Empi HPMX 44's?

[plasticblack]

So who can tell me about these carbs please??

Good, Bad or what........

I know there are the Weber Brigade who will say that Copies are crap etc, but I'm after some honest info about this type of carb?

I've been offered a couple of sets pretty cheap and just want to know if they are a reliable unit or not?

Anyone had experience of these please? Good or bad......
 

[Chris W]

I have a set of 40's set up by Art at Ace. I have had them for a few years and before that they were down in So Cal. I have Berg linkage and CB (I believe) air cleaner top's and bases. I have not had a issue with them after Art went through them.

[plasticblack]

So like any carbs, these are fine as long as they are set up correctly?

[Speed-Randy]

I put a set on my daughters ghia just to see for myself, cause i'm tired of hearing the EMPI haters yap about shit they have never tried. I couldnt be happier with them, they set up easy, and run just like webers, because they are pretty much exact copies. Save yourself some cash and run them

[Ivan]

We have a product comparison test on carbs in the next issue of VolksWorld (April 2011 issue) which comes out here in the UK on Feb 18th. The test was carried out on a high quality rolling road. The test covers 5 different set-ups (all on a stock 1600) and ranges from a Brosol/EMPI  34 PICT4, Dual EMPI 34 EPCs, Dual Kadrons, Dual EMPI 40 HPMX and finally Weber 40IDFs.
As the magazine is not yet on the news stands or with subscribers, I can't go into any detail about the findings of the test data, but let me just say we were all very surprised! Especially by the BHP and Torque figures of some set-ups.
If I was in the market for a new dual carb set-up I would find this article very helpful indeed. I'd love to be able to tell you the verdicts from the test right now, but sadly can not. All I can say is if you're looking to buy any of the carbs mentioned you may want to read this article first.

[bugnut68]

I put a set on my daughters ghia just to see for myself, cause i'm tired of hearing the EMPI haters yap about shit they have never tried. I couldnt be happier with them, they set up easy, and run just like webers, because they are pretty much exact copies. Save yourself some cash and run them

I'm a self-admitted EMPI hater, and simply because of all the times I've been burned by their cheap stuff.  If they're quality has truly improved, I would be willing to reexamine my position, but near as I can tell, Empi/Mr. Bug and Johnny's Speed and Chrome (not entirely a surprise they're no longer around) were the two primary businesses that capitalized on the cheapness of most VW owners in the 1980s and '90s, resulting in a market flooded with shoddy parts. 

Webers and Dells aren't that expensive to find used, really, and if you're going to pay to have them gone through, it may as well be the genuine article, IMO. 

But hey, as I said earlier on, I'm willing to change my position if I see that the effort is there to improve parts quality.  There's some things I'll probably never buy simply because of no need (chrome goodies, cheap exhausts, etc.) but I'll be interested to see if quality is actually better.

[plasticblack]

Good info Thanks all.

I was curious as I like many are not enamoured with a great deal of 'modern' Empi items and as I've been offered several sets of these reasoably cheap, I wanted to get some first hand info/knowledge.

I'll be sure and check out the mag Ivan thanks again. 

[bugnut68]

I would like to see a copy of that article after it comes out, too!  Volksworld is a little hard to come by for me where I currently live, sadly.

[Speed-Randy]

I put a set on my daughters ghia just to see for myself, cause i'm tired of hearing the EMPI haters yap about shit they have never tried. I couldnt be happier with them, they set up easy, and run just like webers, because they are pretty much exact copies. Save yourself some cash and run them

I'm a self-admitted EMPI hater, and simply because of all the times I've been burned by their cheap stuff.  If they're quality has truly improved, I would be willing to reexamine my position, but near as I can tell, Empi/Mr. Bug and Johnny's Speed and Chrome (not entirely a surprise they're no longer around) were the two primary businesses that capitalized on the cheapness of most VW owners in the 1980s and '90s, resulting in a market flooded with shoddy parts. 

