SMARTCARB carburettor – A promise from the USA
SMARTCARB carburettor – A promise from the USA
SmartCarb – A carburettor has arrived from the USA that promises to revolutionise fuel mixture preparation for 2-stroke engines. The claims are:
10% increase in power
30% reduction in fuel consumption
50% reduction in exhaust emissions
22,000 feet & altitude compensation
To achieve these goals, SmartCarb carburettors offer three features that set them apart from carburettors made by other manufacturers:
Tuning without jets
Particularly fine atomisation
Automatic adjustment to air pressure
SmartCarb vs Lectron – The background story
Both the SmartCarb and the Lectron carburettor share the history of the flat-slide carburettor, which features a type of metering rod instead of a Needle and various Jets. They even share the same inventor: the late, renowned carburettor expert William ‘Red’ Edmonston. Red pioneered the concept of metering rod carburettors with the unique “Posa-Fuel” and the “Lake Injector” in 1967 and 1971 respectively. Red’s Lectron carburettor was launched in 1974 and represented a major leap forward for the technology, featuring an innovative float bowl and the use of a flat Throttle Slide instead of a cigar-cutter or guillotine-style Slider as previously used. Following the sale of the Lectron carburettor to General Motors in 1978, Red continued to develop and refine the carburettor with a metering rod, culminating in the SmartCarb in the early 2000s. Corey Dyess, Chief Technology Officer at SmartCarb Fuel Systems, had the privilege of working with Red over the past few years. He has led the further development of the SmartCarb and, over time, has been granted several patents for functional improvements.
Same inventor, same concept, same result... or is it?
Not at all! Whilst both carburettors use a ‘metering rod’ or metering rod and a flat Slider to enable precise control of the fuel-air mixture and better fuel atomisation than with conventional needle-and-jet carburettors, there are more differences between the two than are apparent at first glance.
Always seeking to improve things, Red and, more recently, SmartCarb Fuel Systems have continuously refined the design by adding improvements and features to enhance the technology’s fundamental operating principles whilst eliminating the shortcomings and limitations of earlier designs. The result is a fuel system that differs significantly from its predecessors, including the Lectron carburettor.
SmartCarb – Function and Future
The SmartCarb is the culmination of more than 50 years of development. Its lineage consists of a long series of single-circuit flat-slider carburettors, including the Lake Injector, Posa-Fuel, Lectron and Quicksilver.
The SmartCarb combines the best features of earlier variable-venturi flat-slide carburettors with design features developed by SmartCarb Fuel Systems, making it a genuine solution for meeting emissions regulations and OEMperformance requirements in small engine applications worldwide.
SmartCarb Fuel Systems is currently focusing on the 2-stroke and 4-stroke markets and offers SmartCarb carburettors in sizes 26, 28, 36, 38 and 40 mm. Application-specific development is in full swing, with recent testing carried out for integration into drones, mini motocross bikes, micro-sprint karts, snowmobiles, paragliders and outboard marine engines. The SmartCarb has proven itself in both recreational and competitive applications and is capable of competing directly with electronic fuel injection when it comes to meeting both emissions regulations and performance requirements.
The SC2 SmartCarb carburettor has been developed with the future in mind and is capable of meeting the performance needs and emission requirements of the rapidly changing off-road powersports industry. They are fully CNC-machined for tight tolerances and high durability and are suitable for all modern production throttle cables. TPS is available as standard or can be installed by the user at any time.
Smart carburettor adjustment
The SmartCarb carburettors can be adjusted in a matter of seconds without tools using a ‘click’ system that adjusts the Needle position. The adjustment is made without changing the jets. To ensure this works on the respective engines, they are pre-configured. For the carburettors in our range, we have sent SMART CARB specifications detailing the type of engine on which the carburettors are intended to operate. The configurations can cover a fairly wide range and are pre-configured based on fairly general specifications. They fit all 2-stroke engines and do not require special petrol. The carburettors are now only available in the improved SC2 version.