WEBER VS OEM: The Facts

[JohnnyC]

i have had my weber38 for about 200,000 miles and 12-13 years. I had to rebuild it twice ...both times it didn't solve my current problem at the time...so...i should have never rebuilt it. i had early problems with the weber because a 38 on a 74f is a bit much and the fact that i had over 200,000 on the original engine at the time compounded the issue. I jet'd it way down and has run very strong for the past 8 years without any issues. never a problem off camber...and always great accel when needed even with 300,000 at the time i was doing hardcore trails in an open front and rear rig. I have no problems recomending a weber to anyone...you just have to find the jet size that works for your alttitude and location. I have found that what ever the dealer says it needs for a jet ...get one and two sizes smaller...they don't take into account the high miles that some rigs have on them.

my 2cents

 

[RedfishBluegrass]

Okay, this is my fourth LC and I have had OEM carbs on all but my current one. My statement that webers suck was because I was frustrated but here are the facts. My FJ40 and two previous FJ60's all had OEM carbs. I never had a leak or had to get them tuned. My Weber 38 on the other hand has leaked since I owned it and never seems to be in perfect tune. The gaskets were from PO problems but the tuning has been done correctly. The acceleration is great, but the gas milage seems to be less than stock. Yes, I have tuned my rig. I think the weber would be fine if I took the time to jet it correctly and the PO had mounted it correctly. Since I reseated and replaced gaskets it has been okay. So when I said they suck it was because I was having problems at the time. Sorry for the confusion. To each his own. If you like the Webers great. If you want to keep an OEM that most mechanics are scared of fine. If yours works for you then keep it.

 

[JohnnyC]

thats cool man...we all have bad days...if anybody has an issue F_ _ _ um my early weber days were a NIGHTMARE!!! these places sell the weber kits but have no idea how to set them up...before my cruisers weber i had a triumph spitfire with a weber..so luckly i was able to tell some of the guys i was talking to about the fj40's weber were full of s***! any problems email me!!!

 

[cruiser88]

if you want easy stay with oem thats just how i feel.no tuning ,fighting with whatever.ive had many carbs on cruisers none was as best as oem.my biggest issue with weber was on severe inclines,wheeling and such.great thread

 

[stinkyfj60]

thats cool man...we all have bad days...if anybody has an issue F_ _ _ um my early weber days were a NIGHTMARE!!! these places sell the weber kits but have no idea how to set them up...before my cruisers weber i had a triumph spitfire with a weber..so luckly i was able to tell some of the guys i was talking to about the fj40's weber were full of s***! any problems email me!!!

But they arent hard to set up... just set up the float level and off you go. THe only reason I have to re-jet is I live at 7500ft, a short wheeling trip can hit 10,000ft + in a hurry...

 

[Benji]

I just think it's funny we're talking carbs .

For me, the OEM Aisain carb has been great. It is beautiful. It has never failed. I have never had to 'tweak' my carb. Carbs are so much more fun than fuel injection!

My personal experience.

 

[KDan]

The first time I wheeled with my Weber 38 on LC Engineering built 22R motor it sucked big time. Constant flooding, couldn't keep it running. I did a little research and stuck an adjustable fuel pressure regulator on it. It has worked great ever since and I am totally happy with it. Except that I only get about 15.6 MPG with it and I have to burn premium because of the high compression ratio in the build. I actually get better gas mileage with my FZJ80 than my mini truck! But I do drive the little bastard like I stole it.

Dan

 

[JohnnyC]

But they arent hard to set up... just set up the float level and off you go. THe only reason I have to re-jet is I live at 7500ft, a short wheeling trip can hit 10,000ft + in a hurry...

as i said in my previous post...with 200,000 miles on the engine the jets are way too big for the f engine. if you have a low milage engine ...no problem...but a 38 on an f...its a bit tricky. the 38 is a 2 barrel not progressive like the 32/36...if i had a 2f ...the 38 would have been no problem.

 

[2badfjs]

a 38 is progressive
it has an idle mode
a cruising mode
and a accel mode

 

[pvidrummer]

Thanks alot guys for this thread!!! I have a 32/36 weber in the closet, and I have had the thought in my mind of installing the weber and removing the oem carb. But now I am staying stock!!! I have really crappy fuel mileage(I mean like 5mpg maybe less.) I am doing all that is possible to conserve power and make the engine more efficient. I have only had the cruiser for about 4 months now, and I have been slowly solving my gas guzzling problem.
I started by checking the spark plugs, to my amazement all 6 spark plugs were totally loose! I mean, I pulled the spark plugs out with my fingers(the funny thing is that even with the loss of compression due to the loose plugs the engine started up with no prob and still had plenty of power.)
Anyways. Today I upgraded my exhaust to a 21/2" tubing complete with magnaflow cat and muffler. The stock cat was completely clogged. Now the engine has a nice sound and gave me a noticable improvement in accel(but what about in gas economy? Give me a week to see if I still am the same on fuel "economy")
The next thing I am planning on attacking is the carb. I would like to get a MAn-a-Fre rebuild kit.
Any opinions are welcome.

 

[Mace]

One of the funny things about carbs is that they have to be set up correctly on a rig..

