73 2.0 apparently stock djet Bahia red
ran well this a.m. to drop off the young daughter at school
hunting for idle a little bit at start up heading out and returning from errand #2 a couple hours later
four hours after that on school pick up duty it takes a couple stRts to hold idle then idles in neutral for 10 minutes or so on its own in front of the house 2.5 miles later it died coasting to a stop for a red light tried to idle the first few attempts at restart but wouldn't hold (obviously) even with me feathering the gas
got it pushed into a parking lot
don't have a lot in the way of tools with me so that's all I know now
sorry it I'm being long winded but it's a pretty good hike home!
my wife picked up the slack for me and is picking up the young daughter
I was reading some of john muir's book this weekend and I've got a Haynes manual will try and get it home and start going thru and eliminating things till it's figured out
almost home I can see my house looks like there's a beer with my name on it waiting for me
will keep you posted
cheers
cjl

UPDATE:
~ 2 hrs later I returned started right up and got me home
turned it off in the drive to open the gate started right back up
and is now in garage
just went back and picked up my truck and it started rainng on me on the way home
-just in time!
will keep y'all updated
cjl

Been there a few times myself! My old TR6 broke down on Wade Ave in Raleigh at 4pm on a Friday at the start of rush hour once. For those that know that road...well, you know what I'm talking about!
At least you were able to walk home.
What's the temps where you are? Fuel pump overheating? Vaporlock?

Is fuel pump in original location?

yep fuel pump og location pretty much everything is original/stock
I thought about vapor lock but that seems to be kinda a cop out without eliminating some other stuff -it does seem to start and run better when there's a relatively long interval between starts
I had my hazards on and had just started pushing towards a nearby parking lot and was just fixin to start cussing the moron who pulled up behind me when the driver turned out to be the father of one of the yd's friends and he helped me push -shoulda hooked a ride but I wanted to monkey with my car a bit
cjl

Runs fine.... then it doesn't. Same with my 914.

Mine did that. At a gas station I turned off the motor. It was a hot day. It did not want to start back up. got a hotel room right next door.

Now, when I get gas, I leave it running. 8 hrs of non-stop motor running gets me my 500+ miles. Works for me. And nobody has ever told me to shut the engine off at a gas station.

My 73 had the same issues until I moved the fuel pump to the firewall. That was over 20 years ago and it has not done it since.

The original fuel pump location is too hot for the electric fuel pump. I purchased my teener new and original pump was fried after two years. Had to be towed to dealership for replacement in 1975.

Is this the car that came from southern California? Thousand Oaks?

yep one & the same

I drove that car and recommended it to you. It is quite a nice specimen. I imagine your issue is a FI gremlin or fuel pump temper tantrum.

Yours is the first 914 I ever drove.

Could you describe the symptoms a little better?

For example, when it dies does it just die as if ignition was turned off or does it sputter, buck, etc as if it was a fuel issue or intermittent ignition?

With trying to get it to hold idle does that mean it wouldn't stay running or hunting for an idle?

What was the air temperature like?

Hate to respond with a bunch of questions, just trying to get a better idea of what is really happening.

Check the easy stuff first like the Fuel Filter(s), Coil, look for a wire causing an intermittent Ground, etc.

I drove theleschyouknow's car in Thousand Oaks too. Is there anyone here who hasn't driven his car?

somd
- no sputtering just put in clutch to coast to a stop for red light when I realized "hey, my engines not running" just kinda quietly quit. it has done similar before sporadically a handful of times generally a warm/recently run within the hour or less engine -it starts but huffs and hunts for idle a bit but I can keep it going by feathering pedal then I usually get to third before my first left away from my house and sometimes (2-3x since July) it'll die quietly (no bucking) goin into the turn but has always started right back up

trying to hold idle when it's acting like this generally means if I lightly pump pedal I can keep it revving for 5-10 secs and then it settles in - if I can tend it for 15-20-30 secs or so it generally can idle on its own from there - this does not occur everytime it's way more rare than common

air temp was 85 ish high for the day started out at around 55-60ish?

Larmo -yep I remember your test drive & recc- first 914 I ever drove too it's f-ing awesome! even this afternoon

this one pop your cherry too? or will you throw a leg for any swinging 914 that comes along?
I remember your test drive and recc too
cjl

'Twas my second. You always remember your first, but wish I could forget that one.

Larmo63's car was the first 914 i drove.

gives a whole new meaning to pimp my ride

Was there any crying afterward?

Never mind.

I remember that car from the ads; gorgeous car w/salvage title from minor fender damage. I had a girlfriend like that. Good for cheap thrills because she felt like damaged goods.

I'm betting on fuel pump location as the culprit. I had a new '73 1.7 that failed me a couple of times on the first extended road trip. Always started right up after cooling off for about 30 minutes. When I got home I took it back to the dealer and they were obviously aware of the problem. They said they moved the pump, but I was young and stupid and didn't ask any more questions. I suspect they put it under the fuel tank near the MC. Never had a problem after that.

Did you fill it with fresh fuel or was there enough fuel in the tank. If so, there's a chance that the fuel is simply too old. It goes 'off' within weeks. My TR does the same after the winter. A few gallon of fresh fuel will bring it home and then I keep on topping up the tank after every trip. Within days, the problem is over!

In relation with the fuel pump: again modern fuels can be the culprit here: modern fuels tend to make the car run hotter than the fuels back in the 70s. What was a perfect place for the pump back then, can prove to be a hotspot in 2015.

Menno

Mine used to do this, before I moved the fuel pump. if I was at a gas station I would get a hose and squirt under there to cool off the pump and then it would start.

I remember one time it quit and I saw a soda vending machine across the street, So I got a cold soda, shook it up and popped the top while pointing it at the fuel pump. kind of messy but whatever gets you home.

After that one I moved the pump to the front, and that ended the problem. didn't even change the pump, just moved it.

Check filter sock in the tank and inline filter?

My fuel pump has also been relocated next to the brake master cylinder. You have to remove a protection plate underneath the car to get at it.
Mind you, the times that we get temperatures in the 90s in the UK are few & far between......in my dreams. Right now its 7 degrees Celsius.
Must have been moved when it lived in California.

CHT going bad?

thanks for the replies will look into relocating the f pump
I will search the site but is there an easy way to check the cht?

Gawd, Lesch, you took a perfectly good 914 and Fuched it up.

Good going.

no no it came with the Fuchs, even the spare

I hope the guy's that have previously posted the vapor lock thing is BS and that it doesn't happen simply because they've never experienced it are reading these testimonials.