Club 80-90 Forums

The AA guy said that the float isn't working properly so the carb is flooding rather than excess fuel going back to the tank.
I have the kit but it doesn't include the float and I can really see how the float could go wrong, is it worth trying to get a new one?
This will be my first time taking the carb apart so I was wondering is there's any technique for getting the float to work as it should?

you don't get the float.
more likely the needle valve is perished, you get that in the kit but if you have a very early carb needle valve in kit may be different to yours.

You will know if your float doesn't float because it will have petrol in it.

Good point. The weight will tell me. Hope this sorts it. I'm getting P'd off with problems every time I switch fuels

Wat is the carb suffix, this one below is H

If you've got any doubts as to whether the needle valve is the right one for your carb, there's a method for testing that the float is at the right level. It's described in this Pierburg 2E3 Maintenance and Repair Manual (more guides here if you're interested).

I did mine here.

I.F. my numbers are much fainter but there doesn't appear to be any suffix at all. Does that mean its an early carb?

Thanks for the guides CJH I'm going to tackle it on thursday

Does no suffix mean it's an early carb?

early carb has a brown ish plastic tube on top
late it's black

Mine definitely brown swapped over a couple of years ago, if I'd know it was an older type I'd wouldn't have taken it as I'd imagine the newer ones are better. I was told that the old one had "ovalled" . I wonder if I that means I now have the wrong needle valve.

I wouldn't assume that because a part is a newer model, it will be better. In 30 years working on Volkswagens I've found it to be quite the opposite. The quality of parts is not what it was. Its either working or it isn't and the only things that wear are seals and diaphrams. Even a worn throttle flap shaft can be rebushed.

I have not stripped an early one, they are pretty much the same as far as I know but I read somebody once who had a different float valve and needed to order the right kit.
You won't know until you open it up, it maybe Pierburg mixed floats on early models.

diagram of the needle valve that was different

The float does sit at 28mm but I have to rotate it a lot more than 30 degrees prob more like 60. I
have got the float off. Should the plastic float be be empty, mine clearly has liquid indside it

yes should be empty, it's broken.

you might just dry it out and seal it up, has been dons but a replacement, probably secind hand is best.

does it have the standard needle valve?