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88 2.9 Ranger fuel issue... I think.


englewoodcowboy

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88 2.9 Ranger fuel issue... Making progress but still not right

Hello,
My son has an 88 ranger 2.9 that we recently started having trouble with. When I bought it for him 6 months ago I put a lot of preventative maintenance into it and until 3 days ago, it ran like a top. It started stalling occasionally or would not start. We found that the PO has a fuel pump issue and sliced all the wires going into the fuel pump relay and then taped them up. I bought a new relay and a new connector and soldered it on. Then we founs we could not get any fuel, started at the tank, found power to the in tank pump but it wouldnt run so I dropped the tank this weekend and replaced the pump, now it runs (the in tank pump). Found the inline pump not running, turns out it was a corooded connection at the pump (the wire jackets were sliced here too) cleaned and repaired the connection and now it runs (the inline pump). Truck finally came back to life. He test drove it a mile or two and it was fine. He went to restart it and it just cranked, we verified that both pumps are running and it finally started but is billowing a grey smoke, missing badly, wont idle and if you get near the smoke you smell like a gas can. Where do I go from here? So far I had the injectors rebuilt by a professional as when I did the tune up the old plugs indicated some lean cylinders, that fixed that issue, brought alot of power back to the motor and it ran great. New plugs, wires, cap, rotor, valve cover gaskets, oil change every 3k, new fuel filter and in tank pump. We also had a clogged vent line on the tank and while it was down, we blew it out and I am wondering if that has something to do with it. No telling how many miles/years it was plugged but it isnt anymore.
 
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4.0B2

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Check the fuel pressure.
Maybe you're getting to much? Your pressure regulator may be bad.
 

englewoodcowboy

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What is the best way to test the pressure. I have an engine compression tester I got at HF, not sure if it will adapt to the schrader valve. I also have a cheap tire gauge I wouldn't lose any sleep over if it was damaged by using it. What should the pressure be? I read on a replacement regulator that they are set at 41 psi but what exactly is the best procedure to test? If I need to get a fuel pressure gauge I can run into town later and get one after work.

I also saw in some other posts of the rough running grey smoke cloud of gas that the charcoal canister could be bad or some check valve on it maybe? Just throwing out some thoughts I have had.
 

englewoodcowboy

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I also need to add that the injectors that are in the 88 ranger are from his 87 BII. I know the 87 has a larger TB and that may or may not mean the injectors are different. I already had the BII injectors rebuilt, still have to get the 88 Ranger injectors done but the truck ran awesome after I put the other injectors in and it also had an even burn on the plugs.
 

englewoodcowboy

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I picked up a fuel pressure tester and hooked it up. Turned the key on and it shot to 50 psi then the pump turned off. Cycled the key again and it went to 80 psi, when the pump turned off it bled down to 10 or so. Im hoping a new regulator is the fix for this problem. Any advice, concerns etc. while I am waiting for my kid to get back with the new regulator?
 

englewoodcowboy

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I pulled the vacuum off the old regulator and it pissed gas everywhere so the regulator was def bad. Put the new one on and it goes to 80 psi and holds. The motor now runs though it is very rough at idle. My son is changing the oil too since we now have about a 50/50 gas/oil mix in the crank case. The truck idles rough, could this be due to the excess fuel laying in the system? Fuel was dripping from the tailpipe so I am assuming the O2 sensor could be a little fouled at the moment and probably needs to be replaced. As soon as he gets fresh oil in it we wil take it for a test run to see if it settles down. The plugs that are in it are only a few months old but do you think with all the fuel that was going through it should they be replaced too?
 

fyre82

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Be sure to change the oil and filter.

There could be more fuel in the oil than you might think.

Rich
 

4.0B2

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I'd pull the plugs and look at them. If they look okay, I'd run them.

The truck is staying at 80 psi fuel?
 

englewoodcowboy

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Yeah, it's staying at 80 psi. Did some research and I think there turn line is pinched since I had the tank down. I will look into it more as soon as the weather gets above freezing tomorrow.
 

adsm08

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It's not unreasonable to think that the system could hit a static pressure of 80 PSI.

The real question is what does it do when the engine is started. Does it stay high? It shouldn't be much more than 35-40 running.

As for the plugs, pull them, spray them out with some brake cleaner and run 'em.
 

4.0B2

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wait, so you have not tested the pressure when running?
 

englewoodcowboy

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I tested it off and running and it stayed at 90. Took the return line off and tried to blow through it and it is very restricted. Gonna start by dropping the tank down and seeing if the line is kinked or pinched and will go from there. At 90 psi it would run fine off of idle but the idle was rough like choking etc.
 

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