The year of the carb...

I'm going to break down this year and actually get a "real" carb for the Mustang. That would be the Holley 4160, 450 cfm marine carb. Carb

Hopefully this will take care of any starting issues. Plus any safety issues. My current carb must be leaking and flooding the engine because all last year I had to open the throttle wide open to start her after running a while then sitting a wile. Could also smell fumes. My idle mixture screws never seemed to do much either. I could shut one all the way down and the idle kept on going.

So looking for any info up front on installing this thing? Anything I should know? I rebuilt my last one twice so I'm familiar with the basics. Would the new carb fit right on top of the spacer my current one sits on? These things usually come with the gasket needed?

I plan on getting the metal fuel line from Skidim. Fuel Line

Other than the carb I plan on getting new plug wires and a cap. Hopefully she'll be running very smooth this year.

Thanks for any help!

Sebastian,Dave has the original carb on that motor which is either a Ford or a Motorcraft. They were the same as what came on the cars of those years, kinda of a real basic carb, 2bbl no power valve etc. Getting a new carb will really make a difference as it did for mine.
Dave are you planning on using a 4 bbl? If so I think you'd be best to change the manifold too,rather than using an adapter.

I guess it would be good to look at your link before posting---

Something like this?

Manifold

Vondy, in case it wasnt clear, it appears you have a 2 barrel 302. You cant just slap a 4 barrel carb on it. You'll need to get a 4 barrel manifold. Like Gottaski said, the new 4bbl Holley will have a port for the PCV, no need for a spacer. If youre interested in really improving the performance of the engine, a 4 barrel cam would be a nice upgrade. Of course, while youre in there, a better flowing set of heads would be nice as well. It all comes down to how much you want to spend! Either way, an aluminum intake can be found cheaply used (~$100-125)... Id keep on the lookout for an Edelbrock Performer. If your budget is starting to look a bit thin, then shoot me an email- I have a few spare 4bbl 302 intakes Ill never use. Theyre heavy (shipping wont be cheap) but Id be happy to send you one. TRBenj@gmail.com

The Edelbrock Performer usually requires the adapter plate (p/n 2732, available from Summit) because it will prevent vaccuum leaks. I know this is required if running the PCM 1" spacer, as the Performer has narrow surfaces on the side, and the spacer is open on the bottom. The adapter would cover the area outlined in red, preventing a vaccuum leak in the green areas. If bolting a Holley up directly, you may or may not need it- but for $6, Id grab it just in case.



Id look around for a used Performer before plunking down cash on a new one. My sister found a used Performer RPM last week for $80 on craigslist for their Mustang. If you want a cast iron one, just shoot me an email.

For reference, here's an overhead shot of what your 2bbl intake manifold looks like:

I've got a 4bbl intake.   50.00   if you wanna cover shipping.

79nautique wrote: spread bore carb two small holes primary two larger holes secondary's on the base of the carb square bore four equall size holes on the base of the carb

I always wondered what was the difference!!
thanks Chris

Thanks for all your help!

Would a newer aluminum edelbrock perform better than the old cast iron? I like the idea of a fresh new one with no rust buildup.

Am I correct in thinking that they moved the thermostat housing on later models?

When getting an new manifold, do I want to install new bolts? I see Summit offers Stainless and Steel. Obviously I'll need a gasket kit. Summit has the Fel-Pro.

What's the difference in the regular Edelbrock Performer and the RPM Performer?

According to the description on Summit for the manifold, it uses as Square Bore. At least that's for a new one. Manifold

the RPM version has a higher RPM range that it's designed to work best with, typically a pretty stout motor turning over 5K which isn't going to help you much if your not changing cams and heads too, but it won't hurt if you do use one if you got it at a good price, but spending extra money to get it really is a little waistefull if you ask me.

correct

TRBenj wrote: All of the aforementioned intakes are square bore. They dont look anything like the spread bore manifolds Ive seen. The adapter is a spread-square adapter though- it just happens to solve the vaccum leak with that manifold when using the spacer.

So would I need a spacer for any reason?    If the carb and the intake are square bore?

I didn't realize how far down the line the 4bbl upgrades went. The heads on this engine where replaced at one point. Any chance they used 4bbl? Would that work if they still had a 2bbl on it?

So am I going to see any increase in performance with just upgrading to the Holley 4bbl and intake? Should I stick with a new marine 2bbl and save a few bucks. Upgrade to a 4bbl later down the line when I rebuild?

I really shouldnt contribute here since all you guys responding have more knowledge/expertise than I, so I will offer this as much as a question to you guys as it is a suggestion to Vondy. But Vondy, if you are on a budget, why not consider an Edelbrock Carb. I know the Holley is the standard around here, but there are also a number of proponents of the Edelbrock. I had a Holley for 11 years and have run my Edelbrock for 6. I find it much less fussy, more reliable and easier to work with. And the main reason I mention it, is its close to half the price of the Holley. I only put this out for discussion/consideration...although I have a feeling it will go something like the points vs electronic discussion aka "my way or the high-way"

TRBenj wrote: Option A: upgrade the whole top end now. Heads, intake, cam, carb. For under $2k you'll have a 275hp monster that will pull your arms off and run in the low 50's (at least).

Wish mine would   

whats the difference between a boy and a man? nothing better than the sound of the secondaries opening.....go for the 500.00, and i think if you search you can find good used.. Sam57 has a good used one he may part with (carb)

Gary S wrote: TRBenj wrote: Option A: upgrade the whole top end now. Heads, intake, cam, carb. For under $2k you'll have a 275hp monster that will pull your arms off and run in the low 50's (at least). Wish mine would

Gary, have you given your cam specs to Alan to run in his desktop dyno? Im curious how good that Crane cam really is. The last guy that posted his set up with a Comp SBF grind didnt impress me... the specs looked similar to my Cam Research stick, but it was a good 30hp down... thats leaving a lot on the table. Also, any idea what your compression ratio is? Was your H-M originally a 210hp 2bbl or the 235hp 4bbl? Something doesnt add up since youre only running 45mph or so... even my bone stock 4bbl 302 Skier runs 46-47, and I consider that to be an underperformer!

Tom, thanks for clueing us in on the 2bbl heads. Glad to hear theyre not terrible- at least not much worse than the 4bbl heads, haha. Regardless of whats on there, it wont be a powerhouse- all stock 302 heads are pretty wimpy. GT40, GT40p or D0OE heads and a matched cam would really wake it up, I suspect. I am curious about the CR though- what size chambers do the 2V heads have?

Vondy, it sounds like youre very tempted to stay 2bbl and save a few bucks. Thats certainly a consideration. I will warn you though- once you have a good running boat, you may catch the bug to upgrade sooner than you expect! With a bit more power, these small boats are an absolute riot... so avoid riding in one if you want to stay stock.    Even with no plans to do so in the near term, the extra $150-200 to go 4bbl might be a good investment. Since youre still on the fence, Id recommend a 4bbl carb and a cheap/stock 4bbl intake, rather than new Performer or otherwise.