1979 Mercury Colony Park w/351. I know, I know. Most people say the variable venturi carburetor stinks. So I was going to replace my Morotcraft 7200vv carb with something better since the car runs like crap (rough idle, smelly exhaust, 10mpg, surging while driving). But then I decided I want to try and rebuild this vv. I figured the best case scenario would be that my engine runs better, and the worst case scenario would be that I screw it up and buy another better carb like I was going to do anyway. Either way, I will gain some new knowledge in taking a stab at rebuilding this thing. That all being said, has anyone rebuilt a variable venturi carb, or more specifically a 7200vv? Any opinions, tips, stories? Looking forward to any responses!
I thought about it for a minute on my car. Then I thought better of it and just put a four barrel Holley on. There are service manuals floating out there for them. I've got one, but I don't recall it being overly helpful in terms of rebuilding. I haven't looked at it in a while. There are usually a couple on ebay. I would recommend getting a quality rebuild kit for it. I think there are a couple of specialty tools to do the job, but probably nothing you couldn't figure out. I also occasionally see them pop up on ebay, although less frequently these days. If you need spare parts there are usually a couple for sale on ebay for cheap. If you do go ahead with it I would document it. It would probably be the only documented VV rebuild on the internet.
Take that POS and smash it with a hammer! Get a used 2v reg carb and rebuild IT and install! thats what i did on my 79 LTD the venturi's were garbage when new let alone now! My car had 2-2 1/2 gallons of gas in the oil pan from that POS! Damn near ruined the engine.
Having lived with VV carburetors, both the purely mechanical as well as the electronic feedback ones, so the smart thing. Save yourself a LOT of trouble, and ditch the damned thing! For one, if the VV diaphragm decides to rupture (with no warning I might add), you are dead, right there unless you can prop the venturi flaps open with something. They are also a bear and a half to get set up right, and then they still don't work all that well. The regular Autolite 2 bbl is a straight bolt on, and it can be set fairly easily. The best, although most expensive, option is to yank the factory 2 bbl intake and drop in an Edelbrock Performer 4 bbl intake and 1401 Carb. Remember, these Ford engines prefer a square bore to a spread bore 4 bbl. The 1401 carburetor body is very easy to set up for the 351, and extremely easy to tune to the engine. You will get better mileage with the Performer intake and carb, too.
I understand what you are saying, but it doesn't sound like he is married to the thing. If it works then great. If not then he's out the cost of a rebuild kit. Either way he'll probably learn something he didn't know and it could be a fun little project.
Thanks for your input, guys. Actually, maybe if I smash it with a hammer, it will run better. Sounds like trying to rebuild it may be more trouble than it's worth at this point. I do like WagonKiller's suggestion of getting a 2V 2150 and rebuilding that and trying that on my car. That might be a better first step for me. If I do that, though, how many modifications will I have to do to make it compatible with my car? I think there are a few electrical connections to the 7200 carb that don't seem to be on the 2150 carbs. Would I just leave these connections off the 2150? Would the engine run OK without these? Sorry for my ignorance on this, but I am just learning about all this carb stuff. Thanks!
It doesn't get much simpler than the 2150. Get a good manual on it and you should be set. When I ditched my VV all that I used from the electrical connections was a key on 12V source to run the choke. I either disconnected the harness the other plugs were on or left them to dangle. I cannot recall which. The only other things you'll have to figure out are the fuel line (if the inlet is in a different place) and what ever vacuum connections you might have. I would think the throttle linkage hook up would be the same. Not sure if you have any linkage connections from the trans to deal with. It's not rocket science. If you do go ahead with the VV let me know. I thumbed through my VV manual out in the garage and it seems to have more information in it that I had recalled. It's not a step by step rebuild manual, but it goes through each component and what it does. I've also got another troubleshooting manual for the 5.8L MCU for Police, Tow, and Canadian models. I've also got a couple of spare carbs laying around somewhere, but mine are newer models (90-91).
no apologies needed... .."why learn from YOUR mistakes..when you can learn from other peoples??" the plain truth is...if they were any good....then Ford woulda kept using them !! even the next Gen "injected carb" was a piece of crap !!
I found one thread on a VV breakdown so you have an idea of what you might be getting into. http://www.grandmarq.net/vb/showthread.php?21374-Variable-Venturi-Carburetor-Rebuild
Preachin the gospel on this one lol! i did the same is simple to install, easy to rebuild and find parts/kits for and cheap. just make sure you get the right one(properly jetted) Mine came off a 351 cleveland and i put 289 jets in it.I MIGHT have those jets somewhere. And if i remember correctly all accesories(linkage,kickdown) connected the exact same way. You might have to adjust the kickdown screw and like he said with the choke. i just adjusted my choke open as it is only summer driven.
