1983 Volvo Penta AQ125A carburetor float bowl does not get refilled at the right leve

[nic420]

1983 Volvo Penta AQ125A carburetor problem. I rebuild the carb. Filled the float bowl with fresh gas. It starsts right up, idles smoothly, and runs for about the time the float bowl gets emptied (10min). When the bowl is empty the motor shuts off and will not start again. I have to take the top of the carb and manually refill it and it starts right up again. So the problem is the float bowl does not get refilled at the correct level to keep the motor running more than 10-15 min. Please advise what might be the cause. The needle valve looks new and it does go up and down freely.

[johnmorgan]

is it a solex down draft or a rochester 2 barrel

[nic420]

It is a solex 44 PA1 downdraft. Does the spring for the diaphragm goes on the rod of the diaphragm or does it go on the flat side of the diaphragm? Some schematic view shows it going on the rod side of the diaphragm and some shows it go on flat side. Can you clarify for me?

[johnmorgan]

I think you have a solex downdraft carb, is your fuel pump working? if that is working then you float jet is clogged or the air vents in the float bowl are clogged.I would check your pump, and check to see if there is anything clogging the fuel line. you can check your pump with a clear hose from the pump to the carb, if it has gas getting there then you know it is not the pump. If the pump is good I would take the carb apart and blow it out with compressed air but before you do that make sure you didnt bend the float lever or something simple like that =)

[johnmorgan]

you put the spring in then the diaphgram with the flat side facing downward

[johnmorgan]

any luck

[nic420]

Yeah, no luck. The fuel pump is good but gas is not refilling the float bowl. Please advise how do I go about troubleshooting the air vents in the float bowl to see if they are clogged? I have not tried that yet. Would the air vent for the float be where you adjust the air needle? It looks like a pointed screw.

[nic420]

What is a float lever?

[PiratePast40]

The only adjustment to float level is the thickness of the washer under the float chamber fill valve. If you bend the tang (lever) on the float, you'll need to go looking for a new one because that's not how you do it on that carb. The manual calls for the 1mm thick washer but there are washers of varyng thickness in the rebuild kit. But the more important question is, why you think the problem is the float chamber level. If you haven't cleaned the carb and put in new gaskets, that's probably the best place to start.

The float chamber vent is a small hole in the top plate of the carb. If you don't know where that is, then there's no way for you to tell how much gas is in the float bowl.

As far as the accel pump diaphram, follow the VP manual directions. Don't go by the sketch that's in the solex manual, it's backwards. The spring goes into the carb body and not into the valve cover. The pin on the diaphram should face the lever and not protrude into the carb. Install the cover with the lever facing downward.

Should really soak the body in carb cleaner and make sure all of the passages are clean before you go much farther. You can pick up an aftermarket rebuild kit on ebay for around $30. After a 3-4 hour soak, I blow out all the internal passages with compressed air, clean everything in hot soapy water and then blow out all the passages again to make sure everything is clean and clear. I really think your best bet is to clean up the carb first. That's a really simple carb and is an easy job.

[Mullin]

The float shouldn't have just suddenly changed. The only reason you should need to adjust it is because you bought a new/reman carb or you rebuilt it and made an adjustment to the float that you shouldn't have. Piratepast40 is correct, you do not bend the tang, you change the needle valve's washer to adjust its position, not the float. Even if your float went bad, it would be flooding the engine not starving it. You can measure the position of the needle valve and compare it to the float too.

Check your fuel flow to the carb. Then rebuild the carb. This is a really basic carb and is easy to rebuild even if you have never done one before. All you need is a couple of cans of carb cleaner (get 3) and a rebuild kit. The chemtool dip available here in california is useless, so I just use the spray. Take it apart and clean it good, blow out all the passages to be sure they flow good (don't use a wire or anything, just spray). New gaskets and valves from the carb kit and there isn't much more too it. Set the mixture screw and idle screw to the manuals specs ("Screw the venting screw right in. Then screw it out 1 turn.") and fine tune on the engine.

I dropped my idle jet and couldn't find it for a day, don't loose it, there are no replacements available. In searching I found this guy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBubyG_nqpE who also sells the carb already rebuilt at his online store.

[ttq02]

I have 1983 bayline with Volvo Penta engine same problem you have. rebuild cab still not run right after I change new fuel pump it run right 1st time you crane. So check your fuel pump make sure it work.