Possible carb problem

[Chrisman889]

I have a 1985 suburban with a 350 in it and a Quadrajet carburetor. Lately I've been having a really hard time starting this vehicle. I'm pretty sure the choke does not work. More importantly it's almost impossible to start after I had shut it off after driving for about 20 minutes. Not sure if its flooded but I really have to pump the gas pedal to get it to even try to start. still hard to start in the mornings when its cold but not nearly as hard as when it's already been running for a while.

 

[VanGo]

Well if it's already flooded, then pumping the pedal to start it would just flood it more. If the choke is stuck closed, I have used a screwdriver to hold the butterfly valve all the way open to get some air in. Then remove it after it's running. If the choke is open and you think it's flooded, sometimes just holding the gas pedal to the floor (not constantly pumping fuel) and cranking the starter will start it and clear out the carb. Again allowing for more air to mix with the gas.
If you really do have to pump it a lot to start it, it sounds like a fuel starvation problem. Could be the carb or it could be the fuel system e.g. filter or bad fuel pump.
It could even be electrical. A worn distributor could throw the timing off enough to make it hard starting. Same with a worn timing chain. Anyway you can check you timing with and w/o the vacuum advance/

First step is to fix the choke if it isn't working. With it not working correctly, anything you try to get around proper starting will just exacerbate the problem.

 

[zora]

While you fixing the choke, with the engine off look down the primary side, front, of the carburetor and open the throttle. You should see gas squirting into both sides of the primaries. If not, the accelerator pump has to be replaced.