UPDATE- Furhter below are all the things I
tried to cure a repeated leaness. I finally know that this lean
running was caused by the 302 firing order I am using, instead
of a 5.0/351.
The problem occurs because the computer can adjust the injectors
left/right seperately, based on the O2s. Let's say it reads the
left side as lean. Now it richens those injectors. However some
of them have been switched to the right side. So now the right
side is rich, so it tries to lean it out, but some of those injectors
are on the left side. So it keeps getting leaner and leaner. Unplugging
the computer was the only way to start from scratch.
I had clues all along but didn't think it through. When I did
the conversion I left off one O2 exhaust fitting, and the engine
ran good. When I added the 2nd the trouble started, but I knew
the O2 was good, so I looked elsewhere. I guess with only one
O2 it can't ping-pong back and forth. Running one O2 may be one
cure.
About a week before I was totally clued in, I had disconnected
both O2s and the computer defaulted to the backup fuel charts.
These are a little rich for a stock engine, but with my mods the
engine ran very well at all times. It still richens up when cold,
but is a little lean off-idle. I don't know about the timing.
I made an adjustable fuel regulator and used it to fine
tune the fuel, just like it was a carb. This is another fix. I
backed off until it started to ping, then went richer 1/4 turn.
Around town I am getting 22 mpg, so I happy for now.
I have now experimented with joining both O2s together
on the bench. They still read the normal voltages and also seem
to even out the signal. I don't know if the computer can detect
this or not. I'm going to adapt a second harness and test it on
the car. I'll use one of those connectors to tie both O2 wires
together at the harness plug.
LTD and Tbird computers have the right firing orders but use 14
lb injectors. Maybe they could adapt. I was told tweecers can
change the firing order in the software.
So, the real cure is to have a cam with the 5.0/351 firing order.
( people with 5.0s who plug the O2 harness in the wrong sides
also get the same problems.)
Once my EFI conversion was completed
final tuning had to be done. It ran better than a carb, but it
still had some irritating quirks. Mainly it ran very lean while
cruising. Full throttle was good. In fact it had more power and
response than before. However, while cruising it had the hiccups,
and on light acceleration it sometimes had a light backfire! If
it was a carb I would richen the main jets and go to a bigger
pump squirter, but how to do that with the efi?
Various timing settings were tried with no result. 2 plug wires
and the coil wire had very high resistance and were replaced.
( A website said they should have under 4000 ohms per foot.) The
engine ran smooother but no fix.
Reading various forums only showed that other people had
the same problems and both Speed Density and Mass Air systems
could have the same symptoms. The solutions offered were suspect.
Several people said that an exhaust leak caused backfiring, because
fresh air was sucked in and mixed with the exhaust and was ignited.
Well, if there was a leak there would be pressure at the hole,
not vacuum, and also a factory air pump puts air into the exhaust
and that doesn't create backfires either.
Others said the O2s must be bad because the computer uses
them to adapt to the perfect mixture. I had tested several O2s
before installation and the best ones passed. One was excellent.
The out of car test I used was;
1 Hook the wiring to a voltmeter.
2 Heat with a propane torch.
3 It should show .6V in under 20 seconds.
4 Remove heat, and it should show 0V in 4 seconds.
5 Return heat and it should stay steady for 2 minutes.
Next was the TPS: Throttle Position Sensor.
If it was catching then the computer may not be reading the right
throttle position. I bought a new one. It was very pricey but
didn't fix the problem. It did improve the response anyway.
I began to think of Tolerance Stacking, which is when lots
of little things stack up to a big hinderance to operation. I
would test everything I could and fix as much as could be fixed.
The sensors were tested according to the specs on several
websites. ( I didn't pay attention to which, and now several of
them seem to be down.One was http://www.nettally.com/silly34/main.htm)
To make testing easier plug-ins were cut from cars at the wreckers.
However all the temp sensors, the TFI, and the EGR stuff checked
out okay, and several copies of each as well. This was surprising
considering that it was all from the wrecking yard.
One improvement was in the ground wires. I had added
several but later found the old engine ground was very rusty.
I cleaned and coated it with metallic anti-sieze.
The problem was being eaten away around the edges, or perhaps
the EEC was compensating faster.
Next, I knew home computers can be affected by dust buildup
causing static, so I cleaned the EEC with compressed air and alcohol.
It seemed to help.
