) disconnect the small white wire, which is the Field wire (see photo) and then to flash the dark wire to the negative terminal on the battery with another wire.

The generator charges and I'm able to get 6.7 volts or so out of it while adjusting the screw on the third brush. However, I think it should be able to put out at least 7.5 VDC.

I can't say enough about how willing Dave was to help me out. It took several calls and an email to him in order for me to understand everything. While he did not ask for anything, I'm going to drop a check in the mail today.

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To trailer or not to trailer is a hard one to answer. The answer lies in the: 1) distance, 2) your aversion to new life experiences, 3) Auto Club (or similar towing service), 4) condition of the car (running condition, tires, etc.), 5) availability or truck/trailer. And of course funds available if Gods decide to crap on you.

The best answer probably hinges one #s 1, 2, 3, & 4. Unless of course there is a significant other who is along for the experience. Then listen to them.

All of the above is a LOL. Need more info before processing.

I have a friend who drove 400 miles to buy a classic Cad and saw a drop dead 55 Buick and drove it home without a problem (car was a National Buick Club winner). Another friend who went to pick up a vintage trailer with his truck who I rescued with my truck when his broke down (P.S. All his friends knew he wouldn't make the 900 mile trip in his PU. This was a funny "Life Experience that consumed 16 hours of my time.

When all else fails just flip a coin.

AND OF COURSE - is it safe to drive!!!

The engine has developed an oil leak. The source of which is around the large plate at the bottom of the engine (See photo). I'm guessing this is connected with the engine's oil pump. I want to replace the gasket to see if the cures the leak. When I remove the plate what are the perils that will befall me (e.g. oil pump falls out OR ???)

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The generator (3 brush O-D GL1005) on the car doesn't charge. It appears the the previous owner had the unit rebuilt. I've checked the fuse and turned the 3rd brush screw clockwise & CCW with no change in output. So I'm thinking that I need to re-polarize it.

I've done this before on 6 & 12 volt 2 brush systems that have a voltage regulators. However, the car has with a 3 brush system that appears to have a regulator and relay (See photos circled in red). To accomplish this I think I need to touch a wire to the top of the relay (Right side of where green arrow points) to the negative terminal on the battery.

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I have used TCP Global to match paint on several of my cars. Send them a part (preferably a small one like the gas fill door). Last time I used them it cost $70. Their paint is good and I've used it to paint several of my vehicles a '32 Packard and my '96 Toyota T100 and touch up on a '51 Packard.

Good Luck

The last 3 or so years the only thing that remained to be done on the car was the interior. We had looked every where for a material/color that would be somewhat period correct and a color that would highlight the car’s color without success. We decided on a fabric that we felt would be a good second choice at SMS.

We ordered 26 yards in January from SMS and waited about 8 weeks for it to show up. When it did while it was similar the color was slightly different with a greenish hue and was unacceptable. After a week of back and forth they agreed to take it back. We then decided to go with a ribbed light gray wool broadcloth. Waited another 6 weeks or so for it to show up.

The bottom line is it is now finished (See Video) except for a few minor things that need fixing or re-doing. One of those things is the generator, which appears to have been rebuilt but doesn't charge.