cheeze433

Hey guys,
I have a question about my car. I have an '85 mustang, however, only the body is from '85. I took the block from a '79 mustang 302. It's bored .030 over, crank was ground, flat top notched pistons which I believe are 11:1 compression. Cam has .456 lift, .268 duration. Carb is a Carter 600 cfm, manual choke. Electronic distributor with MSD 6AL ignition. My problem is this. Ever since rebuilding the engine, It has always had a smell to the exhaust. It's kind of a smell somewhere between running rich and moisture in the exhaust. It gets into my clothes and can almost make you sick or give you a headache. The car runs unbelievably well. There are no misses, bogs, nothing. It screams. It also idles well, never stalls. I've messed with the air screws on the carb thinking that might help the smell out. Doesn't change a thing. I am absolutely stressed out over this. It sucks when we go to shows or cruises and I have to hear everyone who drives behind me when we get to the destination telling me my exhaust doesn't smell right. I run the highest octane fuel, usually 93. Any suggestions, comments are extremely appreciated. I'm ready to pull my hair out. If you need any more info, I will be glad to give it to you. Thanks.

stangfreak 347

does it stink or smell like fuel?

mjr46

I doubt you have 11 to 1 compression the cumbustion chambers on the heads would have to be smaller than 58cc as for smell if it is a rich condition, pull the plugs and see if they are soot covered or extremely white to indicate a lean condition, or purchase a wideband and tap into the exhaust so afr can be monitored

cheeze433

It definitely has a fuel smell to it, but not like gasoline, if that makes sense. Kind of like semi burnt fuel but the little bit of smoke coming from the tailpipes has a whitish tint to it. The exhaust, It will actually burn your eyes. I have pulled the plugs and the look normal. Also, there are no exhaust leaks.

mjr46

sounds like it is a little rich

grnstang

run some premium fuel through it and make sure your timing and carb is adjusted correctly

cheeze433

If I've adjusted the air screws on the carbs to lean it out as much as possible, what is the the next step to get the car to run leaner. I can't turn the screws any further.

87Stallion

Do you have the carb jetted properly?

cheeze433

I don't have a clue. I took it out of the box and put it on. The car starts right up as soon as I hit the key. It idles fine, there's no hesitation or bog under slight or heavy throttle or acceleration. The car runs great. Will jetting it change any of what I just described? Like I said, it runs perfect. The exhaust just stinks, leaves a horrible smell in my clothes and tears up my eyes. It's crazy, I know. What do you think?

92tealcp

You live in Pa. go find a smog shop or a shop that has an old emissions machine that still works. You can probe the tailpipe and get the readings to see if you are rich or lean. I take it you are not running any cats or smog equipment. I'm not a big fan of Carters always ran a modified Holley HP on all my carb cars.

Where in Pa. are you?