5 replies to this topic

[Deev]

Hi all,

 

I've been told by my garage (Palmer Bros) that the reason my Mini is running like a bag of spanners is because the carb (HIF44 I believe) is basically shot (apparently it looks like it's been pretty bodged and mangled in a past life and isn't pretty inside). I'm not hugely enamoured at the idea of spending about £350 on a new carb (Minispares price) plus cost of fitting but I have seen that A-Series Spares are selling professionally reconditioned HIF44s for £234 shipped which is more plausible (incidentally does anyone have experience of their reconditioned carbs? I believe A-Series Spares are a respected company?).

However this carb comes with a BEJ needle and, my very (very very) limited knowledge of carb needles suggests that this would be the wrong needle as I have a stage 1 manifold and K&N. Frankly, looking at needle choices is making my eyes water (how the hell do you know what is best for what??) but any pointers as to what needle would suit that setup?

 

I also considered saving some cash by fitting the carb myself but I get the feeling that might be an undertaking that I would quickly regret - plus I'd imagine it would need to be setup after fitting which would probably also be beyond my spanner-wielding capabilities.

 

The car is a largely standard (aside from the Stage 1 kit) 1990 RSP Cooper 1275.

 

All help appreciated!

 

D.

[b_sdaddy]

In the same boat, but mine's not quite a bag o' spanners yet...

 

no idea where you are but....

 

 

Called mark a MLM (kent) a few weeks ago, and ACDodd (on forum) does recon. carbs - give him yours (provided it can be reconditioned itself, and you get an already recon. one in return!

 

His 'working partner' Mark at MLMotorsports do an amazing tuning day (been once), and they suggested to me to  combine everything and get it fitted there in conjunction with another tune.

 

Saving pennies as we speak.

 

Don't want to quote his quote, but the fitted price of a recon. with them, wasn't that much more than the unit cost of a new one. Again, don't quote me.

 

 

google MLMotorsport kent or FB.

 

nothing but praise for what they achieved on my std. 998 Mk4

[007xico]

I am only learning myself but had to do my carb.

 

You can get a professional refurbished, new one or clean yours and rebuild it with a kit that will cost you around £60. Obviously you need some knowledge to rebuild it but if you buy one ready to fit, it's an easy task.

I didn't know much about carbs and got the wrong one to start with, it said cleaned but that doesn't mean it was rebuild , so be careful with that.

The second i got was a rebuild and cleaned one from ebay seller turner.carbs. It works fine at only £120 (they also have a website).

I did need help to set mine up but you probably can get it running and take it to a rolling road (recommended).

As for the needle don't see why you can't use the same one.

[Icey]

So what do they mean by 'shot'? They are very simple things, SUs with few moving parts.

 

Regarding the needle a BDL is the usual 'Stage 1' option but with just an air filter and manifold you won't need any real change so the standard needle will likely still be fine. You can buy a copy of WinSU which will help you understand what it all means and how changes to your engine affect your needle choices.

 

Rebuild kits are readily available and cost ~£40. Faced with those two options and knowing how simple they are I'd want to try the cheap option first. You need very few tools and if you take a few careful measurements you won't affect the basic adjustments. Nothing to loose really if you're planning on buying a new one anyway.

 

Just removing and fitting a carb requires no special tools: 1/2" spanner, screwdrivers and some pliers (or if you can find some, some very small spanners 7/32" if memory serves) for tightening the cables.

[Scott@minispeed]

facebook.com/fixacarb £110 to recondition yours and £7 to send it back to you

Edited by Scott@minispeed, 18 May 2016 - 09:12 AM.

[Dusky]

The hardest part of rebuilding a hif is getting the bushes out and back in. Nothing a screw, a nut , a spacer ( a spanner for me) and a washer couldn't fix for me. :)
They turned out quite nice imho. ( Twin hif4, equivalent of a twin hif38 but from an mgb).