Weber mechanic in DFW area of Texas

[paul]

Friend has a car with Webers but it is running very rich. Car starts, idles good(stinks of unburnt fuel and smokes) but when accelerating stumbles, doesn't make real power, and never accelerates(builds RPM) quickly!
1) any recommendations of Weber mechanic in DFW?
2) any recommendations of easy fix?
Thank you, Paul

[kjspeed]

Paul,


The only guy that I personally have experience with is Jim Inglese and his shop is in Lake City, FL which would require removing the intake manifold and shipping it back & forth. If the setup just needs tweaking that would probably be overkill. But if they have some years on them and haven't ever been properly set up before, he could go through them and make them right for that application. When he sends them back they are ready to bolt on and make final idle adjustments and go. He would also be available to follow up with you when they were reinstalled to help you get them dialed in right. (And no, this is not a paid advertorial!)


However, if they were running right recently and have been gone through within the last decade it might be best to find someone local to trooubleshoot or tune them.


You do not say which engine these are on and whether it is running a cam optimized for Webers. They are a decidedly different animal than a traditional plenum manifold and require a cam that is designed to work with individual runners to get the best results. It's my understanding that almost any Weber will work at idle and wide open throttle at RPM, it's the 1500-3500 RPM range where they need to be set up correctly or they will stumble. Your friend's car sounds like it's running rich. If it was lean you would hear 'popping' through the exhaust.


To set them right you'll need an airflow meter and a couple different sizes of jets (there are three different ones; main, idle and air corrector). These are initially selected based on the engine and engine mods, so if these carburetors came off a different engine, that could also be problematic.


The good news is that once dialed in they work great for a long time!


~Kevin

[paul]

Thank you kjspeed.

[6s2055]

While there are probably 500 + combinations for Webers it took me awhile that few mechanics can truly understand and wok on them. That said, you may start with with determining primary jet number and perhaps working backwards. Possible start. It takes the right combination of Imulsion tubes, idle jets, main jets and chokes for starters.
I had probably every possible combination, but needed to have different combo for Sears and another for Virginia City Hillclimb....4000-6000'.
Finally to get it dialed in set up on a dyno is time saving.
Advice from Inglese isis a good start and may save a lot of time and money!
Been there, done that!

[shelbydoug]

Setting them up on the dyno only gives you a baseline.

To optimize them, you need to change with atmospheric changes. That can be daily and does change with altitude as well.

Just like professional drag racers talk about good and bad air, there is a wall that you come to where you feel that they are down on power but you cannot overcome that with jet changes.

The only rationalization at that point is that "this is as good as they are going to run today".

When you set them on the dyno you are setting them for the air in the dyno room that day and that is not the world they will run in. You cannot geek yourself out of this although you can convince yourself that the dyno is ultimate and that is just not so.

At that point the true answer is YOU just don't belong running these things. The problem is no longer the "setup", it's you.

[kjspeed]

There's no doubt that Webers have a tremendous amount of eye appeal. And, when they're set up properly (for weather, altitude, cam design, etc.) they can put a smile on your face when you mash the pedal that will take weeks to wear off. But one of the main reasons they were used back in the day for the highest of high performance normally aspirated engines is that they are infinitely adjustable without removing them from the car. Quick, easy changes at the race track. That makes them ideal for the expert who knows what they're doing and a can of worms for those who don't.


Ask Inglese how he knows so much about them. He's done every possible thing wrong - but - he learned from his mistakes. I'd rather pay someone to cut to the chase rather than spend years trying everything that doesn't work.