Thank you for your support. The machine shop I bought the engine from sold a basic 302 for $1050. For $300 more I got the Heavy Duty 302. I don't remember what all he said that heavy duty consisted of, but I do remember that he said it had a bigger cam.

 

Many of the folks on this forum like to hear the details, and for those guru's those details are important to "suggest" your next move. So feel free to post those details if you find them. You might want to check the idle air control valve, if this is a 95 motor and similar to the 94 drivers side of the throttle body ....

 

Thanks JRS2. I acquired this truck 2 years ago. I have put soooo many new things on this truck. When I finally get it right, I'm literally going to have a new truck. The IAC and the MAF sensor I think are the only 2 things left, that I didn't replace new. I am a mechanic by trade. I have a college degree in it. I worked for Chrysler for 5 years, and I was a truck mechanic in the military. And I used to be ASE Certified Master Tech. But, I have been disabled for 12 years now. It's one of those things where, if you you don't use it, you lose it. And I have lost a lot of my mechanical common sense. And I am not as mechanically inclined as I used to be. I try to do it as a hobby. Like building my own truck. But, when it comes down to the engine performance issues, knowing what I used to know, now I feel so dumb.......Is there a way to test the IAC?

 

So, if you haven't been following the thread, this is what's going on so far....I got the firing order correct, timed it with the SPOUT removed, re-installed it and had it idling for about an hour last night. It was running so good. And I was so proud. Then it started surging and idling erratic. And the timing mark started moving. Not really what I'd call bouncing. When I first start it, the mark is on 10* for a few seconds, then it would jump up to approximately 20-25* for a few seconds, then it would come back down to about 12*. At this point the engine would continue to idle erratically but stay on 12* for quite a bit longer, before the timing mark started moving again. I started the engine up this morning, and immediately upon startup, the symptoms were the same. One thing I failed to mention....When I first did the initial startup, a couple days ago, back when I had the firing order wrong and it was only running on 4 cylinders, I smelled stale gas. Well, the gas that was in the tank (which couldn't have been very much) was about 2 years old. So I went down and got a 6 gallon can full of fresh high octane gas. I poured that and about 2/3 of a can of Seafoam into the gas tank. I can't imagine that I did wrong, but, I have been known to be wrong. So, maybe you could shed a little light on that for me as well.

 

Also, after it started idling erratic, I attempted to re-time the engine. After I pulled the SPOUT, the engine was still idling erratic. And it seems like the problem is only at idle, because I can increase the throttle, and it increases smooth and sounds good.

 

Did the engine come with any paperwork detailing what camshaft they put in it?

 

No. I'm gonna have to call the guy up and ask him.

 

Have you attempted to pull/retrieve codes?

If you don't know how, just search on here. I'm sure Googling will also yeild results. I haven't done it the old school method in so long. I know you use a jumper wire and count flashes.

 

Here is a decent guide on testing and cleaning the IAC. Hopefully this is helpful. How to Clean and Test your IAC - FSB Forums

 

Since MAF trucks are SEFI, the fire the injectors sequentially according to firing order. Since you swapped the plug wires around, the injectors aren't firing at the right time for those cylinders.

It actually doesn't matter that much at anything above idle, but it might cause a rough idle. If possible, it'd help if you could switch the injectors wires as well - but they may not reach.

 

I was just getting ready to do just that. Does the computer keep any codes stored with out having the ck eng light being on? The first night, the ck eng light was on briefly, but then it was out. I didn't make a note of when it came on or when it went out, but it is not on now, nor was it on at all last night. The repair manual tells you to use an analog voltmeter, and count the bounces of the needle. I did this once, several years ago (like maybe 15. lol) and while I was doing the procedure, I noticed the ck eng light was also flashing the same number of times as the needle was bouncing. So, just a few minutes a go, before I read your post, while I was on my thinking seat, I was wondering if I could just use a paper clip in place of the voltmeter, and just count the flashes.

 

As far as I'm aware, the codes should be stored as long as the battery has not lost power.

 

Wow Ian, that makes a lot of sense. But, I don't know how in the world I would do that, without unraveling a lot of tape and rerouting wires. I guess maybe I could do some cutting and splicing, all at the nearest injector connector, but then, I'd still have to do a lot of taping, to make sure I was working with the correct wires.

 

You don't have to cut or splice!! If you have a small flathead screw driver, then its very easy to lift the tab inside the harness connector, slide the wire out and change the pins around. I don't have the guide, but its around. It's very easy and I have done it when I converted my Speed Density PCM to MAF.

 

You don't want to change the injector wires around. Because the computer knows where those injectors are. If you move the wires side to side, the computer doesn't know that. As a result the oxygen sensor reading the left bank tries to richen up the left bank but 2 injectors are now swapped to the other side richening that side up causing more problems. Don't move the injector wires. For your sanity.