carb leaking antifreeze under base plate really need help

[buddy]

I have 86 accord lx, CA emissions, 2bbl Keihin carb, 2.0L auto, trans.

The problem I’m having is I had mechanic replace the carb recently. He said that after replacing he started the car and antifreeze started to leak through the base plate. He says he never saw that before. He talked to the place where I bought the carb and was told to disconnect a hose or hoses that go to the carb or manifold I’m not sure I wasn’t in on the conversation. The carb guy said if you do this it wouldn’t hurt anything because we don’t use that for the carb because we are in CA it was meant for cars in colder weather. This would stop the antifreeze from leaking through the carb base plate the fix is to bypass it I guess.. My mechanic tried it but couldn’t get the leak to stop so he removed the carb and sealed a hole where the antifreeze was coming from. It worked for awhile but now it’s leaking again. Has anyone had this problem? And do you know which hose or hoses will stop the leak. The carb guy said it was simple to bypass this problem I don’t know if my guy understands what he was saying.

Thanks

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[Billy]

Is the leak between the carb and the intake? If so, the mechanic didn’t seal it properly. If the leak is between components of the carb, the carb guy needs to fix it. Either way, sounds like this mechanic is in over his head and you should find someone more experienced.

[Steve Klein]

He is correct in that you are unlikely to ‘need’ the heated carb plate. However, I am fairly sure the carb tuning/metering is tied to that. So, it would be likely that your car would run a little rich and I wonder if it would pass emissions. The question really is whether the base unit is damaged or you just have a hose that is not sealing. You should have 2 hoses going to that base unit. If you remove and plug them, that SHOULD solve the leak issue.

[buddy]

sklein

Thanks for your response.

Could you please tell me what needs to be done. I don’t know if my mechanic understood what the carb guy was telling him about the hoses. He said he couldn’t stop the leak. That’s why he ended up trying to seal it. He said he was going to seal the whole thing but ended up only sealing the hole that the antifreeze was coming out of. If the hose bypass will take care of this it would help alot. Thanks

I have included 2 diagrams. Could you tell me which hoses need to be disconnected. Someone on another site said to disconnect 2 hoses (1 inlet and 1 outlet) and attach them together. Your way sounds different.

As far as the base plate and a hose not sealing both of those things did cross my mind along with maybe the bolts aren’t tighten down.

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[Steve Klein]

According to your diagrams, the Bypass inlet hose and Bypass outlet hose are the ones that need to be disconnected and plugged. I think the outlet to carb hose could probably remain connected. Based on the diagram, it looks like just a simple carb gasket might be your real issue though. I do see carb gaskets listed for your car. So you might have your mechanic try that first. I think the car will run better with those hoses connected.

[Mike]

If the antifreeze in your pictures is leaking out between the gasket and the manifold and/or carb, it’s a case of those surfaces not mating and sealing properly.

Perhaps the gasket isn’t the right one for your application. I would talk to the parts guy at a Honda dealership to see if more than one type of carb gasket is listed for your car. Also, was a new gasket installed? Hope your mechanic isn’t re-using the original 32 year-old gasket.

It might be that the carb isn’t torqued down properly. Like wheel nuts, a carb should be torqued down in a “criss-cross” pattern, and the torquing should be done in 3 or 4 incremental stages, gradually working up to the final proper torque value.

The carb seating surface of the manifold should be clean, flat and without gouges. Same thing for the carb base surface. You can easily check them with a straight edge, like a machinist’s square or a steel ruler. Hopefully, your mechanic didn’t wedge a screwdriver under the old carb to pry it off.

I wouldn’t recommend bypassing the system. Your carb was designed to operate with it, and your engine should run better with the system working properly.

[buddy]

Thanks guys for all the help. I found out it wasn’t the carb that was leaking again it was a hose. I replaced it and was good to go. The stuff I saw on the carb turned out to be something that was sprayed on the carb that appeared to look like antifreeze. Sorry it took so long to post. Someone broke my mirror and had to look for the part at the junk yard. The info you have given me is priceless. I knew this was the right place to find the help I needed. Thanks again

[Author]

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