Ever had "Holley Winter Sickness" ??

[Joe C.]

Re: Ever had "Holley Winter Sickness" ??

Question for Joe Ciaravino: Can this happen when the car has set for just a week? I had this kind of thing happen a couple years ago, then not for a couple of years now it's back, three times this spring. I assumed I had water in the gas so I have been adding "Heet" to take up the water.
Jack Coffman

Yes, it can. I believe that most of the condition is due to percolation which occurs during heat soak. Holleys have been plagued with this over the years. Improvements have been made which include updated fuel bowl/baffling/float pivot designs. But none have been fully successful in addressing this condition, which is probably made worse by the presence of ethanol. I have found that my Holley based race carburetor does not flood the engine on shutdown. I believe that this is because the castings are made out of aluminum, and not pot metal. Aluminum sheds heat faster than pot metal.

[Clem Z.]

Re: Ever had "Holley Winter Sickness" ??

Yes, it can. I believe that most of the condition is due to percolation which occurs during heat soak. Holleys have been plagued with this over the years. Improvements have been made which include updated fuel bowl/baffling/float pivot designs. But none have been fully successful in addressing this condition, which is probably made worse by the presence of ethanol. I have found that my Holley based race carburetor does not flood the engine on shutdown. I believe that this is because the castings are made out of aluminum, and not pot metal. Aluminum sheds heat faster than pot metal.

do you have the heat riser crossover blocked in the intake as this keep a lot of heat from the carb

[Joe C.]

Re: Ever had "Holley Winter Sickness" ??

do you have the heat riser crossover blocked in the intake as this keep a lot of heat from the carb

As you know, my engine is now highly modified. I had long ago sealed both crossover passages in my 461 heads right at the exhaust valves, by installing steel plates. I still had the condition after this, while the engine still was using the Holley 2818. The aluminum QFT Q750 stopped this condition as well as solving a host of other drivability issues! The filled block removes quite a bit of heat load from the overworked radiator. I am able to run a 160 T-stat which keeps the manifold temp at a verified (with IR gun) 160 degrees at all times, even in 100 plus degree days with long idling and/or 1/4 mile activity.