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help last ditch effort......maybe ecm?


d_bo357

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My 85 b2 is still sputtering and stalling on take off, top speed 75mph downhill:
New o2 sensor
Tps, iac, egr and position sensor, carburetor rebuilt, plugs and wires, timing good, fuel filter, vac lines, all connectors cleaned, icm, rotors, cap

I plugged the tcp vac line and it gets a little better.

I found a 85 eddie Bauer auto trans at the pull and pay, will the ecm work in mine its a xlt 5sp man?
Or any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
 


PetesPonies

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I think it will. Using an auto ecm in manual typically works. But I bet that's not your problem. But you won't know for sure until you try.
 

RonD

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Have you checked that the timing is changing, with a timing light, when RPM changes

Does it stumble on change in RPM only with a load or even when parked/neutral?

Does it stumble on acceleration when driving, i.e. going from 30mph to 50mph?

Have you checked the compression, or pulled the dipstick while engine is running to check how much blow-by there is?

Outside of the timing not changing it reads like a fuel issue, carb.
When you push down on the gas pedal the accelerator pump in the carb gives the engine a squirt of fuel to get things going then the jets take over as more fuel is pulled out via the higher RPM and air flow, fuel bowl has a vent at the top of the carb, if it gets plugged then fuel can't be pulled out easily so fuel flow is limited.
The 2150 carb has two vents, a main vent and a vent valve
 
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d_bo357

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RonD

Im not real mech. Inclined but I did take it to two mechanics, I watched one do the timing, it is changing when the rpms advance
It will in neutral just seems not as bad
It has a little hesitation while driving, not much after 40mph
Compression is good, I don't know what blow-by is
 

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On my b2. It was the injectors. I put n a remaned set off of ebay. She cleared rite up.
 

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If compression is good then blow-by won't be too bad.
"blow-by" is the term used for the burn fuel that "blows by" the piston rings when a cylinder fires, when the rings start getting worn, high miles, there is more blow-by so less compression.
Lowering compression lowers the power an engine once had.
Blow-by is a normal occurrence even on new engines, it just gets worse as the miles add up.
 

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On my b2. It was the injectors. I put n a remaned set off of ebay. She cleared rite up.
That would be a wonderfully helpful statement if we were dealing with a fuel injected engine. We are not.
 

wildbill23c

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One thing you might be able to try before buying an ECM that might not be needed, is adjust the carburetor, turn both of the front screws in all the way and then back out 3-1/2 turns, then adjust it and test from there. Once you get the carb dialed in, then you will narrow down possible problems. Mine was stumbling around and not running worth crap and then at one point wouldn't even go faster than 40mph no matter what gear I was in, or how far down the accelerator was pressed. I kept hearing a clicking noise from the passenger side, and pulled over and pulled the kick panel off the passenger side that covers the ECM and pulled the relay out that is by the ECM, now it runs great and I can do whatever speed I want. You may try pulling that relay I mentioned and see if your stumbling and power problem goes away, if so just throw the relay in the trash that's where mine ended up. Truck runs perfectly fine without that relay which from what I understand is connected to the ECM somehow.
 

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One thing you might be able to try before buying an ECM that might not be needed, is adjust the carburetor, turn both of the front screws in all the way and then back out 3-1/2 turns, then adjust it and test from there. Once you get the carb dialed in, then you will narrow down possible problems. Mine was stumbling around and not running worth crap and then at one point wouldn't even go faster than 40mph no matter what gear I was in, or how far down the accelerator was pressed. I kept hearing a clicking noise from the passenger side, and pulled over and pulled the kick panel off the passenger side that covers the ECM and pulled the relay out that is by the ECM, now it runs great and I can do whatever speed I want. You may try pulling that relay I mentioned and see if your stumbling and power problem goes away, if so just throw the relay in the trash that's where mine ended up. Truck runs perfectly fine without that relay which from what I understand is connected to the ECM somehow.
The ol' "pull the RLS relay" trick.
RLS = run like sh.......

What relay is that really, I gotta know?
Passenger side kick panel
 

d_bo357

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Thanks for the replys, ill try and tinker the carb and relay when I lay my son down for a nap later this afternoon
Does anyone know what that relay really does?
 

wildbill23c

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The ol' "pull the RLS relay" trick.
RLS = run like sh.......

What relay is that really, I gotta know?
Passenger side kick panel
Funny you make fun of what I'm saying but that relay down on the passenger side right by the ECM, if you pull that relay it bypasses the POS computer. With that relay installed and bad in my 84 B2 the truck wouldn't go faster than 40mph in any gear, once that relay was thrown out it runs just fine, relay has been in a box in my shop since November and it runs just fine without it. Don't know where you are getting the Run like shit BS, but maybe you should try it first before you start making fun of someone's easy and simple 5 minute repair for a vehicle that wouldn't run correctly. If I put the relay back in, its back to being in limp mode at 40mph. Maybe you should come by and drive my B2 with and without that relay and you will quickly change your story.
 

d_bo357

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Alright pulled the relay it ran like crap, havent got to carb yet but will eventually try and do it ill keep yall posted
 

wildbill23c

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Alright pulled the relay it ran like crap, havent got to carb yet but will eventually try and do it ill keep yall posted
Then the computer isn't your problem. Your problem lies in the carburetor tuning. You state it won't go faster than 75mph. Do you have a lift and larger tires/wheels? What is your axle's gear ratio?

If the computer was your problem, pulling the relay would have put the vehicle into a base mode it wouldn't advance the timing but it would have ran a lot better. The computer in my B2 is bad as it would go right into limp mode, you couldn't tell when it was idling, but with the relay installed it was in limp mode when you drove it, without the relay it runs great. So your problem is in the carburetor/fuel system somewhere.
 

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