1956 Holley Carburetor Issue

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Joined
Dec 12, 2019
Thunderbird Year
1956
My Sunliner has a Tbird 292 with an 1161-2 Holley carb. Lately it’s been spewing fuel near the 2 Venturi tubes in the back. It won’t idle at all without holding the pedal down. I have ordered a rebuild kit but am looking for further guidance before getting too deep into this sensitive component! One thing I did notice so far after taking the carburetor unit off is the needle is NOT clipped to the float tab, as the parts diagram indicates? Also the Venturi tubes seem snug in their seals and suspect the fuel is coming from in between them at the top.
Also, does anyone have troubleshooting techniques for the heat sensored choke? Is there an electronic replacement here?

Car near St George,UT.
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My Sunliner has a Tbird 292 with an 1161-2 Holley carb. Lately it’s been spewing fuel near the 2 Venturi tubes in the back. It won’t idle at all without holding the pedal down. I have ordered a rebuild kit but am looking for further guidance before getting too deep into this sensitive component! One thing I did notice so far after taking the carburetor unit off is the needle is NOT clipped to the float tab, as the parts diagram indicates? Also the Venturi tubes seem snug in their seals and suspect the fuel is coming from in between them at the top.
Also, does anyone have troubleshooting techniques for the heat sensored choke? Is there an electronic replacement here?

Car near St George,UT.
I had a similar problem with my 66. I had a Holley carb, couldn’t adjust the idle. It would range around. Needle would get loose. I rebuilt it, still had trouble. I had my mechanic try to adjust/then rebuild. Still sucked. Put on snd edlebrock 650. 4 years barely had to touch it.
Might be just a Holley problem with that one carburetor, I have always heard Holleys were better. It just wasn’t my personal experience.
 
Larry's Thunderbird and Mustang Parts sells carburetor manuals for the 1955-56 "Teapot" carburetors. With the exception of the choke location (55 divorced choke mounted on intake manifold, not carburetor), they should be the same. Otherwise, I would recommend a professional to check it out. If you decide to replace it with a modern carburetor, you will either need an adapter or get a 57 intake manifold. Also, the 55-56 Loadomatic distributors are not compatible with 57-up carburetors.
 
Not to pass judgement on your abilities, but these Model 4000 carbs are unique. They have there own quirks and have unique problems.. I have found that the people who rebuild these carbs know them all and rebuild them right.

I recommend Sal Cicala or David Arey
 
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Not to pass judgement on your abilities, but these Model 4000 carbs are unique. They have there own quirks and have unique problems.. I have found that the people who rebuild these carbs know them all and rebuild them right.

I recommend Sal Cicala 586-612-1650 or David Arey 610-837-6146
Yeah I’m more inclined to send it out to a knowledgeable repair shop. Thanks for all the member inputs.
 
My Sunliner has a Tbird 292 with an 1161-2 Holley carb. Lately it’s been spewing fuel near the 2 Venturi tubes in the back. It won’t idle at all without holding the pedal down. I have ordered a rebuild kit but am looking for further guidance before getting too deep into this sensitive component! One thing I did notice so far after taking the carburetor unit off is the needle is NOT clipped to the float tab, as the parts diagram indicates? Also the Venturi tubes seem snug in their seals and suspect the fuel is coming from in between them at the top.
Also, does anyone have troubleshooting techniques for the heat sensored choke? Is there an electronic replacement here?

Car near St George,UT.
View attachment 19266View attachment 19267
Thanks for the Sal recommendation as he did a masterful job on the rebuild for $225 without a rebuild kit. It was basically a “plug and play” product! So far so good.
 
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