OK I was going to wait until tomorrow to figure this out but just couldn't sit still..... I tried a few things and nothing worked so I removed the pump completely thinking I was going to have to send it back. I said what the hell and decided to see what would happen if I connected it directly to another 12v battery I had in the garage and it came to life. That had me stumped. I reinstalled the pump with a few changes to the plumbing and will wait till tomorrow to finish and try it again. I need to resolder the power wire to the pump wire. I am going to put a better (lack of a better word) ground strap from the bell housing to the frame rail. Originally I had tested for continuity from the frame rail to the battery and it seemed fine, but I didn't really have a ground strap to the frame rail at the moment (it was in the plans). Before I try again tomorrow I am going to put a 8 gauge ground strap from the bell housing (where the battery ground connects to) to the frame rail. Hopefully that is what the problem is.
Took some 8 gauge wire that I had, soldered some copper 5/16" and 3/8" lugs on and installed them from the bell housing to the right and left frame rails, put power to the fuel pump and it came to life. I had the fuel line disconnected where it connects to the hard line I have on the firewall, and emptying into a gas can. Reconnected it and checked for fuel leaks. All was good. Currently painting the mufflers I got, once I install them and wire in a switched accessory relay so I don't fry another ignition switch and also wrap the fuel lines with heat tape where they pass over the exhaust and intake manifolds, and I should be ready to start her up (fingers crossed). Also going to load the tuner program on my laptop and change the setting for the egr.
ITS ALIVE, ITS ALIVE Working on uploading a video of it running, will post it when its finished. Currently it idles a bit high at around 900 or so. Not sure how to correct this??? Otherwise seems to run very nice. Starts up instantly and idles quite smooth.
Too cool!!! Good for you, Chris! Thank you for keeping us updated on this and the effort you took to do so! Time typing IS time you could have been working! So I say thank you, and can't WAIT to see the video!
Hei dist I was wondering if that would work! Any special year or model . That fuel infection job looks great. The life span of that engine just doubled not to mention you will never adjust that carb again !! Carbs are like women sometimes you have to go through a few to find a good one sad but true .
Idle Speed Adjustment W/ Fuel Injection There's an air bleed screw , usually in the primary air intake venturi . Also , the cold idle speed is controlled by a By-Pass air regulator , it needs 12 volts connected to it so the heater inside it heats up and relaxes the Bi-Metallic spring and allows the calibrated vacuum leak to close . Remember : vacuum leaks in Fuel Injections systems makes the idle speed increase.... 900 RPM's isn't terribly over fast .
presenting the video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxuSGXqGnf0 I got all my conversion parts from a 88-92 Chevy C/K1500 with a 4.3L V6. The computer to use is a 1227747.
Sweet ! Now , go treat your self to a good beer or whatnot . Junk that too small , restrictive muffler and add some tailpipe , get rid of the silly passenger car rockerbox . It looks and sounds , very good . I can hardly wait for you to write about the increased power and smoothness in running , easy freezing cold starts , etc. . etc. .
Thanks for the compliments guys The mufflers are brand new Magnaflow 3 chamber stainless steel mufflers and are staying. Eventually I will finish off the exhaust with some tailpipes that will exit before the rear tires, but I have to wait unitl I get the bed bolted down and the fenders on. And before anyone says about running them out the rear, it ain't going to happen. Fuel tank is behind the rear axle and there is no room to run exhaust. "silly passenger car rockerbox"???
I worked on it a bit more today. Working out the bugs that come with doing something like this. I believe its getting a bit more fuel than needed. It starts up nice, runs nice, revs nice but when I let it idle for a long period it starts to struggle. Nice thing about fuel injection is that it won't let the engine die. I took the air cleaner off and from the top you can watch the idle air control valve (IAC) coming to save the day. When the engine starts to see it struggle, it opens up the IAC and the rpms pick back up, then repeats and it continues to do this unitl I shut it off or rev it. Revs fine even when its doing this. Took the spark plugs out and they seem a bit wet, not horribly, but wet. The spark plugs are black, mostly because of the 4bbl. This week I'm going back to the u-pull-it yard and will pickup a 2.8L injector unit to see if it corrects the problem. Also have to get a can of starter fluid to see if there are any vacuum leaks around the adapter plate I made to mount the TBI unit.
