I have a 2001 that has a low power problem.  It is really apparent when going up hills and I have to drop down a gear or two to keep up even 30MPH.

I pulled the carbs again.  (I had done it last year when the motor needed the choke on all the time, and was stalling when I touched the throttle.  I fixed that problem, but maybe caused another.)

There was a little debris in one carb float bowl.  I cleaned everything with carb cleaner.  (I made the mistake of not removing all rubber parts, and found them expanded.  Leaving them to dry overnight seems to have returned them to their original dimensions.)

In putting them back together, I found a gap where the metal spring-like hook of the float needle wraps around the float adjustment tab.  When I move the float, the float needle does not appear to move, leaving the gap between the spring hook and the adjustment tab.  The float needles move freely in the float need seat until it is assembled.


It is possible the little rubber tip on the float needle was also expanded by the carb cleaner, but it moved freely in the seat.  Is this gap normal?

Also, are all of the jets supposed to be tightened down?  I am reassembling everything exactly the way I took it apart, but that method is not perfectly reliable since I am the last one to take it apart.

Thanks!

The gap is normal but I would replace all rubber parts in the carbs to ensure that there are no future issues.Make sure to correctly set the float levels when you install the carbs.