Dual carbs vs Injection questions., YEs... It's another 914 N00b. Options

[FEF]

All,

I've been haunting the forums here for a few weeks. I've found the information sound and well reasoned. Well, for the most part. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

I have the chance to pick up a '75 with the 1.8 (I believe) and dual carbs that's been sitting for about 3 years. I'm told it ran well when it was parked. Here's the thing... I can get it for $600. If it passes the folding car rust test, I may pick it up as my dailydriver beater car. If it ran well enough when it stopped, I should be able to get it going again. But what do I do after It's running????

I've read in other places that the dual carb setup is not good. Now, I'm trying to understand why. Sure, they require 2x the timkering of a single carb, and more electrosavy (Ya... I made the word up) then the EFI. But, is it really that bad? I will not likely race it (Although, I was known to autocross and rally a bit), so high HP is not my goal. I am looking for a fun car that's reliable and has modification possibilities. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/cool.gif)

I'm not saying that I want to bo back to EFI. To me, that's not an option. Before I do any engine work, I'll convert it to an Electric Vehicle. I've seen one move. It don't stink.

Why are dual carbs so bad? Why did one guy say he's only seen one good setup, and it was on a race car with a HUGE budget? I have experiance with 4 carb motorcycles, so multi carbs don't scare me. Should I be afraid? Should I plan on trying to get a single carb intake for the sake of simplicity?

It all sounds kinda odd.


Thanks in advance

[ArtechnikA]

Why are dual carbs so bad? ... Should I plan on trying to get a single carb intake for the sake of simplicity?

first - absolutely avoid a single carb - not worth the bother, they just don't work well on these engines.

next - dual carbs are NOT Bad. look at every car that predated the 914 - and the 914/6.

the thing about carbs is that they are not better. people put them on thinking they're going to see huge power gains "due to limitations in the stock fuel injection" and it just doesn't happen. minimum - you need to change the cam to take advantage of what carburation -can- do for you, and that is not a trivial change in any 914 engine.

i ran dual Dellorto's on my 1,7 a l-o-n-g time ago and they were fine. carburation is -not- a place where bigger is better. even tho i ran 40mm Dells i ran comparitively teeny venturiis at the recommendation of the salesman (there's a rarity ...) and he was absolutely correct.

properly sized and tuned QUALITY carburetors like Webers or Dells will work just fine - assuming you're in an area where you have no worries with visual emissions inspections - in which case - you'd be toast no matter how clean you were able to make 'em run ...

the OEM Injection was very well sized and tuned for the stock engine - and when everything's working correctly, it is unsurpassed in emissions and power. some of the components are getting hard to find and debugging it if it's acting up can be a challenge. lots of people hate carburation. i tend to like it, but there's room for all manner of varying opinions. most of all i like the MFI on my car, but that's not really an option for most...