Yes the problems have been fixed in later engines. The question though is how old is Tower's DLE 85 inventory? I'm thinking the only way to know if your carb has the problem is to remove the cover plate and inspect the needle. The problem will be clearly visible if it is there. With the engine out of the plane, the inspection should take all of maybe 5 minutes to perform.

Since the last time I posted in this thread, I have run the 85 quite a bit. It remains a very good engine with extremely good power, manners and low vibration even w/o the special mount. I have also experimented with changing the carb to a Walbro WJ-71 which is the same carb used by DA on their 85, 100 and 120 and its also used on most other singles and twins in that size range. I flew the plane two outings with the WJ-71 then changed back to the DLE carb as I prefer it. My DLE clone has much better midrange transition than the WJ-71. Overall, a darn nice engine!