I have a 73 dodge van RV winnabago with a 360 (I think) and a 2 barrel carb. I rebuilt it a few years ago and I have been working to get her running again. Just replaced the fuel filter and pump.Coil and plugs. I’m also having a carb problem. When the engine is running and warm its running great. If you press the gas pedal you can see 2 streams of fuel while it’s running and before starting. However it’s very difficult to start cold and somewhat difficult when warm. Cold, if I splash some fuel down the carb it starts up right away…
Any ideas how to improve the starting preformance? Is it too lean? Do I have to do another rebuild? Could it be anything but the carb?
Two streams of fuel are visible when pressing the pedal with the engine off or running and it revs up fine without any signs of insufficient fuel when warmed up…unless maybe it is not pumping enough quantity to prime for a start?? It certainly pumps enough to rev it up…
Is the choke working?
yes, I’ve tested it for power and tension on the spring. (divorced choke) Not sure if it should be adjusted to FULL closed (cold) or with a sleight (1/8) opening. On my Scout, if it is completely closed it won’t start. On of the carb sites recommends: don’t pump the gas: crank 15 -20 seconds: Pump 3 or 4 times: crank…don’t want to do that everytime lol
Do a compression test on the engine cold.
That extra splash of fuel could be wetting the rings and bringing up the compression.
The old big blocks from Chrysler required a lot of fuel to start. My 73 New Yorker needed 5 pushes on the gas pedal before turning the key. If you have a small block 360, your problem is not very common but may require the same solution.
You may want to change the ballast resistor.
Check the ignition timing.
I can’t say for sure but the 318 of that vintage had some type of a heat sensor connected from the carb to the manifold. It looked like a thick coin. We had all kinds of problems with my Mom’s Sebring back then until my BIL disconnected that device. It was only a couple years old and I had gone through the carb twice with no luck. The other problem I had with the 318 back then was the vacume pull off device.
When cold, the choke should be closed tight. As soon as the engine starts, a vacuum pull-off mounted on the side of the carb will pull the choke about 1/3 open. Then, down in the intake manifold cross-over right next to the bottom of the carb will be the choke oven which opens the choke fully as the engine warms up…