Vacuum Hose Question

[bilbo]

I'm hoping someone with an 83 or close to it will be able to help me out. I can't figure out where an orange vacuum line goes. It is the one circled in the photo. The diagram shows it going into CARB-U but I don't know what that means. It won't reach anything near the carb (it may be broken). Is CARB-U on the left (fender) side of the carb near the bottom? The truck is a 2.3 with air conditioning.

Also, where should the thick battery ground and the other ground on the left side of the engine attach? The wiring harness kind of fell apart and it's dangling free. I can't find it in any of my photos taking things apart. Thanks in advance for any help!

 

[Mark_88]

If the 2.3 is not fuel injected I would hazard a guess that the CARB-U means either an upper connector on the carburetor or upper connector on the intake somewhere. It looks like you have emission control items like an air pump on the passenger side or maybe something else.

Hard to tell with a partial picture...actually, that whole system is hard to tell even with complete pictures, diagrams and the little hood decal by the rad.

I don't recall ever seeing a complete system that was connected in the original configuration and Ford was absolutely useless because the system was obsolete.

I would suggest checking for possible dual connectors that have screws or other objects stuck in one side because that was a a common block off method. Good news is that the hose is not on a direct route from the intake and may not cause vacuum loss problems unless it is connected to something that has an open valve.

If you notice high idle when running try sticking a screw or cap on that line to block it to see if the idle drops.

EDIT: I did a search on 1988 Ford 2.0 vacuum lines and found this diagram that might help...if you don't already have it..

http://vb.foureyedpride.com/showthread.php?23597-Need-Help-with-Vacuum-lines

Look at post #20 for the diagram...I don't remember seeing one in that detail before and looks like it is a 2.3 with A/C...

 

[bilbo]

There is an air pump on the passenger side and a plethora of emissions items. What a mess of little tubes though! I'll try and get a full photo but you're right; it may not help any. There is an empty barb on the carb on the driver side near the bottom that is slightly higher than the others. I'm thinking that may be it. There's also a flapper in the intake I'd assume for warming airbover the exhaust manifold. There's a connector on that but no idea where to connect it to. You can definitely see the complexity reduce in the vacuum diagrams as you get closer to the 90s. Wiring got more complex though.

 

[Mark_88]

The flapper on the intake to the breather inlet actually ran to the underside of the breather. If you have the original breather you should find something there if everything is still intact. That actually had two connectors so the vacuum originally came from the middle prong on the carb on a 2.0...probably not the same setup on yours but it can go to the carb directly. I recall that the breather was rigged that way so that you could pull the breather off completely without actually disconnecting anything because the other side fit into a fixed tube connector on the top of the carb.

Yes, that was a preheater that pulled warmer air into the carb until it warmed up. I was able to do away with that system when I switched the carb and intake so it is a very distant memory.

Are you having high idle issues or are you just trying to figure where everything goes?

 

[bilbo]

Just trying to figure out where everything goes. There was an orange duct going to the manifold where that flapper was. The vacuum fitting looks like it connects to a fitting in the air cleaner housing. I read about something similar once, I think the fitting is a thermostatic vacuum valve that allows the preheated to work only when it's cold. That little barb has to be for the mystery orange tube. It's the only pair left!

 

[Mark_88]

Yes, that could be where it goes.

Your carb looks like the Carter one bbl that I didn't have too much exposure to other than trying to get one to work and found it wouldn't idle below 1500 rpms due to a vacuum leak.

I ended up finding a complete Motorcraft 5200 on an original 1978 Ford Mustang II intake that worked so well that I drove it like that for another 8 years or so before finally moving over to fuel injection.

 

[tomw]

Hey, did you know someone stole your hood? It's not there in the pics...


heh.

The only way to know the 'factory' connections and routing is to have access to a shop manual. There would be individual descriptions of the piece-parts that make up the emissions control system. For example, the EGR has to be disabled at idle speed, is disabled until the engine comes to operating temp, and is controlled by vacuum. Some had an 'amplifier', a mechanical valve that used a very slight vacuum signal from the carb to change(modulate in the flavored term) the vacuum from the intake manifold to open the EGR valve using the vacuum diaphragm. The sizes of the diaphragms in the 'amplifier' would allow a very slight control vacuum signal to control a much stronger vacuum from the intake or the reservoir. (the reservoir would 'fill'[evacuate] to the highest manifold vacuum, such as at idle, and keep that level if the check valve worked properly and the lines, fittings and diaphragms did not leak. Thus a good strong vacuum was used to power the 'motor' of the EGR diaphragm). I think that was a few years prior to yours.
FWIW
If you can get an EVTM - Electrical & Vacuum Trouble Shooting Manual - for your truck, you'll be MILES ahead. The most valuable pub Ford ever did for their vehicles. Best dollars you'd ever spend, IMO.
I would suggest that you ignore all the other 'clutter' of wires & tubes when trying to do your connections, at least try, and note all 'plugged' or disconnected fittings. Was there one next to the 'barb' at the base of the carb(I think), to the right slightly? Looked like another vacuum port. BTW, there were two (at least) types of vacuum ports on carbs. One being 'above' the throttle plate, so was not there until the throttle was opened, and the other being 'below' the throttle plate, so it was at vacuum with the engine at idle. Those were sources for vacuum advance for the ignition, and 'overheat' vacuum advance in case the engine was getting too hot. Some even had 're-t-ard' vacuum diaphragms. {The word chopped is a fairly common and blocked 'bad' word to the spell checkers on many sites.}
tom

 

[Mark_88]

I only learned of the EVTM three or four years after I chucked that earlier carb and would have loved to have seen one...or even knew they existed.

