I am having trouble keeping my ranger running. First off let me give a little history so you understand where I am coming from.

I am currently getting 12 mpg on this 2.8L that has 105,000 miles on it, less than a year ago I was pushing 18-22mpg. I let it sit for 6 months because of being unable to find money to repair the clutch. After fixing it the battery turned out to somehow be destroyed, it seemed to have reversed polarity, I blew a charger out when I hooked it up to recharge, yes I did connect it correctly. After I replaced the battery, it started up fine but was mis-firing; had the same problem before turned out to be a bad CPU, so I replaced the CPU. No problems misfiring now, just bad MPGs. In Dec the distributor handgrenaded, so I replaced the cap and rotor.

Now a more recent problem has arisen, whenever I put the clutch in the engine dies. Apearing to idle way down to stop. I am going to adjust the idle speed in the morning to see if that helps the problem. Any other suggestions? Also looking for suggestions on improving gas mileage.

Thanks,
KEN
AKA Wild Buffalo

 

I have an '85 2.8, except mine's an auto. When I first bought mine, I had similar problems. It has been my experience that the emmissions controls on vehicles this old ALL FAIL rather quickly, one after the other. I wasn't too concerned about maintaining the integrity of the emmissions system at first (couldn't afford to). The 5 minute fix is to increase the idle speed, but it's annoying. So I proceeded to mess around with emmissions controls. The CARB was fine, but it was getting bad signals, causing fuel mixture to go dead lean when throttle closed suddenly (causing the stalling you refer to). To be brief, I just unplugged the electrical connector that plugs into the back of the carb, and it stopped dying at idle. Also, I disconnected the EGR (just removed & plugged the vacuum line), so that it wouldn't be affected by bad EGR signals. Then I turned the SIMPLE MECHANICAL idle adjusting screw in just enough that the idle would never drop BELOW A CERTAIN POINT, even if the ELECTRONIC IDLE SPEED CONTROLLER (governed partly by TPS) would be inclined to let it drop too low. In your case, one thing that comes to mind is the enrichment device on the carb, that is controlled by manifold vacuum. If that sucker is stuck open, you're running RICH ALL THE TIME. I've never taken one apart, so I'm not sure how to tell you how to deal with it. If the vacuum line that is connected to it is leaking, that will DEFINITELY cause an overly rich mixture (your carb will think you've got it floored, when you don't). Also, I tweaked my timing, in an effort to get better throttle response, & slightly better fuel economy. Although Ford's electronic ingitions pretty much "set" the timing automatically, they can only compensate for "so much". So, if you advance the distributor a little at a time over a period of time, until you detect SLIGHT pinging, THEN tweak it back JUST FAR ENOUGH to stop (or minimize) the pinging, it will be basically running at the most advanced possible timing (can't be delayed, unless malfunctioning). Does your engine run pretty good other than the poor fuel economy?? Do you ever see any black smoke from the exhaust??

 

Thanks for the response, we will try it.

We took the EGR off and cleaned it, which improved the situation but did not solve the problem.

I will let you know how things work out with your procedure.

Wild Buffalo
84 Ranger Explorer Edition 4x4

 

You might want to take a look at the TPS and/or o2 sensor.

 

Tell, ya what on mine we got ride of all that stuff and got a distributer from a '79 mustang 2.8 and carb from the same, it made a huge differance and the truck accually runs better than when we bought it brand new in '84 and has more power also. I have not had to take it through emmissions so not sure if it would pass, but the other bonus is that alot of times the '79 mustang parts are much cheeper and are interchangable.

Good luck
scott

 

I've had (and seen) a number of recommendations from folks who have done this (any 2.8 around 1978, '79 , Mustangs, Pintos, etc.). At least if you DO do this, you'll know what ya' got. No fancy electronics putting your timing & stuff where IT thinks it should be. You can "tweak" stuff out your way, and it will work well, and keep working. I'm seriously considering trying it myself.

 

Check your fuel filter bud, seeing as how you left it sit so long the gas in the tank might have turned into a green powerish form and cloged the filter, change that and you might be able to keep er idling... I like the part about switching with the Mustang parts from 79 awesome Idea.

 

We will be transfering it over to a totaly manual engine soon, all that electronic crap has always given me problems. Thanks for the info on what vehicles to get it from. Right now most of the problem has been solved with the first reply suggestions. This summer when I get the Vulcan on the road I will tear apart the Ranger and switch it over.

Later,

Wild Buffalo
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84 Ranger Explorer Eddition
V6 2.8L

85 Kaw Vulcan 700cc