1993 Volvo penta 430 carb problems.. can I swap with mercruiser 2bbl?

RandyJ

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This boat was sunk and since cleaning it up the carburetor has had one problem after another. I've cleaned it 3 times and am ready to throw my hands up. It runs fine at 3/4 throttle then chokes down. I've tinkered with it so much that I think I've screwed it up trying to get a spring keeper to stay in by re-bradding it in place. Now I'm considering just swapping the volvo penta carburetor with a mercruiser 2 barrel off of a 4.3L engine. One catch is that I don't know if they're interchangeable or not???? Anyone know?
 

Maclin

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Re: 1993 Volvo penta 430 carb problems.. can I swap with mercruiser 2bbl?

I believe VP used Holleys, and the MerCarb is a Weber clone so I am betting the linkages are not close enough. Now, if the carb off of the other engine is a Holley from the same size engine then it may work.

Are you sure your carb is not re-buildable? And that the (percieved) fuel delivery problem is there and not in the supply side?
 

Maclin

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Re: 1993 Volvo penta 430 carb problems.. can I swap with mercruiser 2bbl?

I believe OMC 4.3's from 90-92 and on would have a Holley, though not all 4.3's are 2bbl engines.
 

Don S

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Re: 1993 Volvo penta 430 carb problems.. can I swap with mercruiser 2bbl?

and the MerCarb is a Weber clone

I'll bet you meant the Mercarb is a Rochester clone didn't you?

The 430B used a Rochester carb. If you have the carb, give it a try, then you will know if it fits or not.
 

Maclin

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Re: 1993 Volvo penta 430 carb problems.. can I swap with mercruiser 2bbl?

I'll bet you meant the Mercarb is a Rochester clone didn't you?

I had it kind of inside out sorta maybe. The Weber is a Carter AFB clone I think. Kind of like the Rocky Racoon song lyric, "Her name was McGill, but she called herself Lill, and everyone knew her as Nancy."

I keep trying to take my own advice which is to ask for more info and pics FIRST before trying to jumpstart the help bus!

Randy, if you can get a side by side comparison first without having to buy then that is what to do. Take yours off and go look at the other, or bring the other to you. Pics are great too :)
 

RandyJ

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Re: 1993 Volvo penta 430 carb problems.. can I swap with mercruiser 2bbl?

thanks guys. I got it back on and finally got it to crank and idle easily. This boat started out as a fantastic deal but little by little it has become a daily project/nightmare. Last week it quit running on me and I found the carbon button in the distributor cap had gotten stuck so ended up ordering a whole tune up kit. This motor has been retrofitted with a Mallory distributor so does not have the electronic stuff on it. To get it running smooth I moved the distributor and tuned it by ear. Though I had marked and reset the distributor when installing points & cap I'm sure the timing got off. Now.... I'm not very confident in how to set the timing after reading too many posts about shunts and time this way or that way... Anybody got the scoop on timing this thing? I'm assuming there is no shunt or anything required and there is no advance that I can tell... so, I am assuming that I just hook up a timing light as normal on old chevy's and set timing to either 0, 1, or 6... depending on which thread I'm reading...
Engine serial number 4100141102 if that helps... btw... the penta carb looks very similar to a Rochester to me... I'll find a pic and post it later. It's getting late and I have a moral obligation to go fishing...
 

Don S

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Re: 1993 Volvo penta 430 carb problems.. can I swap with mercruiser 2bbl?

This boat started out as a fantastic deal but little by little it has become a daily project/nightmare.

Don't get me wrong here, but what do you expect. Boat repairs and preventive maintenance, all takes the service manual, the proper tools, and the skills to do the work. Without them, it's called tinkering, and usually makes things worse.

Without a dwell meter to set the points properly, and a timing light to set the timing after you get the dwell set, the chances of you getting the engine running right are somewhere near zero.
You are looking for a carb, and it sounds like you may not even need one. If you don't have the dwell and timing right, the boat won't run right no matter what you do with the carb.

so, I am assuming that I just hook up a timing light as normal on old chevy's and set timing to either 0, 1, or 6... depending on which thread I'm reading...