Webers and Dells aren't that expensive to find used, really, and if you're going to pay to have them gone through, it may as well be the genuine article, IMO. 

But hey, as I said earlier on, I'm willing to change my position if I see that the effort is there to improve parts quality.  There's some things I'll probably never buy simply because of no need (chrome goodies, cheap exhausts, etc.) but I'll be interested to see if quality is actually better.

Ryan, I'm not here to start shit with you. But of all the stuff you've been BURNED on. How much was purchased new and how much was purchased at a swap meet with the guy telling you that" the only reason I'm selling it is to finance a bigger engine" when the real reason he's selling it is because  he ran it out of oil and blew it up and is looking to unload it on an unsuspecting and trusting guy like yourself? The entire 2275cc motor that I built for that ghia is 100% EMPI, mainly to silence the haters and to see for myself, because I sell the product, as well as bugpack, scat, and IAP products I want to know for sure if it's crap or not. the car is her daily driver, hauls ass and once we got all the new engine glitches worked out, I can only highly recommend the parts, because they work. Everything fit very nice without any modifications, it truly was the easiest engine I have ever put together.

[bugnut68]

I put a set on my daughters ghia just to see for myself, cause i'm tired of hearing the EMPI haters yap about shit they have never tried. I couldnt be happier with them, they set up easy, and run just like webers, because they are pretty much exact copies. Save yourself some cash and run them

I'm a self-admitted EMPI hater, and simply because of all the times I've been burned by their cheap stuff.  If they're quality has truly improved, I would be willing to reexamine my position, but near as I can tell, Empi/Mr. Bug and Johnny's Speed and Chrome (not entirely a surprise they're no longer around) were the two primary businesses that capitalized on the cheapness of most VW owners in the 1980s and '90s, resulting in a market flooded with shoddy parts. 

Webers and Dells aren't that expensive to find used, really, and if you're going to pay to have them gone through, it may as well be the genuine article, IMO. 

But hey, as I said earlier on, I'm willing to change my position if I see that the effort is there to improve parts quality.  There's some things I'll probably never buy simply because of no need (chrome goodies, cheap exhausts, etc.) but I'll be interested to see if quality is actually better.

Ryan, I'm not here to start shit with you. But of all the stuff you've been BURNED on. How much was purchased new and how much was purchased at a swap meet with the guy telling you that" the only reason I'm selling it is to finance a bigger engine" when the real reason he's selling it is because  he ran it out of oil and blew it up and is looking to unload it on an unsuspecting and trusting guy like yourself? The entire 2275cc motor that I built for that ghia is 100% EMPI, mainly to silence the haters and to see for myself, because I sell the product, as well as bugpack, scat, and IAP products I want to know for sure if it's crap or not. the car is her daily driver, hauls ass and once we got all the new engine glitches worked out, I can only highly recommend the parts, because they work. Everything fit very nice without any modifications, it truly was the easiest engine I have ever put together.

I hear you, and that's why I qualified my comment with what I said after admitting I'm a "hater."   If the parts are truly better and they stand behind them, that's awesome.  The VW world is too small for junk parts, and I'm all for companies improving and standing behind their products.

All the parts I was burned on were brand new out of the box/package stuff, as I've seldom bought used stuff for an engine build or whatever; the 90.5's I bought for my 2017 build were lightly used, but I did spec them to make sure they were not out of round, and lucky for me they weren't... the rods I bought from the same guy (walter schmidt, he used to race a Bug up here in the Pacific Northwest called Wally Gator) were complete junk.  But that's another story.

Bottom line is with any build, everything should be double and triple checked for spec, of course.  That's true with any brand and any part made these days for these cars, I reckon.

[Speed-Randy]

No worries dude, And the only issues I've had are with the alternators that are built right here in So.Cal. and sold by EVERYONE. They took it back, tested it, and repaired it and gave it back at no charge.