Keep repairing old Fuel Injection system or replace with a Weber?

[Pants!]

My 83 GTI CIS is a pain in the ass.
Everything keeps failing, parts are limited and expensive.

Currently my fuel distributor is dead.  The replacement cost is ~$320.

A new Weber 38 DGAS Non-progressive carb kit is only $480.

I know that is a big jump between parts, but it only takes one more thing in the CIS to fail to have made this a economical alternative.

What are some thoughts on this?  Nurse failing CIS or jump to a Carb?

I could really use some imput on this.

[John Patterson]

I would put a pair of Weber 40mm DCOE (sidedraft) carbs on the car. There are several sets of sidedrafts on Ebay and I also saw some manifolds for your car if I am not mistaken on engine type. The webers are very dependable if set up with a decent linkage.

I have triple sidedrafts on my BMW 6 cyl and a pair on my 2002. They have been on both cars for many years and have provided great service life. Mileage isnt great but then I didnt build the engines for economy. 

[Pants!]

I hear you, and thank you for your input.

Idealy I would put the DC40E's on there($1105).  But I'm already over budget.

Now I'm in damage control mode.

But do the webers actually make more power do you think?

[John Patterson]

Difficult to say how much more power the dcoe carbs would make but I am sure its much more than a single two barrel. Power output is dependent on cam/piston combo and the amount of compression you want to run. The dual carbs will flow much more air and would be necessary with a large cam. I would think you could increase engine output at least 30-40 hp with carbs and cam.
I think you can purchase carbs and manifold for a few hundred less than your estimate, plus labor, if you dont do the work yourself.
Maybe there are some other fuel injection alternatives also.
Rich Windberg with the Spokes runs an old VW Scirocco in XP but I have no idea what engine/intake system he uses. He doesnt compete at local events very often but he does attend the Nats. Try and look him up on the Spokes site.
Can you find any good VW performance websites for more advice?

[Pants!]

I tried VWvortex.com.  But its mainly occupied by thread count spamming trolls.

My CIS concern mainly is that there is no end in sight for repairs.
Which also means there is no definitive cost outlined either.

If I do the carb, I'm having my 270' cam, springs and lifters installed at the same time.
there is already a header and full exhaust installed.

I think it will take advantage of the carberator setup.

The car is at Pierce's automotive (only water cooled Indy in SA).  I've read positive reviews, but I'm a tough customer.

[tconklin]

The CIS is a very simple system, the carbs are a bit more sophisticated and will need more attention. CIS when working properly works well. With that said, it's extremely difficult to modify to get more power out of a CIS system. Carbs on the other hand will net you a rather large power increase at the expense of reliability. I would do a single carb system versus a dual carb setup, but only because I'm allergic to pain and suffering.

[John Patterson]

Tom, I have had two bimmmers set up for many years as daily drivers/autoxers with dual and triple sidedrafts. I used very sturdy throttle linkage, 3/8" stainless steel rod w/ adjustable rodend links with only one secondary throttle return spring. This proved to be the very reliable and hardy ever required any synchroning, maybe once a year.

The CIS is simple and may only require some cleaning of unit like the plunger, but as Tom mentioned, you may not be able to increase power output easily.