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Engine rough. One cylinder not firing?


RayInStl

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1983
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Well, that didn't work. Let's try something else!
I finally got the engine back in the ranger. She fired right up but isn't happy. I thought I got the timing wrong and did a bunch of fiddling with it.

Once I was satisfied it wasn't a timing problem, I decided to check to see if the cylinders were all firing. I pulled the pug wires one at a time. Each time the engine struggled when I unplugged the wire and recovered when I plugged it back in. Until I got to the last cylinder. There was no change in idle with the wire unplugged.

I then put a test light on it to make sure the wire was good. It lit up fine, so I removed the plug, grounded it, and got spark. Fearing the worst, I checked compression. 110 psi. Nothing to write home about, but should be more than enough to combust.

I'm at a loss. Compression, spark, fuel, and air. That's all it takes, right? If the other cylinders have fuel and air, this one should, right? I'm going to take the intake off tomorrow and make sure I didn't leave a shop towel in the intake port or something stupid like that. Anything else I should be checking?

This is an 83 2.3L and is carbureted, not fuel injected.
 


alwaysFlOoReD

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Frayed wire? Cracked porcelain?

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RayInStl

Member
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271
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Location
St. Louis, MO
Vehicle Year
1983
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Ford
Engine Size
2.3L
Transmission
Manual
My credo
Well, that didn't work. Let's try something else!
Wires are new, plugs are not. I'll try one of the old wires and move the plug to a different cylinder and see what happens. Good ideas! Thanks!
 

alwaysFlOoReD

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TRS Banner 2012-2015
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Location
Calgary, Canada
Vehicle Year
'91, '80, '06
Make / Model
Ford, GMC,Dodge
Engine Size
4.0,4.0,5.7
Transmission
Manual
2WD / 4WD
4WD
Also check firing order.

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RayInStl

Member
Supporting Member
Joined
Oct 30, 2015
Messages
271
Reaction score
14
Points
18
Location
St. Louis, MO
Vehicle Year
1983
Make / Model
Ford
Engine Size
2.3L
Transmission
Manual
My credo
Well, that didn't work. Let's try something else!
Huzzah! It was the plug! I moved the plug to the first cylinder and the symptoms moved with it. I stole one of the 8 plugs out of my brother's 91 2.3 and everything smoothed out. I've got 4 new motorcrafts to go into it. Thanks for the suggestion! It's running better than ever.
 

alwaysFlOoReD

Forum Staff Member
TRS Forum Moderator
TRS Banner 2012-2015
TRS 20th Anniversary
Joined
Apr 13, 2009
Messages
13,949
Reaction score
5,093
Points
113
Location
Calgary, Canada
Vehicle Year
'91, '80, '06
Make / Model
Ford, GMC,Dodge
Engine Size
4.0,4.0,5.7
Transmission
Manual
2WD / 4WD
4WD
Good.

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