Amazingly enough, Jim and Mark (65SWB45) have figured out how to make a Asin carb absolutely sing.. There are others that can do that with a mallory. And even further, I had a Holley 350 that woudl not die unless it was at stupid angles..

Yes the Aisin is an excellent carb. So is the webber and so it the holley. They just all need someone to tweak them to a point that they perform the best..

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

Not much to offer but I only wish I had the years and hundreds of $$ I back I wasted running weber carbs on Fs and 2Fs versus OEM. No matter what I could not get them to run right and be tuned well on a 2F. Tried both 32/36 and 38/38 models. Yhr 38 did have good power though, just guzzled and lasted maybe 3 years tops.. No matter what anyone says, I still think OEM flat out spanks the webers IMO, borderline no comparison..

 

[wesintl]

I thought you were a total weber guy andre? When the change?

 

[Roebon]

I've seen Mark and Jim posting around here lately. I sure wish they would chime in on this thread. I know Mark is probably sick of discussing this issue. I'm sure he's kicked this horse many times in Toyota Trails. Maybe he could give some guidlines on how one would actually measure the performance.

In a thread posted today Mark gives a write-up on the best setup for a 2F and though he does mention that the stock carb works well, he lists an aftermarket carb first.

I find it interesting that PVIdrummer has been convinced to not use his Weber as a result of this thread. Javier Ibarra a well respected mechanic here in Houston and a diehard cruiserhead has told me that he has installed several Webers with great success. Several of the cruiserheads in the Houston Chapter have them as well and speak highly of them in terms of performance.

 

[Roebon]

Almost forgot. I've seen the original adapter plates that come with the Weber conversion. I can see how leaks would be a major problem, however most of the cruiser dealers now offer a one piece adapter. Has anyone used this new adapter?

 

[cruiserjunktion]

Fuel milage is not the same....

I have had both a weber and a oem carb.

Oem wins the mpg contest.....

The elec choke on the weber is the only thing it does better than oem....

Thanks jimc for a quailty rebuild

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

I thought you were a total weber guy andre? When the change?

Exactly.. Years ago, and I only wish I'd known.. Mostly when I started hanging out with Kurt from Cruiser outfitters and a bunch of guys here in Utah with good running, mostly rebuilt OEM carbs..

 

[Mace]

Exactly.. Years ago, and I only wish I'd known.. Mostly when I started hanging out with Kurt from Cruiser outfitters and a bunch of guys here in Utah with good running, mostly rebuilt OEM carbs..

So you are saying that you found the proper guy to tweak the oem carb

 

[kulangot]

All you have to do is look at the carbs side by side and you can see the Webber is a POS. Look at how cheap the castings are and closely inspect the moving parts. The two geared half wheels on my 38/38 looked liked they were sand cast out of the finest pot metal by an 8th grade shop class. The adapter is crap as well, mine had flashing all over it from the casting process that I had to Dremel off. Then look at the Aisin - Japanese quality. Not to be a stock purist, but parts like the Aisin are what makes your Land Cruiser a Land Cruiser. Webbers are what makes Fiat's the POS we all know them to be. That pretty much sums that up.

The best Italian Carburetor has always been Dellorto, not Webber. To make things worse, they don't even make Webbers in Italy any longer, where are they made now? Mexico? Brazil? Spain?

I tried a 38/38 in the mid 1990's and gave up on it. $250 dollars later (times have changed) I bought a new Non-USA carb from Spector and the truck never ran any better. I also ditched my crappy "HIGH PERFORMANCE" Mallory distributor and switched to a new Non USA version and the truck ran even better.

Sadly, you can't buy those new anymore here in the states, but you can have Mark or Jim rebuild your stock carb and be done with it.

This is all just my oppinion, I am sure that someone out there loves his Webber as much as someone loves their Fiat or Alfa

 

[2badfjs]

All you have to do is look at the carbs side by side and you can see the Webber is a POS. Look at how cheap the castings are and closely inspect the moving parts. The two geared half wheels on my 38/38 looked liked they were sand cast out of the finest pot metal by an 8th grade shop class. The adapter is crap as well, mine had flashing all over it from the casting process that I had to Dremel off. Then look at the Aisin - Japanese quality. Not to be a stock purist, but parts like the Aisin are what makes your Land Cruiser a Land Cruiser. Webbers are what makes Fiat's the POS we all know them to be. That pretty much sums that up.

The best Italian Carburetor has always been Dellorto, not Webber. To make things worse, they don't even make Webbers in Italy any longer, where are they made now? Mexico? Brazil? Spain?

I tried a 38/38 in the mid 1990's and gave up on it. $250 dollars later (times have changed) I bought a new Non-USA carb from Spector and the truck never ran any better. I also ditched my crappy "HIGH PERFORMANCE" Mallory distributor and switched to a new Non USA version and the truck ran even better.

Sadly, you can't buy those new anymore here in the states, but you can have Mark or Jim rebuild your stock carb and be done with it.

This is all just my oppinion, I am sure that someone out there loves his Webber as much as someone loves their Fiat or Alfa (you reading this Vic?)

-Stumbaugh

you hate them so much you cant even spell it "W E B E R"
BTW if they suck so bad why does EDELBROCK have WEBBER make thier carbs?