Mondial Stumble

I have read quite a bit about hot start problems due to leaking fuel accumulators and wonder if a leaking accumulator can contribute to engine stumble at load. As background, I have noted that the car, an 86 3.2, has demonstrated that it is a bit reluctant to start after stopping to refuel but a new problem cropped up this weekend when the wife and I decided to escape the Vegas heat and drive up to nearby Mt Charleston which involves an elevation change of about 5-6,000 ft. While climbing at about 5,000 ft I began to note that the engine would breifly stumble. As we got up to about 7K, the stumbles began to become more frequent until finally the engine died and I had to pull to the side of the road. We let her cool down for about 30 min. and tried to start her up. She was a bit reluctant and I could hear gurguling in the fuel tanks and vapor was pushed through the fuel lines, but with a bit of throttle, she started and off we went to complete the loop and head back to Vegas. The rest of the trip was uneventful...

So, my question is, can a bad fuel accumulator leak sufficiently to cause low fuel system pressure that results in an engine stumble. Coupled with the heat and high altitude, it seems that it might be plausible to experience some sort of vapor lock while running.

Any thoughts? Thanks,

Brock

 

Thanks Guido,

I will be testing the accumulator later this week to see if it is leaking or not (I understand that the US version is piped back to the fuel tanks and I must disconnect the return hose to detect a leak). At the time that the problem occured, my fuel tanks were full.

Brock