Michaelman

Hi all, so I inherited this old Honda from an uncle not knowing it had a carburetor and was not fuel injection. I knew the car wouldn't start because the person who took care of it for him tried to start it after it being sitting for around 20 years. I assumed plugged filters or pump until I saw the carb. I changed all the fluids, the pump, and the filters before I even tried getting it running. It still wouldn't start. If you've ever seen a 1986 Accord carburetor, its got like 20-30 vacuum lines. I rebuilt the carburetor myself, which was a crazy learning process and reinstalled it. It still will not run. The only way I've ever got it to run, before and after the carburetor was rebuilt, was when I put gas in the carburetor manually. I'm fairly certain the carb is getting fuel because when I took off the fuel line to rebuild the carb there was fuel spewing everywhere. I changed the spark plugs when I changed the fluids and checked if they all have spark which they do. Does anybody have any clue why it won't start?

nkowi

Disconnecting the fuel line and seeing "fuel spewing everywhere" indicates only that fuel has made it as far as that connection. What do you see when you reconnect the fuel line (or what did you see before you disconnected it) and actuating the throttle? Unlike the fuel injectors you'd apparently hoped to find under the hood, it could hardly be easier to see if a carburetor (most types, anyway) is introducing fuel into the intake system. When you actuate the throttle assembly - which simulates pumping the gas pedal from inside the car - you should be able to actually see and smell the introduction of fuel. Of course, that alone doesn't mean a carburetor is working properly, but it's a good place to start, particularly given that you said the car will at least run briefly when you pour fuel directly down the carb's throat. Bottom line: if there's fuel getting as far as the carburetor, and assuming your plugs are producing adequate spark, the problem is likely to be found somewhere in your rebuild.

Michaelman

You make a good point, I didn't think about that, I'll see if I can smell gas when stimulating the throttle on the carb. I'm assuming the car has to be in ignition first as well. I'll try it later today and reply with my findings.