Hi guy was doing some maintance on my 69 bonnevile like putting in a thermostat that was never there when I bought the car and was running good before that. Last nite I wanted to check for leaks and make sure it opened up.All of sudden it started to stumble and spitting out gas from the sides and fumes or smoke came out also and flooded out.Waited a little and tried to start it again but only did the same thing.It is a Q-jet and it is orginal so wondering if it just died on me and need a new carb. The only other thing I did was change out the valve check that in other cars was connected to the vlave cover but on this car was in the manifold..any thoughts?/

Thanks Terry

Terry - sorry for waiting so long to respond. I just now saw your post. If your Q-jet is original to the car, I suspect it is in sore need of a long, overdue rebuild. Today's modern fuels are nothing like gas was back when your car was first built. Back then lead was everywhere. Now lead is gone and ethanol/gas is common. Ethanol-based gas will destroy older fuel hoses, and other non-harden items like jets, floats, etc. from the inside out.

My advice would be to purchase a complete Q-jet rebuild kit that includes provisions to handle ethanol fuels. Also, I recommend replacing any and all "original" rubber fuel and vacuum lines from the fuel tank forward. Time, UV, dirt, grime, chemicals, and now ethanol fuels will destroy these hoses from the inside-out and the outside-in. Modern fuel hoses and vacuum lines are engineered to handle modern fuels and vapors. Most judge shows will not deduct points for having modern hose - it's become a safety issue.

Hi Frosty I went and had the Q-jet completely rebuilt. bead blasted plated with all new components .Good point about all new hoses from the tank up .Haven't put it on yet most likely a winter project.

TerryH - no worries, I preach about the fuel lines thanks to the late Pontiac historian John Sawruk. He was also a member of my chapter of POCI. So we got to talk to him on a regular basis. He would lecture us about the safety aspects of old fuel and rubber lines. I took it to heart and I pass it forward.

Have you installed your rebuilt carb yet? Is it running better?