1963 Continental Fuel Issues

Bill –
I just bought a 63 Continental It was parked for many years before I brought her home. Before it was parked it was rebuilt. So I did what most guys would do.. Put some new gas in it and try to start it! It started up and sounded great! I took her for a 30 mile trip and it ran and drove great…until I came up to a stop light and it died. I read up on the fuel pump issues so I put a new one in and boom it was running perfect….for a mile, then it started not getting fuel to the carb again. so I installed an inline pump with 4-7lbs of pressure. hooked it up and boom it ran great again!! until I get on the road. It runs perfect in the driveway giving it plenty of throttle and sounds great, looks like plenty of gas getting in there too. But when I get out on the road it starts to bog down like it starving for gas? I tuned it up with new points wires and plugs but no “condenser they needed to order one”. My question is is there anything I have to do when installing the electric pump? Also what’s the small gas line for coming from the tank that was hooked to the factory pump, do I need to do something with it? Its just weird because it ran so great before I started with the fuel pump “fixing” Thanks!!
Thanks,
Ryan
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Greetings Ryan –
You are dealing with a vehicle and engine that has not been running for many years. With this in mind you can expect issues that years of non use can create. To answer your two questions the electric fuel pump should be located and installed as per the instructions. We do not recommend installing an electric fuel pump as the main pump for fuel delivery. We would recommend using one as a back up though for the mechanical pump with a separate ON and OFF switch to be used in the event of a mechanical pump failure or for priming if an engine has been unused for a period of time. The extra fuel line was used on these engines as a means to alleviate vapor lock that FORD determined that could occur in some climates.
The biggest problem that should concern you at this time is rust, debris and old fuel being drawn from the gas tank and then subsequently through the carburetor. This can cause the issues that you describe. If you have tuned up the engine and have adjusted the points correctly, the condenser must be replaced as well as they are well known to fail suddenly and stop the engine. As you address these items patiently and one at a time things should slowly come together for you and the engine should run reliably for you. I would be checking first for rust through the fuel supply as from where I am this sounds to me to be the most likely problem with a vehicle that has sat unused for years as you have stated. When you have more information contact us again if you need parts to restore your fuel pump or further suggestions etc.
Sincerely,
Bill