Rough idle diagnostic help please,

[ThatOneGuy]

Ok so yesterday i started diagnosing the no run situation on the 93 explorer parts rig i bought to do the 4.0 swap on my 83 ranger. I tested for spark, positive. Tested for fule pressure, positive. Checked firing order, wala drivers side bank wrong, conected them properly. Now truck would sputter with no start, getting somewhere now. Realized probably out of fule. Started to add fule to tank, and it was running to the ground. I droped the fule tank skid plate, filler hose, and pressure return line disconected from tank, i reattached lines to tank and added 2 gallons to tank. Crank engine and hey it starts and runs poorly. Feeles like vacuum leak, start going over what the p.o. had done , realize the only leak i can find is at the bottom of throttle body, reattached vacume line to purge valve from charcoal canister. Runs worse, as engine gets warm i notice alot of burning oil smoke from back of engine, however upon inspection, i dont notice any fresh wet oil back there. I know the smoke is coming from somewhere, but not sure if it has anything to do with the poor running condition. Tried the maf just because i have a known good one and it was easy. Im thinking it could possibly be the intake manifold leaking, however i didnt notice a loss of fluid, or coolant in the oil, oil does smell like gas but the p.o. told me he cranked the heck out of it so im assuming most likely gas running past the rings. now ill admit im not the best diagnostician, i havent tried tightening the intake yet had to get back home, and short of getting the parts cannon out, im starting to run out of ideas, i dont think its a vacume line because i think i checked them all but i could be wrong. I would be grateful to hear some ideas from the more knowledgeable folks around here.thanks in advance.

 

[franklin2]

Don't those engines have a chronic problem with the original intake plenum gaskets leaking, making the engine run rough? This certainly doesn't look like a good engine swap candidate does it?

 

[MikeG]

Need to test the intake for vacuum leaks. The 4.0s with a two piece intake manifold are notorious for vacuum leaks..... been there, done that.

 

[ThatOneGuy]

Don't those engines have a chronic problem with the original intake plenum gaskets leaking, making the engine run rough? This certainly doesn't look like a good engine swap candidate does it?

Luckily i bought this one for the manual trans, i picked up two one runs very well but has 100000 more miles than the other, so if i could get this one to run good id prefer to use it instead, ive got options lol

 

[ThatOneGuy]

Need to test the intake for vacuum leaks. The 4.0s with a two piece intake manifold are notorious for vacuum leaks..... been there, done that.

This is what i assumed the issue was when i bought it however the p.o. had torn into a bunch of stuff without knowing what he was doing, and i mean thats how alot of us learn, however he had no rhym or reason to what he had done. I had to put it back together just to diagnose the original issue. I was just hoping some one would agree that it sounded likely lol.