OK, have a question. Can't quite tell from just watching, but I was wondering if the computer fires both injectors at the same time or one after the other or ??? I was thinking, what would happen if I unplugged one of the injectors? I still plan to try the 2.8 injectors, won't get to the yard until saturday though. Anything else I should try from the 2.8? Did a bit of researching and comparing of my wiring diagram to a 2.8L V6 diagram from a 88-92 s10 and the wiring is the same, so when I go to the yard for the injector unit, I am also going to pickup a 2.8L computer. This leads me to my next question, do I also need a 02 sensor from a 2.8 or will the one I have work and what about the map sensor, grab one too?
Ok did some more researching and thinking. The 3.1L which uses the same 2bbl tbi220 unit came in the 91-93 chevy lumina, 89-92 olds silhouette and 91-93 pontiac trans-sport. The wiring, like the 2.8 is also the same as the 4.3 I may buy at the yard 1 2.8 injector unit/pod, 1 2.8 computer, 1 3.1 injector pod and 1 3.1 computer and do some mixing and matching. A nice thing about the 3.1 computer is that it has a trigger wire for a cooling fan relay. Not sure if I should also get the 2.8 computer or not. The yard charges about $20 for computers. 3.1 is probably a bit closer than the 2.8 and the fan relay trigger is a plus. I can try a few different combinations 4.3 computer with 2.8 injector pod 4.3 computer with 3.1 injector pod 3.1 computer with 3.1 injector pod 3.1 computer with 2.8 injector pod 3.1 computer with 4.3 injector pod 2.8 computer with 2.8 injector pod 2.8 computer with 3.1 injector pod 2.8 computer with 4.3 injector pod anyone know or can get the specs on the 2.8, 3.1 and 4.3 injectors not sure what sensors and that will interchange, I imagine the IAC, TPS and CTS won't make a difference, MAP might need to be changed and MAYBE??? the O2 sensor. I also read somewhere that the vac port on the MAP must be pointing down. TRUE?
F.i. You seem to know more about this F.I. system than most ' mechanics ' ! . Is it a MAP controlled system ? . the varying idle speeds you described is called " hunting " and it was common on older MAP controlled F.I. systems , usually causec by fluctuating intake manifold pressure (the vacuum is still considered pressure , _negative_ pressure) , the fluctuations wereoften caused by tight valves in the days of mechanical valve adjustments , also by vacuum leaks or recalcitrant auxiliary air valves (wamr up or idle speed control valves . I don't know this modern stuff well , I take it this is a TBI setup with two injectors in a carby looking thing ? . Just a few ideas for you to work with , connect a vacuum gauge to the intake vacuum whilst it's hunting and see what it does .
Oops Sorry , I didn't see the last part where you clearly say it's a MAP system . No , the MAP sensor does not need to point down unless there's some problem that might cause moisture of any kind (fuel , water) to collect inside the intake manifold....
Drummer I have often wondered what some of us old school guys were gong to do with our old iron when our old friends who really understand tuning these old engines move along. I am beginning to get the picture. You just keep up the work. Not only is this entertaining, I am amazed at your abiliy to mix and match and make this newer equipment run old iron! Great show, keep it coming! Jim
OK a little update I changed out the 4.3 injectors for 3.1 injectors and the stumble/struggle at idle was less frequent. IAC still has to save the day and keep it from stalling, but not as much as before. BUT (and I found out something by using a computer tuner) when the engine starts to warm up and gets around 130degF the computer wants to start to lower the idle rpm from 1000/900 to 600. When it starts to do this, the engine struggles and stalls. Im still guessing to much fuel. I will connect the vacuum gauge and see what it reads. I have a few more things Im going to try and then Im taking the leap to MS. I want to try the 3.1 computer as well as the 2.8 injectors. Im not positive that these will fix it but I have to try. Ive been talking to EFI-DIY about the MS system and will be buying the unassembled kit and the 746/747 adapter board if the above don't work. Nice thing about the MS is if I ever switch to a different engine (inline of coarse) the ms is adaptable. Total for the MS system comes to about $400.
Wow~ I don't know beans about (much), but reading what you are doing, two things come to mind. #1 Make a video of what you are doing for numb nuts like me who kinda/sorta have an idea about what you are doing. #2 Package and sell it! Once you have all the parts that make this work, take orders and sell the "kits" WITH THE VIDEO as an option. (I'd take both.) You remind me of what made this country great. A firm belief and a "can-do" attitude! Thanks for sharing all this, Chris! I love the video of you starting and running that responsive sweet 6! I'm thinking how my 228 would like something like this...
