Welcome to the wild, wonderful, wacky world of the q junk follies.

Lars' 'small' list of things to check is a good reason to upgrade to a Holley.

My sympathies to you. I have the t shirt.

 

He can't run a Holley without tripping an ECM error code... He has to run a 1981 Q-Jet.

 

I called the shop and spoke to the Tech...he's concerned on the imediate flooding and the fuel seeping out of the small tower between the two electrical connections. I am going to check the electric choke to make sure the fuse and relay didnt pop/blow and rule that variable out as a possible reason to the flooding. He asked me to take a few specifics shots in the "as is" state, including the TPS sensor to make sure he didnt forgot to re-adjust it after tear down (his words - said he has to do that every time and wants to make sure he didnt forget to set it properly).

after this exhange, if it goes bad/unwarranted results... I will prob Take up lanny81 on his offer to "try" his 81 E4ME to see what i get operational speaking.

 

Lose the computer and other smog stuff.

Not needed

 

Appreciate the feedback but I am choosing to run my 81 with the CCC operation and thus I am sticking with the E4ME Q-Jet. This is just a gremlin that needs to be chased down and resolved. I rather spend that money on needed upgrades and restoration.

 

no disrespect to your carb guy, but if the fuel is coming through the hole, and saturating the gasket, the float is set wrong or the float needle and seat are not working correctly, It has nothing to do with the choke opr the TPS Go back to the list that LARS sent and figure out why the float isnt working correctly. Lars list is comprehensive and might look at first to be overwhelming, but it is not. Basically, either the float is bad, or there is something stopping the needle from plugging the hole in the seat. Its just a matter of figuring out what!

This happened to me the first time I rebuilt my carb -- turned out being an incompatibility between the needle and the seat that came with the rebuild kit (you would think that parts that come in a rebuild kit would be compatable -- go think) I put the old seat and needle back in and the carb runs great since.


Dont be afraid to open it up and look around inside it for yourself. It is not that difficult. Plenty of resources and help on this site.

FWIW -- I have a CCC 81 and it runs fine -- no need to get rid of the ECM or Carb.

 

and that is a kind offer, take it.

 

Gentlemen,
Update here…

So last night I began the removal of the carb (and picture documentation in the “as is” state before removal for the tech)….I got pissed after 3 seconds of removal….the PCV hose was full of Fuel !!!
This is when I had to rem I was allowing my 2 year old son to play in the garage while I did this (wife at work) and he repeated the 4 letter word I just belted out….Lesson learned on that one….
Took the pics, removed the carb, got the kid in a bath and bed…then had a beer…ughhhh.

I arrived at the shop this morning and actually caught the owner, we had a nice long chat and now, on my 4th visit, if this is not resolved I am getting my fully money back ($350.000) and going elsewhere.
However I did discuss how I am 100% convinced that there are Q-Jet parts in this E4ME that are NOT proper for my E4ME. I know there are a lot of interchangeable/shared parts but the E4ME was a 1 year carb, and its unique. All it takes is an improper gasket (wrong flow holes, etc), improper float bowl, etc. so I expressed my concerns and frustrations

** Oh and BTW that silicon layer that the tech applied to the gasket – for sitting for 24 hours after no start/flooding – that gasket was ringing wet with gas !

The owner agreed that a full tear down this time and build will occur with documentation provided to me that Proper 1981 E4ME parts are used and set to GM Factory specs.
I expressed that I am not upset directly at the tech as he has been very upfront, helpful, etc, but I told the owner I am certain wrong parts are in my carb and Wrong could be bad from the get go, or just plain not correct for the E4ME….

Def a pain in the @ss but it will get resolved

 

I'd hate to act like I knew more than a tech when I asked them to work on my car. I'd hate to ACTUALLY know more than the tech, too, because wtf am I paying them for at that point?

BTW, the E4ME on a 1981 Corvette is 1 year for Corvettes, but is mostly identical to the rest of the E4MEs produced through 1987 (Camaro/Firebird, G-body, etc).

That said, gaskets would not impact this issue. An improper float setting would. Alternately, a needle seat or needle that have imperfections would cause fuel to bypass a fully closed needle and create a flood condition. I could also suspect a improperly installed needle clip.

I think at this point, they should bench test the needle and needle-seat to see if it's flooding. Hook it up to a pump set at about 7.5 PSI and verify that it holds once filled to capacity.

If it continues to misbehave, I'd recommend getting ahold of Cliff Ruggles or Henry Olsen (Oles Carb) and see if either of them can build it for you. I've done E4M rebuilds and they're only slightly more complicated than an M4M, but I wouldn't be comfortable doing the work without a way to test it for you.

 

Thanks guys..Ill keep posting progress...related to this..How can I test Fuel pressure on my 81? I have the traditional manual fuel pump bolted to the 350 block and the steel hard line from pump that goes directly into the carb...want to make sure for some crazy reason im not getting an insane amount of fuel pressure (if possible?)

 

i have in the garage an electronic quadrajet that i believe is totally unmolested. im south of you in melbourne, but i get to daytona all the time.

 

You'd have to run a fuel pressure gauge in line with the carb. You'd have to rig up a new line, may be easier to set something temporary up. Get the correct flare fitting with barbed ends for a rubber line and run it around the side making sure not to kink anything along the way. Definitely not a permanent setup!

 

Ok that's what I figured.. Thank you !

Btw...not a peep from carb shop after I asked to validate the proper parts ( sent email and got a reply back saying they will let me know)....hope that means he's heads down in the full tear down and rebuild with correct parts.

 

The amount of fuel pressure is only 4-6 lbs.

One of the cheap inline gauges can tell you that.

 

Late 70's went to a higher pressure pump than earlier, but I can't quote specs (because I honestly don't know) and I'm not necessarily disagreeing w/ you.

 

Fuel pressure gauge and old steel fuel line, then run a hose to the fuel pump. That's hom I tested my needle, seat & fuel pressure.
Nick

 

Thank You !! This is what I had pictured in my head - mind telling me which Fuel Pressure Regulator and guage you bought at Summit? I looked at several and couldnt make up my mind, just need simple like yours

And again..No Word from Carb shop - I bet they Finally ordered E4ME Parts this time.....

 

I had the part when I was still struggling with a Holley. Cut the banjo fitting off for the test
Nick
summit g1524-1

 

Since I'm still waiting on the carb shop to call....the 81 is getting some much needed spark while we wait

 

Nice, I put their digital HEI on mine, mostly so I could datalog RPM vs AFR.