318 carb bbd?

I have a rough rebuilt bbd carb on my refreshed 318. It runs ok but not as good as I think it should and I think the carb is the main issue. So do I get a remanufactured bbd or do something like put a 4 barrel on it with a performer manifold. Or is their a better 2 barrel that will fit. From what I have read the Carter bbd is not to good of a carb.

Just looking for insight, this is the first 318 I have ever messed with. I just want a good runner, almost there and I think this will do it.

It really all depends on how much money you have to spend. You can go out and buy a brand new manifold and carb and put them on and it will run quite well after you get the carb set up. You can spend $20 or so and pick up a carb kit for that BBD and maybe get it running right, maybe not. When they are set and working right the BBD isnt that bad of a carb, not great, but not terrible either.
Another option is to watch craigslist/ebay/whatever for a used manifold and carb setup. Any small block Chrysler manifold will fit on it except the Hemi's and Poly engines. Aluminum manifolds decrease weight, which is their only real advantage over a factory stock cast iron jobber. If you are concerned about losing what little fuel mileage you currently have look into getting a quadrajet. They have little tiny primaries with very very large secondaries. As long as you keep your foot out of it you should get mileage very comparable, or even slightly better than the 2 barrel on their now. The gamble with used stuff is is it really better than what you already have? A lot of used stuff is worn out/junk that isnt worth much more than scrap weight.

Interesting this post came up at this time. I had the bbd rebuilt by a reputable shop, installed it on a fresh 318. Engine starts well but wont idle down enough to safly put it in gear. Idle screw adjustments dont seem to change anything. Any ideas?

Make sure the high idle cam isnt sticking and staying engaged. They made several different styles ranging from a step style to a simple ramp style. It attaches to the side of the carb body with a screw. It will be slightly above the lever that your rod/cable attaches to.

Id go with =moparfreak on this one = aftermarket manifold and even possibly a new carb- mileage - look into a new Holley spreadbore care =believe thats a model 4165. Just like the old quadrajet yet better & easier to adjust for me .Small primary 's and darn big secondaries. Ive built many a quadrajet and i still have an origional one on my 82 chev conversion van - still working good after 200,000 miles -never have touched it - thats one in a million though?? Happy Vannin

You have a Carter BBD 2bbl? My 273 came stock with one and it needed rebuilding so I just got a remanufactured one. The reman one ran like crap, I never could get the idle to settle down and it floated 200-400 rpm at idle, always seemed like it was either too high or too low.

I ended up rebuilding my OEM one with a $15 rebuild kit and it runs pretty darn good considering its 45 years old. If you let it warm up properly its fine.

That being said, the Holley 2280 2BBL is a good carb as well, it was used on mopars as a replacement for the BBD (late 70's early 80's). It's also a "small rochester bolt pattern" like the BBD. I think the 2280 is a better carb than the BBD and am going to rebuild the one I have for future use.

I do intend to build a mild performance 360 for my van eventually and I'll be putting an Edlebrock 650 4bbl on that one.

also, one thing I dont like about the BBD is that the top of the accelerator pump is pretty much open to the air in the engine bay. It just has a metal slug on it being held down by gravity. Any fuel in there can percolate and get pretty fumey after a long run in the summer time.

Slowflapper, I do have a bbd that I rebuilt, bought it used from a local mopper yard. It idles good when warm just a bit choppy and sluggish when accelerating, not terrible. I have the timing and carb set as good as I can get them. I am either going to try The 2280 you mentioned or go with a performer manifold and a 4 barrel with vac secondaries. I have to figure out how much I can spend.

Thanks for all the tips guys.

The 2280's were on 318 dodge and ford vans, ramchargers and trucks in the early 80's, might be able to score one at a junk yard and rebuild it. It not a bad carb if you get it cheap.

I'm with you on the BBD, it runs ok but not great, as long as its reliable it keeps me happy for now.

