Aftermarket carb for a 215

[MontanaKeller]

Which aftermarket carb will work on a 215? cfm rating? The Rochester 4GC that I have is shot and has a cracked jet. Is it worth rebuilding?

[carbking]

There is absolutely nothing that is a bolt-on swap.

The closest of which I am aware would be a Carter 9400s or Carter 9410s. Either will run the engine well. Fuel inlet is in a different place, original air cleaner will not fit, linkage will need slight modification.

Rebuild the Rochester!

Jon.

[joe_padavano]

I put a new E-brock 500 CFM carb on my 215. I am not a big fan of carb replacements like this and had fought with the 4GC for months. I could not get the accelerator pump to work properly - I suspect that there was crud in the passageway that I could not get out. In any event, as Carb King correctly points out, this is FAR from a bolt-on. The big problem is the need to fabricate the accelerator and (more importantly) the throttle valve linkage to the trans. The latter is key to making the Rotohydramatic 5 shift correctly. I had to play with the adjustment on this linkage quite a bit to get it adjusted properly since I was unable to use the factory bellcrank that is integral to the 4GC. Unless you have the skills to properly fabricate and adjust this linkage, I would not recommend a carb swap.

[Guest]

This has already posted on another thread in the technical section--guess he didn't like the answer.

#4

helfen

Senior Member

Join Date: Jan 2010

Location: vulcania

Posts: 905

Re: Help- 215 Carb Issue

Quote:

Originally Posted by MontanaKeller

A guy suggested to spray the actuator pump with WD-40. In a few minutes, the carb was working again.

__________________________________________________ ________________

Time to buy a rebuilding kit and get that accelerator pump replaced. The WD40 temporarily caused the cup on the accelerator pump to swell making it work. The fuel will make the WD40 go away and you will be right back to the starting point.

Accelerator pumps wear out in time and they also prematurely wear on cars that are stored for any length of time. What happens is after a car sits for a long time the fuel evaporates out of the float chamber and the accelerator pump well, then some people will get in the car and crank and pump the throttle to start and there is no fuel in the pump well and the cup on the accelerator pump piston scrapes the chamber of the well DRY and wears out prematurely.

I always crank the cars I have without touching the accelerator until the engine sputters, this tells me fuel has arrived and filled the float chamber and accelerator pump well. Then I can apply the throttle to discharge the accelerator pump, operate the choke and the MOST beneficial thing which is; I have primed the oiling system-before the car starts. It takes about 10-20 seconds of cranking before the engine sputters ( and I have 60 PSI oil pressure) so have patience and don't crank beyond 30+ seconds at a time.

Don

Last edited by helfen; 1 Day Ago at 18:20.

[MontanaKeller]

Thanks for the input everyone! After looking at the Edelbrock and joe_padavano thoughts, it will be better to rebuild the Rochester. The biggest issue for me is that the ID tag is missing and I am not sure what the exact number is. Is there a difference between the Old, Buick and Pontiac 4GC that goes on the 215? I am not a carb man.

[Guest Jim_Edwards]

Thanks for the input everyone! After looking at the Edelbrock and joe_padavano thoughts, it will be better to rebuild the Rochester. The biggest issue for me is that the ID tag is missing and I am not sure what the exact number is. Is there a difference between the Old, Buick and Pontiac 4GC that goes on the 215? I am not a carb man.

I'd send that sucker to Carb King for a rebuild. He should have no problem in replacing that cracked jet. I'll guarantee the results will be better if you've never rebuilt a carburetor.