M110/280C Choke Stuck?

[350SL4spd]

Hey Guys,

My '73 280C would always start hard cold (lots of cranking) so I assumed that auto-choke was acting up. Now all of a sudden it's starting on the first touch when & then running rough and smoking after warm up.

I'm assuming that the choke is now stuck on. :roll eyes:

I pulled the carb & checked the choke out & it seems to free & not binding or anything. Any idea where to look with no choke/full choke switch-a-roo? Is it likely that the choke is just toast?

Thanks!

[kraakevik]

The choke has a fuse that supplies voltage to the closing spring--called Carburetor Heater, I believe, on the fuse-box cover. This supplies one or two resistors on the fender, which supply reduced-voltage juice to the choke, which is always on. The choke spring is actually cooled by the coolant routed through the cover.

The choke butterfly starts in the closed position when cold and gradually opens as the coolant temperature rises until it's completely open. It's possible to rotate the choke cover to richen or weaken the choke action but I'd fiddle with that only as a last resort. If the choke moves freely I'd look at the electrical side--the car will barely run when that fuse blows--good luck

Tim Kraakevik
kraakevik@voyager.net