Help with Rich Condition
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Junior User
Joined: Oct 2005
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Help with Rich Condition
Hey guys, long time no talk. anyways, heres my problem. A while back my cats started smelling bad. Instead of replace i just put straight pipes on. Now i have to find cats to put back on for inspection. But if i put new ones on. the richness of the engine will destroy them. I had my mechanic at my work run codes and the only one that came up was passenger side bank running rich. Is there any common problems that cause just one side to run rich?
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Junior User
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other problems that possibly might be related, Very bad acceleration and bad pickup on the highway. about 6-8 mpg with the 351. I did all the math and it came out to around 7.5 or something around there. the pipe on the passenger side sounds different and less healthy than the driver side
Senior User
Joined: Apr 2003
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From: Edmonton, AB Canada
Look into replacing plugs and wires, distributor cap and rotor. If the plugs arent firing properly, then un burnt gas will be sent down the pipes and affect the o2 sensor and register a code. Other things to look at are the general condition of the motor if you are talking about one side running poorly. It is also possible that you have a leaky or stuck injector/injectors that is loosing gas to one cylinder or more on that side of the motor. Try checking fuel pressure after the truck has shut off, and look for a pressure loss in the first 15 minutes. If you have more than about 5 psi then the fuel is going somewhere, the question is just where. Good luck
Last edited by Tdvjensen; Dec 6, 2006 at 06:35 PM.
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Junior User
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i changed the plugs wires cap and rotor a while back and it didnt improve anything. Could it be the o2 sensor causing the car to run rich on one side? also, is it a hard job to check the injectors or fuel pressure?
Senior User
Joined: Apr 2003
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From: Edmonton, AB Canada
Fuel pressure is easy to check with a fuel pressure gauge. They can be rented at some parts stores, and can also be purchased. There is a shrader valve on the driverside fuel rail that it screws onto. Attach the guage, pressure up the system by turning on the key and then watch the gauge for a pressure loss.
Lead Driver
Joined: Feb 2003
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From: Oak Harbor, OH
What year is it? If it's older than a 96 then you only have ONE oxygen sensor and it's probably toast from the rich condition. It sounds like it's trying to flood itslef, pull the vacuum line off of the FPR (I'm sure it;s already been said but it's an easy check) and see if fuel squirts out when you have a buddy turn the key on. If so the FPR need to be replaced. Then you can check the fuel pressure. Also check the timing if it's way retarded it can also cause those symptoms.
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Hey guys, well i brought it to the mechanic in my town who is supposedly good. Well, i told him how it was running rich on one side and also for him to check my heat because it doesnt come out hot.. Well i asked him to check the blend door and he said no it wouldnt be that so he replaced the thermostat... didnt fix the heat at all... and he also replaced the o2 sensor and also some sort of solenoid which was like 25$. it doesnt seem to get any better gas mileage at all, not really any better acceleration at all either. The one good thing is that at least both exaust pipes have the same sound now when the trucks running. And the check engine light still comes on and off intermittently. He told me that wouldnt come on also 
... any idea what i should do? because i dont want to put my catalytic converter back on if its still running rich
... any idea what i should do? because i dont want to put my catalytic converter back on if its still running rich
