So this question gets asked a lot on this Forum. And browsing through today’s threads I came upon another carb related question. And the most frequent carburetor question we come across is this: “I bought a replacement carburetor but I still can’t get my bike to run right”. Well the answer here lies with the type of carburetor it’s been replaced with. Most people think that simply swapping carburetors with any aftermarket or cheap Chinese knock off will work just as well as the OEM carburetor. In fact, this can’t be further from the truth.
OEM/aftermarket/cheap Chinese carbs have been a hot topic of discussion throughout the years on this forum. It has been a proven fact that OEM carbs especially on Suzuki atvs is the way to go. That’s because aftermarket /cheap Chinese carbs are extremely hard to dial in correctly, and therefore end up causing more issues than they are really worth. But can a aftermarket or cheap Chinese carb actually work..? Well yes, but their success rate is slim to none. But very few people actually get them tuned just right. Actually, mostly everyone that I’ve come across can’t get them dialled in at all, or only just partially.
That’s because Suzuki atvs are notoriously known for being finicky when it comes to carburetors. They often won’t run right on anything other than OEM. Why that’s the case who knows. But Minuni carbs are also specific to each model Suzuki. They are designed from the factory to run with these factory carbs. And unfortunately not all carbs are made the same. The passageways within a aftermarket or cheap Chinese carb might vary slightly, even though it looks visually the same to the naked eye. Plus there can be a various small discrepancies between OEM and the aftermarket/Chinese carbs.
In the end it’s always best to reuse your original OEM carb whenever possible. This save you the headache on fighting for hours trying to get it dialled in correctly. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen countless people struggle with aftermarket/cheap Chinese carbs. It’s honestly not worth the hassle nor the aggravation. Can aftermarket or cheap Chinese carbs work at all..? Absolutely, but maybe on other makes and models of atvs that aren’t Suzuki’s.
So whenever possible, use your OEM carburetor. Don’t throw it in a box because it’s being finicky, or it’s simply easier to just replace it then it is to just clean it and rebuild it. Trust me, you’re just wasting money and inviting a huge headache trying to get it tuned perfectly. Best bet here is to always get the OEM carb thoroughly cleaned then rebuilt whenever possible over replacing it.
And the best cleaning method for a carburetor is an ultrasonic cleaning. So go with this technique whenever possible as it cleans the best. But for those of you who want to tackle your own carb cleaning but don’t have an ultrasonic cleaner or have no money to get it ultrasonically cleaned abroad. Well there’s an alternative method using lemon juice. Yup, you read that correct, I wrote lemon juice. I’ll post up a link at the end of this post for those of you that want to try this homemade carb brew.
Now lastly, a carb rebuild. In this step having a good quality carb rebuild kit makes all the difference. So don’t cheap out in this area. Buying cheap kits will often not cause problems over time and either leave you high and dry, or finding yourself frequently pulling the carb to find the culprit. And nobody wants that. So for kits I highly recommend “Shindy” carb kits. That or OEM rebuild kits would also be a good choice as well. You end up paying a bit more but it’s well worth it. The good ‘ol phrase of “you get what your pay for” really applies here.
So that’s what to expect when using aftermarket vs cheap Chinese vs OEM. The right carb can make all the difference. And for those of you who have been fortunate enough to get a aftermarket or cheap Chinese carb to work for you. Well kudos, I applaud you. You’re one of minority that was able to make it work. ✌🏼
OEM/aftermarket/cheap Chinese carbs have been a hot topic of discussion throughout the years on this forum. It has been a proven fact that OEM carbs especially on Suzuki atvs is the way to go. That’s because aftermarket /cheap Chinese carbs are extremely hard to dial in correctly, and therefore end up causing more issues than they are really worth. But can a aftermarket or cheap Chinese carb actually work..? Well yes, but their success rate is slim to none. But very few people actually get them tuned just right. Actually, mostly everyone that I’ve come across can’t get them dialled in at all, or only just partially.
That’s because Suzuki atvs are notoriously known for being finicky when it comes to carburetors. They often won’t run right on anything other than OEM. Why that’s the case who knows. But Minuni carbs are also specific to each model Suzuki. They are designed from the factory to run with these factory carbs. And unfortunately not all carbs are made the same. The passageways within a aftermarket or cheap Chinese carb might vary slightly, even though it looks visually the same to the naked eye. Plus there can be a various small discrepancies between OEM and the aftermarket/Chinese carbs.
In the end it’s always best to reuse your original OEM carb whenever possible. This save you the headache on fighting for hours trying to get it dialled in correctly. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen countless people struggle with aftermarket/cheap Chinese carbs. It’s honestly not worth the hassle nor the aggravation. Can aftermarket or cheap Chinese carbs work at all..? Absolutely, but maybe on other makes and models of atvs that aren’t Suzuki’s.
So whenever possible, use your OEM carburetor. Don’t throw it in a box because it’s being finicky, or it’s simply easier to just replace it then it is to just clean it and rebuild it. Trust me, you’re just wasting money and inviting a huge headache trying to get it tuned perfectly. Best bet here is to always get the OEM carb thoroughly cleaned then rebuilt whenever possible over replacing it.
And the best cleaning method for a carburetor is an ultrasonic cleaning. So go with this technique whenever possible as it cleans the best. But for those of you who want to tackle your own carb cleaning but don’t have an ultrasonic cleaner or have no money to get it ultrasonically cleaned abroad. Well there’s an alternative method using lemon juice. Yup, you read that correct, I wrote lemon juice. I’ll post up a link at the end of this post for those of you that want to try this homemade carb brew.
Now lastly, a carb rebuild. In this step having a good quality carb rebuild kit makes all the difference. So don’t cheap out in this area. Buying cheap kits will often not cause problems over time and either leave you high and dry, or finding yourself frequently pulling the carb to find the culprit. And nobody wants that. So for kits I highly recommend “Shindy” carb kits. That or OEM rebuild kits would also be a good choice as well. You end up paying a bit more but it’s well worth it. The good ‘ol phrase of “you get what your pay for” really applies here.
So that’s what to expect when using aftermarket vs cheap Chinese vs OEM. The right carb can make all the difference. And for those of you who have been fortunate enough to get a aftermarket or cheap Chinese carb to work for you. Well kudos, I applaud you. You’re one of minority that was able to make it work. ✌🏼
