79 SDV: Choke staying partly closed

[wbdeford]

After replacing the fuel filter, my choke is staying partly closed and engine stays on fast idle.  I manually opened it, slowing the idle speed, but as soon as I opened the throttle slightly, it returned to partly closed.  Next try, it stayed open.

Is it possible I did something during the filter replacement that would mess up the choke?
Other likely causes?

[TJ Hopland]

Did you re connect that vacuum line you disconnected?  That may have been for one of the brakes/pulloffs.   

Other than that I don't think anything you did would have disturbed the choke.  Its electric and the heating coil is in that round black cover on the passenger side of the carb.  The linkage for the choke blade and fast idle is all that stuff between the round heater housing and main carb body.   Its all made of fairly loose fitting flimsy appearing stuff that all works off gravity so it doesn't take a lot of crud to make things stick.   

[wbdeford]

Did you re connect that vacuum line you disconnected?  That may have been for one of the brakes/pulloffs.   

Other than that I don't think anything you did would have disturbed the choke.  Its electric and the heating coil is in that round black cover on the passenger side of the carb.  The linkage for the choke blade and fast idle is all that stuff between the round heater housing and main carb body.   Its all made of fairly loose fitting flimsy appearing stuff that all works off gravity so it doesn't take a lot of crud to make things stick.

I forgot to mention that I disconnected and reconnected the choke wire...perhaps the connection there was flaky.  There was one vacuum hose I forgot to reconnect at first, but reconnecting it did not immediately solve the problem.  I drove the car a few more times yesterday and the problem didn't return, so I think I'm good for now.  Thanks!

[TJ Hopland]

I seem to recall that the contact tab on the choke element wasn't made from typical contact material and tended to rust so that may be where your issue is or was. 

[wbdeford]

That is definitely where I will look if it happens again.  I like the electric choke.  I added one to my 58, since the tube up from the exhaust manifold is long gone.  It works really well.