1989 Dodge Dakota

Have you taken the carb apart to check to see if the float or needle valve is stuck closed?

Denie:
Did you have the carb apart? Did you check to see if the float is dropping to allow the needle valve to open and permit fuel to enter the carb? I may be wrong, but that is the only way I know of fuel getting in the carb.

If you are getting gas to the carb but not in it, the only thing that can stop it is called a needle valve. It is a small device that is actuated by the float. When the float raises, it presses the valve into a seat and stops the gas. It will be located inside the carb where the fuel supply enters the carb. If it is stuck closed, the fuel can't enter the carb. You need to remove the carb, take it apart, and check to see if that is working. Honestly, in a carborator, that is what regulates how much fuel enters the carb via the float. I wish I was there to help because it really isn't that hard to fix.

If you decide to take it apart, let me know and the pictures really help. I will try my best to walk you through what to look for.

Joe

I didn't say anything when I saw the picture, but this doesn't look like a carb. It looks like a throttle body (fuel injection). If I am correct, the injector is the round part on the top. That is where the fuel should come from. If there is none, the injector it self may be bad. It is replaceable.

Joe

Jacobandnickolas is right; that's a throttle body, not a carburetor. Before you get wrapped around the axle and pedal down the wrong road, you need to do a complete diagnosis and check for spark. More than likely it's missing too. The common cause is the Hall Effect pickup assembly under the rotor in the distributor.

Pulses from the pickup assembly tells the engine computer to turn on the Automatic Shutdown (ASD) relay. That relay sends voltage to the alternator field, the injector, the ignition coil, and the fuel pump or pump relay. If you have spark during cranking, the ASD relay has to be turning on and the pickup assembly has to be working. Chances are it's not.

Your parts guy recommended a noid light to determine if the computer is trying to fire the injector. That's a non-issue if you also don't have spark. The pickup assembly isn't real expensive and only takes a few minutes to replace.

Caradiodoc