I made an adapter to plug the engine temp into the air temp,
and put a second one in the intake. It cured the stutter, but
then it turned cold out and the sensor never warmed up, so the
idle went to 1800rpm. The idea might work well in the summer.
I had 2 voltmeters and hooked them up to watch various sensors
while driving. The first problem was that my 'excellent' O2 sensor
gave no signal. The wiring checked okay, but not the O2. The problem
was a clear coat had plugged the vent to the outside air. Oops.
I dremelled a new opening in the side and it worked great again.
Now the EEC could read it as well as myself. This in itself helped.
While cold the O2 read about .8v, which is slightly
rich, but when hot it was about .3v, which is very lean! On light
throttle it went to .1v! I was right after all.
As the EGR opens it sends a growing voltage signal. It opens
in the midrange and in cruise. I found that after flooring it
the O2 would read .8v and the egr would stay off for up to a minute.
However there was also a point in light acceleration that the
egr would shut off, but the O2 stayed lean. So this meant that
the unburnt fuel in the egr flow was removed but the 'accelerator
pump' didn't kick in, so it was leaner right when you wanted it
to be richer! The computer wasn't coordinating things properly,
even if it thought it was.
Next was the alternator. Modern alternators with internal
voltage regulators use a wire to test battery voltage to self
regulate. However, this wire can be placed in different spots.
I knew this before but was reminded by http://www.madelectrical.com/
. I tested the voltage at the wire to the EEC and injectors. It
was 13.7V with the car running instead of the preferred 14.5.
The sensing wire was moved to the EEC line, and the voltage went
up.
This finally pushed it over the hump. The engine only had
a very slight stutter now.
It is now running like a fuel injection should. Up next would be a look at richening the mixture slightly by putting a 2000 to 3000 ohm resistor in the engine temp circuit or altering the fuel pressure. The site http://www.pro-flow.com/techinfo/tech_support.htm states that speed density can be fooled by altered fuel pressure, while mass air will adapt. I'll leave it for now though. I'm sick of testing wires and purging the computer.
UPDATE It took about a month but
the engine slowly crept up on leaness again as the weather became
colder. There was some surging and backfire pops during light
acceleration again. I plugged the ECT harness back into the intake
sensor and it was instantly cured. However the idle also went
back to 1600 rpms. I also noted from the voltmeters that the EGR
didn't open anymore, or only very slightly. So, it appears that
the EGR causes, or increases, lean running. If the ECT temps could
be altered just right it should fix the problem. Maybe.
A forum thread revealed the fact that the Idle Air Controller
lets air in at all rpms. I assumed it would only be at idle.
I unplugged the IAC and it then cruised fine. In fact it seemed
a little rich. However there was now no cold start rev-up and
it stalled out. The answer might be to sleeve down the air entrance
into the IAC.
I closed the small air bleed in the throttle body with brass
and epoxy and it helped. The idle screw had to be turned in one
turn and the voltage reset.
Somewhere in the middle of all this I pulled
the vacuum to the fuel regulator as a test. Leaness solved! I
was laying rubber everywhere, for a while. Then the borderline
clutch gave up. I could idle around but that's it.
When the 10 inch disc came out it was torn to shreds, so I thought
about upgrading. I knew the 86 EFI Mustang still used a 10 inch,
but the 10 1/2 from the 87up seemed to be the better idea. The
problem was my older engine had a different balance. Forum sites
said 'any shop can rebalance a flywheel' but when I phoned around
no one knew what I was talking about. Finally one shop did, and
did it often. So, I bought a used flywheel and had them balance
it. Too bad for me that they doubled their quote, and with other
expenses, it cost more than buying a new steel flywheel from the
aftermarket!
At least they balanced it right. The replacement Valeo clutch
works better than the old one ever did.
UPDATE 2 I finally put in an adjustable
fuel pressure regulator and the leaness seems to be cured. I built
my own from a CFI regulator that sits on top of the throttle body.
It has an adjuster that is covered with a plug at the factory.
Pop out the plug and turn the socket head bolt.
This regulator also needs to have a vacuum line added. A
hole can be drilled on the edge or the side and a tube soldered
in. Remember that there is a spring under the cover.
After installing it I turned the adjuster about 1/8 of a
turn per day until it cruised without jerkiness.
It is a long learning curve but now I know a few things. The big change is that with carbs the thinking is mechanical while EFI has an electric heart. It assumes certain things and makes decisions based on that. Kind of like us.