If you don't read threads that are for your setup, then you are just reading for the fun of it. YOU have to know what to read, and I would bet money it's in the service manual. But wait, you don't have OEM, you have aftermarket.
So here you set, no idea what the dwell should be, not sure what it is or how to set it, not sure what the timing should be or how to set it with a timing light, no idea what distributor you have (except Mallory that has all kinds of distributors) and wanting the change a carb. :facepalm:


Would you like to actually figure out what you have, how it should be set, and how to get it working? If so, stop tinkering with things and ask.
 

RandyJ

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Re: 1993 Volvo penta 430 carb problems.. can I swap with mercruiser 2bbl?

Well... pardon me but this ain't my first rodeo. I've been working on automotive & boat engines for about 40 years. This boat was sunk and the carb had to be rebuilt so that's why I had to take it apart. I just hate to buy a manual to find the timing setting. As for setting the dwell... it's easy to do if you've got a distributor with a door for adjusting points but this one doesn't so the usual way is to set the points to .019 to .020. These carburetors retail for $800-$1000 so I'd rather put a less expensive carburetor on it. Used Penta carbs are rare so anything that would work and the engine run smooth would be all I need. I'm not looking for perfection, just a nice little boat for me and my family to enjoy. Decent used mercruiser carbs can be had for around $100... HUGE difference. After I dried out the engine on this boat it ran great until trash got in the carb and then it had to have the tune up kit because of the distributor cap malfunction which I assume was a result of the spring rusting. If you've got information, great, if not then I'll keep looking. I've got a significant library of manuals for outboards, mercruisers, volvo's (but not this one) and jet ski's. I DO appreciate advice given.
........edited.... I did find a bit of info on other sites, timing 8 degrees BTDC, the distributor is a replacement for the original electronic type, it is Mallory 9-26107, can be seen here http://www.marineengine.com/parts/p...&returntopage=mallory_marine/mallory00414.htm No information is given for setting point gap or dwell (my experience is that most GM engines do well at .019. (I can call Mallory tech support). There are 3 types of 2 bbl Rochester carburetors used on these which are basically the same except for the choke and vacuum: 2GC, 2GE, and 2GV. Whether or not they'll interchange with a similar Mercruiser carb on a 4.3L I still don't know but will find out.
 
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HorizonblueDK

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May 27, 2010
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Re: 1993 Volvo penta 430 carb problems.. can I swap with mercruiser 2bbl?

As far as I know, both the pre and post Vortec 4.3 V6 engines each had only one type of intake manifold, for 2 barrel carb. So if you want to install a Mercruiser carb or any other carb, make sure you get all the parts down to the intake manifold, there may be an adaptor.
 

RandyJ

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Re: 1993 Volvo penta 430 carb problems.. can I swap with mercruiser 2bbl?

Thanks Horizonblue... now I'm getting somewhere with my question. Very much appreciated.
 

Don S

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Re: 1993 Volvo penta 430 carb problems.. can I swap with mercruiser 2bbl?

Here are the specs for the ignitions system for the Volvo V6 engines that used the points distributor. I would first get the dwell and then the timing set correctly then look into the carb problem. Your problems may not be the carbs fault.

attachment.php


As for setting the dwell... it's easy to do if you've got a distributor with a door for adjusting points but this one doesn't so the usual way is to set the points to .019 to .020.

You set the points then VERIFY with the dwell meter. If the dwell is off, adjust the gap up or down to get the well within range.

Personally, I just take the cap and rotor off, hook up an analog dwell meter and crank the engine over with the key on and adjust the dwell while cranking. I used a snapon meter and had to adjust the points to 5? higher than the book setting, but it was consistent on every engine. Your meter may be more, or less. But once you find what it is, it makes the job go pretty quick. After setting the points the points this way, when running the dwell was always dead on what I wanted it to be.
 

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