I had a similar situation with a 1984 Olds 98 I bought a year ago. The engine only had 60K miles, but has set up since 1998, so it ran bad. Replaced all the usual stuff: plugs, wires, cap, rotor, ignition module, MAP sensor, water and fuel pumps, changed all belts, hoses and fluids. Still ran lousy at idle, poor kickdown when accelerating, and the CHECK ENGINE light was still on. Tried rebuilding the carb; suffice it to say that rebuilding a feedback Quadrajet is a pain if you don't do it often, have the special tools and know all the tricks the pros learn from experience. Gas mileage was still about 10-12 MPG. Finally gave in and bought a Rochester Quadrajet rebuilt by Holley. Bottom line: I wouldn't buy any other rebuilt carb unless it is rebuilt by Holley. This thing was PERFECT out of the box. No adjustments needed, period. I bought it from O'Reilly Auto Parts. It listed for about $500 from Holley, but I got O'Reilly to match the price of a Rochester rebuilt by some no-name company sold at Autozone for about $230. It was hard to bite a $230 bullet for a 20-year old car, but it was worth it after I got it installed. If you buy a rebuilt part, I strongly urge you use the Internet to get the competitor's price and get the store to match or beat the best price you've found. Now the car runs like new, and I get 18-19MPG consistently, with about 85-95% of my driving done on the freeways at 60-75 MPH. My advice is to buy the right carb with all the electronic controls hooked up properly, do all the other preventive stuff that could leave you stranded on the side of the road and enjoy your truck. It will have great power, very good mileage for a big vehicle, and not leave you stranded. Joe
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