Hate to be annoying but I’ve never had good results with carburaters,My old 2wd drive Ford trucks(pretty light weight too) would run about 15 mpg on the 6 cyl carburated engine,13 mpg on the v8 s.My uncle had a mid eighties P’UP 2wd replaced the carb(one of those funny Japanese things),His mileage wasnt very good.My 85 D50 averaged 26 mpg(carb) my 86.5 Nissan D21(TBI) would run circles around the D-50 Ram and achieved 26 mpg.I sort of believe the the manufacturers went to fuel injection for a reason,I hate to depend on gravity and vacuum to regulate an engine,I dont miss my carb icing up on a cold night or the float sinking and having to yank the choke while furiously pumping the gas,can you imagine how good a fuel oil furnace would be without a gun?I never had a great love for those old oil stoves with a float regulator on the fuel supply,I think injected fuel is better,even my Dodge Dakota V6 will hit 20 mpg on occasion(3.92 gears,4800# auto trans)I feel if it was carburated it wouldnt even do that good
Having lived with carburetors for three decades before my first FI car, I can tell you that carburetors are definitely subject to a whole lot of quirks and problems that fuel injection has eliminated. But carbs have a “life force” that the perfection of fuel injection lacks. Getting and keeping a carb running well brings, to me, a certain sense of satisfaction. Of course, I only feel that way now that carbs are hobbies and not necessities. Those times forty years ago when I was swearing at my carb because it was vapor-locked or iced up I felt somewhat differently.
Regarding the new fuels and the carb’s rubbery bits, I have to assume that rebuild kits now use seals and gaskets that aren’t subject to attack by ethanol. But I’m guessing. Anybody here know for sure?
I think carbs went bad when they took out hollow brass floats and started using plastic ones that absorb gas and just get heavier over time. The electronic feedback ones were a nightmare.
Fuel injection has improved driveability and economy, but not necessarily power. We expected the old cars to stumble or stall when started from cold overnight.
@Same, I wish we knew and I wish we knew why we had to run ethanol for motor fuel in the first place,I would be alright if I had to use it in my lawn and garden equipment and things like that,that doesnt bother but,when I have to compromise the marginal performance of my vehicle even more,dont like it.Was under the impression that the govt wanted vehicles to get better fuel mileage(which the ethanol compromises),I realize the anti alcohol people spew a lot of hype and halftruths,but the fact remains,ethanol reduces mileage.A Chemistry teacher gave me a good primer on organic chemistry once upon a time and He stressed the fact when you dealt with organic solvents like alcohol,etc,the materials to deal with handling and storage of these compounds arent commonplace and must be carefully selected,I doubt if a lot manufacturers give an awful lot of thought to alcohol resistance over the long run and thats just my take on it anyway.