TheSamba.com :: View topic

Thu Feb 21, 2008 7:39 am

I just got through with my first experiance with the empi dual 34mm carb kit and i would definitely recomend it to anyone considering it. My first set of duals i ever owned was a set of weber 34 itc's with bugpack linkage and they served me well. these new empi knock offs performed just as well as the originals. they were pretty much dead on right out of the box all i had to do was to lower the idle to my taste . these carbs went on a brand new 1600 motor with a single quiet pack muffler ,009 and is really quick . i was a little weary of this kit with all the bashing that empi gets , but i'm very pleased with them. I hope this helps anyone considering these carbs.

Thu Feb 21, 2008 7:49 am

Double check your jetting, carbs just don't come "right" out of the box. Good luck!

Thu Feb 21, 2008 8:22 am

I don't have a o2 meter , but these carbs are very close. no flat spots and very crisp throttle responce. I'm sure there is some fine tuning left in them , but this is stock 1600. My point was to let everyone know that these carbs were very nice for the price and they ran well right out of the box.I've tuned ida's ,dlra's, idf's, kadrons and these required the least tuning out of the box.

Sat Feb 23, 2008 3:52 pm

Thanks for the review. Does anyone else have any experience with these EMPI carbs?
Thanks

Fri Mar 14, 2008 12:16 am

This is also my frist dual setup, so my pros and cons might apply to all duals. Cons...Cant remove or install the engine with carbs in place. Hard to tighten two of the carb-intake nuts. No choke. Hard to get to #1 and #3 plugs. Springs have little tension where they say to put them (put the spring holder on the far screw that hold the link bar arm on and works great.) Directions could be more easy. Pros...Setup simple lots of room for adjustment. Price is right. Car runs better than stock and I am only adjusted to 3/4 full trottle. Looks great. Ran first time setting up (need some tuning). Center pull linkage.

All in all I would give it 4 out of 5. Good buy.

Fri Mar 14, 2008 7:03 am

Eric M and Mr Hairy, How much did you pay for your carbs and where did you get them?
Thanks

Fri May 23, 2008 3:52 pm

$299 from cip1

Thu May 28, 2009 5:10 pm

and what about this site........
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=746925

I cant resist its price (or should I?)

Thu May 28, 2009 5:47 pm

It should be the same exact sealed kit. My buddy has 'em on his trike (dp 1600) and he likes them. They were easier to tune in than my Webers, but don't expect them to perform up to the Weber performance. But not a bad upgrade o a stock motor for the price.

Thu May 28, 2009 7:43 pm

sturgeongeneral wrote: It should be the same exact sealed kit. My buddy has 'em on his trike (dp 1600) and he likes them. They were easier to tune in than my Webers, but don't expect them to perform up to the Weber performance. But not a bad upgrade o a stock motor for the price. what exactly makes them peerform inferior to the webers? i thought they were clones of webers? and arent all new webers clones anyway?....I understand the fit and finishbuild quality may be better on the older webers but a lot of the older webers are beat and worn too.

Sat May 30, 2009 12:15 am

I got a set of the Empi icts and had a lot of problems. first it was missing a few linkage parts and empi or the shop I bought them from would not help, second and worse was a fuel leak I could not get rid of. i rebuilt the carbs, checked the top for warpage and nothing. I ended up removing the carb, filled the bowl with carb cleaner and found the leak. it was a hole in the main jet passage casting leaking to the outside!! that explained why the lean condition at mid and upper rpm.

I since have used some scat universal bell linkage, and some JB weld and the carbs now work great!

A lot of frustration to say the least. I paid only $225 for the kit but now i think the extra cost in the new linkage ($30), rebuild kits ($60), JB weld and time spent have surpassed the cost of genuine webers.

Is it true the idle jets are the same as stock solex?

Sat Jul 04, 2009 2:30 am

great great discussion, i agree, for the price, i would most definitely get the empi's!! i got a shitty stock carb, but im most def getting empi's soon! as soon as i get the money!.

pce :D

Sat Jul 04, 2009 8:54 am

i got some 44 dualshpmx and they work fine runs good!! no problems with them!!

Sat Jul 04, 2009 9:52 am

wow - I didn't know duals would make such a difference on a stock engine

....and they look cool too 8)

I know what's on my wish list

Sat Jul 04, 2009 11:07 pm

I got spanish ICT webers and was so impressed I bought IDFs :D . Believe me I'm glad I got high quality and not EMPI knockoffs. Money well spent. Take a little guess on the resale value as well. ICTs are good duals for beginners. They are hearty and easy to learn with.

Sat Jul 04, 2009 11:33 pm

CAUTION!!! Webers carbs are not what they used to be!!! If you do decide to buy some, make sure they are the spanish or italian versions. If you get the new "made in the USA" you will be happier with the EMPI HPMX believe it or not.

Given the first run of the empi carbs left much to be desired, they have improved on quality control quite a bit and seem to be much better now. As far as the "new" webers, they are produced in china and assembled in the usa, quality control is lacking and they seem to have more problems and less satisfied customers.

NOS spanish webers are still out there but get ready to pay for them. Used spanish or italian run $400 and still have to be at least rebuilt. More need new throttle shaft bushings and some need led plugs repaired. None of the repairs are cheap so be careful when buying used.

Sun Jul 05, 2009 6:39 am

Good post...Empi has made vast improvements but gets some bad raps from folks who don't even use the products...just relying on he said she said to come to a conclusion or relying on very old past experience.Empi has someone test running all the carb kit's now to so thats probably helping with some of the flawed castings not getting into the system... :wink:

Sun Jul 05, 2009 6:49 am

EMPI can never improve enough for me to buy any of their products. They have shit all over the VW hobby the last 20 years. The damage they have done can not be repaired.

Mon Aug 31, 2009 7:20 am

vwracerdave wrote: EMPI can never improve enough for me to buy any of their products. They have shit all over the VW hobby the last 20 years. The damage they have done can not be repaired.

I totally agree but this EMPI 34 carb kit is suprisingly good set of thing. I had used IDFs, DCNFs, of course they are on a different performance level, but this set is easy to tune, easy to sync, the mileage is good, so I do recommend. Here we have it for 399 Euro. (Europe)

I was also surprised about the quality, seeing the empi logo.... :wink:

Mon Aug 31, 2009 11:45 am

You can get new Webber 34 ICT's that are made in Spain for a good price. Any and all (at least lower price end) carbs should be cleaned, floats set or checked and most likely jetted before the install.
Not having any good experience with EMPI products I can't speak to the Webber knock-off carbs.
The Webber 34 ICT's seem to be well made, and though I am taking a ribbing because it is taking me so long to get them to run right they are easy (for most people) to install and tune. The jets are super easy to change out.