The Ford techs that I talked to didn't suggest that...most likely because they were too interested in cleaning out my wallet every time I showed up with a problem. Ah, well, maybe they have them on E-bay...worth checking out!

EDIT: I did a google search and found this link right here on TRS...

http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=128960

It is a link to a resource on a library website...with EVTM diagrams...I didn't log into it because I don't have time but worth investigating if it's free...

 

[bilbo]

There is only the one vacuum connection on that side. There are a couple of screws to the right to adjust idle speeds but that's it. I wonder if the throttle plate is the demarcation for upper and lower. If that's the case, that fitting would be above the throttle plate. There is another on the opposite side below the throttle plate.

At any rate, I did find the book tomw mentioned on a website called Faxon and ordered it. Thanks for the tips and hopefully it will help clear things up. I wasn't able to get the free one to work. It said I needed to be a MI resident.

 

[tomw]

EBSCO is a source for a lot of things... Our local library pays for access, so if you have a local library card, you can access the EBSCO web site. I do not use it much as it is cumbersome to navigate, and the 'coverage' varies from model to model. I bought a CD/DVD for the Mariner, and the factory shop manuals(including EVTM) 30+ years ago for the truck. The paper manuals are a lot more convenient to 'navigate' in, and you can use bookmarks, write the margin, write your own reference links (e.g.: see pg 34 for ECM connection) and so on. The electronic requires a computer/laptop, etc, and paging back and forth is willy nilly, and not very nice.
If you can afford paper and it is available, get it.
tom

 

[Mark_88]

You can access the EBSCO site from here too...for now. They change the password every once in a while so the Library is always the best place to get on there...but that has it's down side sometimes...

If you want to check out the Auto Repair Reference Center try the link below and use the hack password...

http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=170166

Be warned that the older the model the less information you are likely to find...but it has been my resource for many years on hard to find things and especally finding bolt or other fastener information. A service manual might work better but I've never had one.

 

[bilbo]

That one worked for me. I'll definitely be using it in the future as I have a Taurus I work on also. I used to use Autozones repair data, but I heard Ford made them take it down. At least I haven't been able to access it for quite a while now. I received the factory manual I bought yesterday and it's great. I wish I would have had one a few months ago when I started this project. The detail is much better than the Chilton book I was working with before. The EVTM should arrive later this week and if it's similar to this it should clear up a lot of my questions. I may try to digitize them to make sure I always have them in case I mess up pages or they deteriorate.

 

[tomw]

I'll say this about that....
When I have bought a new car, I have paid the extra for a service manual set. I still have them. They are not cheap.
On that line, I think the manufacturer should provide a CD with the information on it in the owners manual package. It would cost $.23 to make that information available, or less with volume.
The paper publisher {was Helm, Inc} has a natural monopoly, and charges extortion rates for the manuals, provides poorly assembled pages, missing tabs, some binders that are broken from the factory, but there's no other source.
The last vehicle purchased, not new, I did not get the manuals, but got a DVD / CD from ebay. It has enough to get by, but I'd sooner have paper.
I do find the EVTM the best source, and the most-used source for those I have. I don't have one for the 07 Mariner, but sure would like to find one.
tom

 

[bilbo]

Well, I started and ran the engine today and it ran like crap. It won't idle below 1k, and surges pretty bad. I've not a whole lot of experience with car engines but in the small engine world that means leaning out/vacuum leak. Above that it seems to run smooth with a miss/hesitation now and then.

It also has a knocking noise coming from the front somewhere. I thought it was the disc on the back of the camshaft sprocket hitting something but I can't see where it's rubbed anywhere. Could a follower have fallen off and is causing the noise? the camshaft, followers, and lash adjusters are all new.

I'm thinking the knock noise is the priority as I see the biggest short term damage potential there.

 

[Mark_88]

My 2.3 would knock every once in a while and sounded like it was going to fly apart. I topped up the oil and it would quiet down for a while with no rhyme or reason as to why...other than what I learned on here that the hydraulic lifters were a little low and would pump back up eventually.

There is a way to determine if the knock is more serious like a bearing or something else but if the noise goes away after a while it's probably nothing serious.

Maybe search the site on engine noise and see what pops up. Someone on here posted something but I really can't remember when or even who...might have been RonD or maybe tomw...

Did it always make the noise or do you know the history of the engine?