BBDs were pretty basic carbs, not very advanced metering.
The issues is that most are 40 plus years old and are worn out and have been rebuilt by shops, mechanics and amatuers many times each. Some to a better job than others, but there is no fixing worn out except doing major work that is not done by most.
There are new ones available, but it's still not a great carb.
You have a couple other choices in 2 bbls that will bolt on or you can go with a 4bbl and intake. They also range from old worn out carbs to new. All will need adjusting and possible needle/jet changes to be real good.
As for "carb problems" you can also look at sloppy, worn throttle linkages, fuel contamination from our old tanks and lines, the current 'gasoline' that often has a bunch of volatile alcohol that boils and an engine compartment that traps heat. All of these subtract from driving pleasure.

BTW, ALL carbs and accelerator pumps are vented to the atmosphere. Otherwise, they wouldn't work!

http://www.howstuffworks.com/question377.htm

true on the vent, but I meant to point out that some of them are vented to charcoal canisters or vented "overboard" etc, the bbd just has a dime sized metal slug that sits on the accelerator pump shaft

It's not uncommon for me to get fuel "over spray" around the top of the carb from fuel/mist getting around that slug, it's kind of unnerving at times and i always hope the F/A mix never gets just right under there

After making some inquirys into a good replacement for the Carter BBD without changing to a 4 barrel carb, a reputable carb repair company in Spokane Wa came up with this info. As I have not seen this option listed before on the VV website, I wanted to put it out there for your comments.

Knowlens carb shop highly reccomends replacing the Carter BBD with a Holley 4412 500 CFM. The replacement requires a carb to manifold adapter and possibly a linkage kickdown kit, also avaialble. It can be purchased with a manual choke or an electric choke. What is interesting is they do not carry this unit. So he has no monetary reason to reccomend it. He sugested JEGS, Summit or a local supplier here in Sandpoint.

I wil be checking price and availability today from the local supplier to compare with JEGS and Summit. Wil post findings later. Would appreciate hearing back form anyone who may have more info on this carb.
If this info

I been having a hard time getting my Carter BBD to run smooth. Been thinking of getting a Holly carb and manifold. Some buddies been telling me that this would really open up my motor. I am pretty ignorant to these and was looking at these two items on Summit, just to get me in the right direction. Looking for some thoughts or advice please.

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/hly-0-80457s/overview/make/dodge

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/cmb-03-0118/overview/

Have you checked the rest of the basics?Compression test,vacuum leaks,ignition parts and timing chain?

as im also here in spokane wa- i know this carb shop & there usually very correct on all. I have talked to them & yet as I do all my own carbs on everything I dont know on their reputation =yet they have been in buisness many years here!!  

The Holley 4412 500cfm is too much for a 318 unless you have modified the engine, the Holley 7448 (2300 series) 350cfm would be a better choice if you decide to go that route. Bigger when it come to carbs is not always better.

A100 Wrench wrote:Have you checked the rest of the basics?Compression test,vacuum leaks,ignition parts and timing chain?

Yes. It runs well, have a few issues of running rough at idle when at stop signs and lights, but overall runs good. Just looking to give it a boost and there are not alot of good comments on the Carter BBD's.

busman78 wrote:The Holley 4412 500cfm is too much for a 318 unless you have modified the engine, the Holley 7448 (2300 series) 350cfm would be a better choice if you decide to go that route. Bigger when it come to carbs is not always better.

Thanks for this info. When I did the search for carbs for the 318 the 4412 came up.

If you were to stick with running a Carter BBD 2-barrel I would recommend one that was rebuilt by a company called "Autoline" I'm using one for a 1970 Dodge 318, but other years are avaiable, and got it from Rock Auto.

http://www.autoline.ca/carburetors.htm

As part of their standard rebuild, they install bushings in the housing for the throttle shaft, a main area of wear, as well as the cause for most crappy running at idle, and refinish the carb so it looks like new. There are other companies who probably do the same quality rebuilds but I'm not aware of them.

https://www.rockauto.com/catalog/moreinfo.php?pk=1125807&cc=1083451

Came up on a fully rebuilt carter BBD. Issues are gone now. Just need to tweak the choke and it's good to go. The choke seems to want to stay on and doesn't kick off after the 2 taps of the gas.

It shouldn't kick off till the choke thermostat is warm, tapping the pedal kicks it off fast idle.