I have a 1973 L-82 with low miles and a cantankerous carburetor. I'm sure it's never been touched since new. I investigated sending it off for a rebuild, but I really don't want to wait 6 months. I also considered upgrading to a newer replacement carb (Holley) but I worry that it won't run right without a lot of tuning. So I'm considering rebuilding the stock Q-jet with my son. He is mechanically good and I'm learning. But we've never done a carb rebuild before. The Quadrajet doesn't appear to be the simplest design out there. Any advice or thoughts are appreciated.

 

Send the carburetor to Lars, he is the BEST, and he is located in Colorado.

 

Thanks but who is Lars? Sorry but just learning some of this stuff.

 

Lars is a long-time Corvette enthusiast and an extremely knowledgeable, published, authority on Q-Jets. Here's a link to a recent thread on rebuilding a forum member's carb:
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...saw-q-jet.html

This one is much more in-depth and really shows his knowledge and experience:
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...jmgvreer1.html

 

He is also Honest, and always helpful to all Forum Members.

 

My first thought was, You haven't heard of Lars?
I knew you must be new here. I checked your profile.
Yes, Welcome to the Forum!
And yes Lars is THE Quadrajet expert.
If you do even a little homework you will find lots of people praising the man and his work.

 

this post is good too, if considering getting better kits/parts

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...post1603562164

 

Lars is pretty quick to respond to email: v8fastcars@msn.com

 

Looks like you live 21 minutes away from Lars, according to Google.

 

If Lars is listening, what is the turn-around time now for one of your rebuilds?

 

I am relatively new to the Corvette world as well. Purchased my 79 in summer of 2020. Boy its been a learning experience ever since. First of all you are in the right place for gathering info., parts, suggestions, tips, repair procedures, etc. And many times be refereed to someone who may be of assistance. I often find myself just surfing this site just read post to learn more about my Vet. or just to admire other peoples Vets. In regards to your Q jet....When my Vet started acting a little.....MOODY, I suspected it was the carb. And started researching the Q jet carburetor. And was beginning to get intimated by it. But decided to tackle it myself. I rebuilt once, and the car ran better, but still wasn't satisfied. It was still a little quarkey. So I did a little more research, purchased a new kit, and a couple extra parts that we not included. Tackled it again, and voila!! It now runs like a raped ape!! First of all I am not a mechanic.I consider myself to be of above average on the mechanical ability and knowledge scale. You mentioned your son is mechanically inclined, give it a shot! Just as a suggestion take pics of every little thing as you go!!!! Would love to see some pics of the Vet!!
Good luck
Cruise safe

 

You won't be able to do much research on Q-Jets and not run across his name. It doesn't take much reading to realize he is an expert. And he is very helpful. It's been a while but I have rebuilt a couple to get them running and was able to get responses to questions I had when I was stuck. Now I save old Q-jets to rebuild when my son is old enough; the reason I got a carbed C3 was because I remember my dad explaining how the Q-jet on his old chevy truck works. Here are some of Lars' papers to get you fellas started:

 

that's a no brainer, then

 

What symptoms are you seeing? The carb is part of an entire system and is often mistakenly blamed when it's another component's issue. Photos of the carb may also help.

I also agree with the "no brainer" comment given your proximity to Lars. You can at least consult with him and perhaps get guidance to try on your own.

Agreed. Carbs are rather simple in the number of parts and assembly. I've re-kitted a few Holleys and Q-jets with no issues and would likewise encourage anyone to give it a go. What's the worst that can happen: it still doesn't work well so you ask questions and try again with the end option of sending it off to Lars or some other expert. This is the try-learn-try approach and will likely get you a good performing unit. Of course this assumes a carb with no damage or ruinous modifications. For a finely tuned and top performing carb, folks would do well to send it off to someone like Lars.

 

Hey there, I purchased a 76' in the spring. Carb was in decent shape (Original Quadrajet) but went ahead and tore it apart. I have never rebuilt a carb before and am pretty green wrenching on a car in general. If you have the time and patience it can be done. I ordered a rebuild kit from Cliff's High Performance, watched several youtube videos (Be careful here they are not all equal in accuracy) and took it apart myself. A ton of photos on my iPhone for reassemble purposes and cleaned the crap out of it. Looking back it was really easy and fired up on the 1st crank. Granted, It was in decent shape to begin, most notably bogging when we accelerated. Fun project and learned a lot by DYI and got a better understanding of the vehicle in doing so. Good Luck. I would have sent mine off as well, but had some time this summer in the garage and new if I jacked it up or lost my patience I could send it out to a pro. Not for everyone, but just sharing my experience. Good Luck!

 

Thanks for the confidence builder and sharing your experience. I also don't think the car runs like it should. Lars tells me that timing is key. So I plan to check that soon. I've already done the plugs & wires (what a bear!) and changed all the filters/fluids. It's got the electronic ignition too. So it must be in the carb / timing area.

I always enjoy father - son projects so will likely "dive into the deep water". I would also think the carb on my '73 is more simple in design than your 79 too.

 

'73 did not come with electronic ignition, so you might want to check into what mod someone has done to the car... most mods are less than desirable... No, the '73 carb is no more or less complicated than the '79.

 

Lars is the best bet to get a carb built they way it should be built.
His test engine validates that the carb performs as it should.
His knowledge is extensive and experience massive.
combine all that and your carb will be the jewel it should be.

 

Sweet ride. Although I am curious about the electronic ignition. 73 was points and condensor. What exactly is the car doing.

 

Thanks for the confidence builder. I'm like you, green on these types of things. But my son is fearless and a decent mechanic. So I guess we'll give it a try. Lars is only 15 miles away if we really jack it up.