Tune-up Help
 

I've got an '84 Chevy with a 454 in it that needs some serious help. I'd just as soon throw it away, but at the moment it's my only option.

At the moment it's burning so rich I can almost SEE it and I'd really like to do a carb adjustment, but since I've never tweaked one on an engine of this size I'm looking for a little assistance.

It's got a relatively new carburetor, an Edelbrock I believe, any tips on adjusting the flow rate and fuel mixture?

Instead of reducing the fuel flow to improve A/F ratio why not increase the airflow with something like a ...TURBO! ;) ...just kidding plus I know little or nothing about big V8's other than some crazy guy named Yenko crammed 427's into poor little Camaros.

Maybe the throttle linkage is not set right and just opens the carb too much for the throttle position/rpm/actual airflow. I can't think of what other parameter a car that old would use to decide how much fuel to pump ...pump... maybe fuel pump related?

Edelbrock folks usually seem like nice, friendly, helpful. Did you try calling them?

is it burning rich when idling or the entire time its running? Only when the engine is cold or hot, or all the time? throw us some more info so maybe the problem can be pinpointed.

This turned out to have nothing to do with the carb :) Apparently the guy I'm borrowing the truck from "forgot" to mention that he knew it had a fuel leak that he couldn't find, turns out the jury-rigged last 14 inches of the fuel line between the in-line filter and the carby were completely rotten and had actually cracked open and started dripping gas right onto the top of the engine. $1.50 in rubber later and I'm getting 50% better gas mileage, no more horrible smell, and it starts correctly!

Thanks for all of the suggestions, I'm still going to call Edelbrock and get their advice on where the idle should be set!

ahhh, sometimes life is simple. Glad you found it.

So what kind of '84 Chevy with a 454 is this? Any pics? Is it so mundane that you'd consider throwing it away? Maybe clean it up and put it up for auction at Barrett-Jackson ;) which I've been watching this week, maybe you saw it too, some nice 454 Chevelles getting serious big bucks.