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Closed15 replies

Upgrade to Weber carb?

FM Former Member
I am considering upgrading my old carb with a slightly larger Weber and would appreciate some thoughts or advice. My 1999 Vintage Speedster just reached 15,000 miles and has been running great.

I have a 1776 engine with AC and a single "Bocar" (built in Mexico) 34-PICT-3 carb. The engine starting running bad at warm up and won't idle. My mechanic said he can no longer adjust the fuel mix and suggests a new carb.

The 1997 book VW BEETLE PERFORMANCE HANDBOOK recommends a Weber 36 DCNF for a mild performance upgrade. But on the Webercarbsdirect website I can only find these two likely models:
34 ICT $175 Part Number: 15290.035 NEW 34 ICT Carburetor
40 DCNF 12 $505 Part Number: 18950.060 NEW 40 DCNF 12 Carburetor

So my question is:

What brand and model of a single carb should I select to get a higher quality carb and possibly add a few more horses?

Tim K
Original Post

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FM Former Member
I am considering upgrading my old carb with a slightly larger Weber and would appreciate some thoughts or advice. My 1999 Vintage Speedster just reached 15,000 miles and has been running great.

I have a 1776 engine with AC and a single "Bocar" (built in Mexico) 34-PICT-3 carb. The engine starting running bad at warm up and won't idle. My mechanic said he can no longer adjust the fuel mix and suggests a new carb.

The 1997 book VW BEETLE PERFORMANCE HANDBOOK recommends a Weber 36 DCNF for a mild performance upgrade. But on the Webercarbsdirect website I can only find these two likely models:
34 ICT $175 Part Number: 15290.035 NEW 34 ICT Carburetor
40 DCNF 12 $505 Part Number: 18950.060 NEW 40 DCNF 12 Carburetor

So my question is:

What brand and model of a single carb should I select to get a higher quality carb and possibly add a few more horses?

Tim K
Alan MerklinAlan MerklinDrclock - Elkins, West Virginia Supporting Member
A Weber Progressive 2 BBL ($269.00 w/ manifold) does fit with the cutting of just the inner portion of the deck lid and using the shorter style aircleaner element
This carb has an electric choke set up on the forward portion of the carb housing....
Caution is needed as the choke electrical male spade connection will hit the fan shroud if the Weber carb and manifold are not secured in the rearward most position . As a precaution,I've cut out a small 1" piece of rubber and glued it to the fan shroud to insulate it from the choke connection . The Weber Progressive works and performs well after initial adjustments of the fuel mixture and idle.
Ron ORon O1984/2010 IM, B.C. Canada
Go with duals. The baby Webers are a good choice,as are Kadrons and Solexs
Weber ICTs see:
www.cbperformance.com/catalog.asp?ProductID=502

or try:

www2.cip1.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=C12%2D1084%2D10

Also, for dual Solexs and Empi style Kadrons see:

www2.cip1.com/SearchResults.asp?Cat=1494&SortBy=Availability&Page=2

40 Webers on a 'stock' 1776 may be overkill. I know that others run 40s on their 1776s and like them. I had 40s on my 'stock' 1776 and I was never really happy with them. I always felt that the carbs were a bit too big for a basically stock motor. Now, if you plan to upgrade your motor, in the future, than the 40s are a good idea.
Ron
FM Former Member
Tim,

Someone else can tell you what to get.... here's what wont fit... A single 44IDF on a Lo Rise manifold will not clear your lid except with cutting the inner panel and squeezing the air cleaner to a 1" thick el-cheapo.

For simplicity, cost, and ease of operation on a basic 1776 I'd put on a pair of Weber ICTS (baby Webers). These are reliable, easy to maintain, and will give a basic 1776 a nice umph, even with 1 3/8 exhaust.

Jim
HossHoss
Correct me if I am wrong, Tim, but I think your A/C is mounted, as my 2000 VS was, in such a way that it makes it impossible to mount twin carbs. There have been threads in the past about relocating the compressor but I never did that and lived with the rather modest performance of an as-delivered 1776cc. I finally wound up removing my A/C system as Jim Ward did to make servicing the engine easier and saving some weight. I thought about having a bigger engine built or selling the car as-is and purchasing something more to my liking, which is what I am winding up doing. I think I had some reservations about making performance mods to an engine that I didn't think had the initial build quality I wanted.
just my 2 kroner
John H.
FM Former Member
Thanks for the input !!!
I do need to keep with a single carb because of the AC unit. The performance has been OK when the old single was working. So I just want to get a better quality carb for now - with maybe a bit more horsepower. I just put about 2,000 miles per year on the car - weekends in the sun. I want the car to run smooth and reliably.

So is there one "best" carb for this 1776 engine?

Tim K
Ron ORon O1984/2010 IM, B.C. Canada
Tim, if you go with a single carb your choices for a performance upgrade are limited. Also, something like a Weber Progressive 2 barrel is difficult to tune, and may not fit under the engine lid. and gets poor mileage. The difference in performance between a single and duals is very noticeable.
FM Former Member
John & Tim,
Ever notice all those new AZ/WI Dealer Vintage Speedsters on E-Bay that have Dual Kads, Dual ICTs, or IDFs? Why???? Because Kurt has a mount for duals... he just doesn't advertise it much. Heck, he doesn't advertise it at all. I don't think he likes doing it for some reason... but evidently he does it for those resellers in AZ and WI.

How do I know? I have a bracket set up for duals and a/c sitting in a box in my treasure trove. Bought it from VS after ballbagging about it some.
FM Former Member
Jim:

Do you know if the dual carb set-up works well with the AC bracket?

Is it possible Kirk at VS doesn't recommend it because it has some problems with the approach?

If Kirk recommends it I may buy the bracket from you (got pictures?)
Tim K
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John & Tim,
Ever notice all those new AZ/WI Dealer Vintage Speedsters on E-Bay that have Dual Kads, Dual ICTs, or IDFs? Why???? Because Kurt has a mount for duals... he just doesn't advertise it much. Heck, he doesn't advertise it at all. I don't think he likes doing it for some reason... but evidently he does it for those resellers in AZ and WI.

How do I know? I have a bracket set up for duals and a/c sitting in a box in my treasure trove. Bought it from VS after ballbagging about it some.
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