some background :

1987 chevy camaro 305 4bbl

everything in the engine compartment has either been rebuilt or replaced to original (except carburator, distributor, oil pump). carburator was rebuilt with an '87 top and an '86 bottom.

new recently (within the year) spark plugs, wires, oil, some hard vacuum lines, some soft lines, fuel filter, belts, air filter, manifold air pressure sensor, oil pressure sending unit.

the problem - hard starting cold, especially on mornings when the air is moist and cold. usually i have to pour gas directly into the carb, and sometimes i end up pouring a considerable amount in over multiple attempts to get it to start. i get surging at 2.5k to 3k rpm when it is cold or warm (not hot). it will stall when cold or warm from a dead stop.

the computer throws code 32 intermittently at approximately 55 mph cruising down the highway, and only gives it when i let off the gas.

whats going on?

 

Code 32 is EGR, EGR is activated at cruise, or when you let off the gas. So that sounds right. Not sure how the EGR is setup on your car, do you know what it is and what it looks like? I'm guessing you do, if you've done all that work on your car. Check it's vacuum lines, and electrical connections. Run some seafoam through the motor too, that usually helps EGR problems.

That's a red flag to me. Who rebuilt the carb? you? Why interchange different top and bottoms? You mean just a different air valve?

can you clarify this? you mean if you are driving, and you come to a stop, it'll stall?

but once the motor is hot, it runs well?

I'm leery about giving advice, if the carb has mismatched top and bottom parts... However the problems sounds like choke adjustments.

 

the guy who rebuilt the carb also did everything else, who's a long time friend. no, not a different air valve. the entire top above the air horn and the entire bottom below it are from 2 different years.

the stalling comes from dead stop and trying to start again. like it's not getting gas or something. if you start slowly, usually it will go, but trying to do burnouts is a no go. it will just stop.

you reminded me, the choke was replaced by me one year after the hybrid carb was put it, and operates normally. that is if it doesn't do anything wierd when the car is actually in motion. it's closed when it's started and opens up as it reaches normal operating temps.

 

Yea, that's what I meant. Different years, that's the part that spooks me. If you're sure that they are compatible, ie some passages might be slightly different, then we can move on. I just cringe when I think of the possibly screw ups that *could* cause, and how they'd manifest in strange other problems...

oh ok, so sitting, idling in gear, no problem. Take off slowly, no big deal. But punch it, and it dies?

that, and the hard cold start, gets me thinking accelerator pump. If you stare down the primaries, and flick the throttle, do you see the pump shot squirt?

2nd, primary metering rod height. CC-qjet has lean and rich stop right? Both are set up right?

3rd - float level?

sorry for the off the wall guesses, I may not be the best person interjecting on your problems.

 

have you tried checking the fuel supply?

 

yeah, if i look into the carb, it shoots gas. there is fuel getting in there. could all these problems be linked to the egr issue?

primary metering rods - i dunno. don't know what they are, where they are, how to get to them, how to set them.

float level - i've heard there was a problem with a ball in the float bowl and as it ages it accumulates gas so the float level is lower and causes problems. would that part have been changed when the carb was rebuilt?

also - if you think from what i've described is an egr and carb problem, should i just go ahead and replace the carb to a non-CC when i do the egr? is that the easiest thing to do, and what carb would you suggest so i'm not "overcarburating" the engine? please note that i'm a welder, not a mechanic, so the easiest is the best.