Which Edelbrock carburetor to pick? Performer or Thunder AVS?
I'm replacing my Holley carburetor due to some damage that cannot be fixed.
I'm trying to decide between the following models:
Edelbrock 1406 - Performer 600CFM, Electric Choke, Single Inlet
Edelbrock 1806 - Thunder 650CFM, Electric Choke, Single Inlet
Edelbrock 1826 - Thunder 650CFM, Electric Choke, Dual Inlet, Off Road
I'm leaning towards the 1806 or 1826. Is there any reason to go with the dual fuel inlet carb over the single inlet?
Which Edelbrock carburetor to pick? Performer or Thunder AVS?
It would help to know what size engine and how performance modified it is.
The Performer is a vacuum secondary for mild street engines.
Thunders are mechanical secondary which are more performance oriented and the duel inlet is even more so, for drag racing.
The cfm size is also very important, but we need to know what kind of engine to match it to.
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Eleanor clone (the origional movie)
According to Summit the secondaries on the Thunder carbs are air valve (vacuum?).
The engine is a 302 with an Edelbrock Performer RPM intake, long tube headers, flowmaster exhaust, electronic ignition. I don't have any details on the cam and heads as they were on the car when I bought it. The cam is pretty mild. My current Holley is a 650cfm double pumper with dual inlet.
Which Edelbrock carburetor to pick? Performer or Thunder AVS?
Sorry about that, you're right. Looking closer at the Edelbrock site "AVS" means "adjustable vacuum secondary". The Thunder AVS is really the same as the Performer but has an air valve adjustable secondary.
FWIW, I got a Performer 750cfm for my 351C
and it's been running great for 2 years now, no adjustments at all, right out of the box.
750 is most likely too big for a 302 though, hell, it's on the edge of too big for a 351C.
650 AVS might do well on that 302, and it's easily adjustable if it boggs like it has too much carb. The 600 might give you better more low-end torque, the 650 might give you more high-rpm power, it depends what you want and what gears you got.
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71 Mach1 351C-4v TKO 5-speed
Eleanor clone (the origional movie)
Re: Which Edelbrock carburetor to pick? Performer or Thunder AVS?
Keep in mind a little know fact, most people over carburate their engines.It sounds like you are on the right track CFMwise though. With a 302 I would not go over 650CFM. I run a 525 on my 289.
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Re: Which Edelbrock carburetor to pick? Performer or Thunder AVS?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Adam
I'm leaning towards the 1806 or 1826. Is there any reason to go with the dual fuel inlet carb over the single inlet?
Forgot to answer your last question. The only reason you need a dual inlet carb, IMHO, is if you are racing. The main purpose of dual inlets is to evenly distribute fuel under hard acceleration to both fuel bowls.
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I went with the Thunder AVS 650. Wanted adjustment for the secondaries. Used my innovate air fuel analyzer and still reduced jetting on primary and secondary (from stock). Once tuned I was very happy with its performance. I do have the electric choke as well. 351C,edelbrock intake,mild cam,4V heads.
Re: Which Edelbrock carburetor to pick? Performer or Thunder AVS?
Quote:
Originally Posted by erbssr
Quote:
Originally Posted by Adam
I'm leaning towards the 1806 or 1826. Is there any reason to go with the dual fuel inlet carb over the single inlet?
Forgot to answer your last question. The only reason you need a dual inlet carb, IMHO, is if you are racing. The main purpose of dual inlets is to evenly distribute fuel under hard acceleration to both fuel bowls.
Ok, I really don't need dual inlet then. 1806 looks like a winner.
My only concern with going Edelbrock is that it appears the fuel hook-up is closer to the carb than my holley. This means my braided steel fuel line will be several inches short. I may end up going Holley so that it's easily plug and play.
Re: Which Edelbrock carburetor to pick? Performer or Thunder AVS?
Decided to go with the Edelbrock Performer 1405. Picked one up brand new in box for under $180. I'll probably lose a little performance over a Holley but from what I've read the Edelbrocks are Plug & Play and don't require constant attention like a Holley. I'll add the electric choke myself. Can't wait to test it out.
The 1405 is an excellent choice, and a better one than the 1406 if you're shooting for performance; the 1405 has a more performance-oriented calibration compared to the electric-choke 1406. And I suggest running the carb before adding an electric choke. With my old 302 and 1405, it was no trouble getting it started and running smoothly.
Which Edelbrock carburetor to pick? Performer or Thunder AVS?
Quote:
Originally Posted by amorrow02
The 1405 is an excellent choice, and a better one than the 1406 if you're shooting for performance; the 1405 has a more performance-oriented calibration compared to the electric-choke 1406. And I suggest running the carb before adding an electric choke. With my old 302 and 1405, it was no trouble getting it started and running smoothly.
Cool. That's basically what the Edelbrock tech told me. My existing Holley is already wired for an electric choke so I figured I'd just mimic the setup as the necessary wires are already there. However, I like the idea of not having to mess around with it.
If you start your car up cold you don't have to sit there for a while to let it warm up? You can drive off within 15 or 20 seconds without an unbearable amount of hesitation or stumbling?
Sometimes I'd pull the manual choke and let it run a bit, but I found it really wasn't necessary...I just pumped the accelerator pedal one or two times, fired it up, waited about 10-20 seconds as I gave it a couple easy revs, and drove away. That was my first experience driving a vintage Mustang last year with my old 302 setup, and I was surprised how well it ran.
I have the 1405 with an electric choke I installed myself. FWIW, the electric choke is nice if you drive the car a lot. Since mine is a daily driver, I really enjoy the electric choke for the ease of "just start it and go".
Without it, I had to fumble with the accelerator for about 30 seconds each and every time I got in the car when the engine was cold. Sure 30 seconds isn't a TON of time, but it's just inconvenient for a car that is regularly driven.
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I have the 1405 with an electric choke I installed myself. FWIW, the electric choke is nice if you drive the car a lot. Since mine is a daily driver, I really enjoy the electric choke for the ease of "just start it and go".
Without it, I had to fumble with the accelerator for about 30 seconds each and every time I got in the car when the engine was cold. Sure 30 seconds isn't a TON of time, but it's just inconvenient for a car that is regularly driven.
Was the choke difficult to tune/adjust or did you just slap it on?
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