Vilefly, I’ll try and follow your suggestions.
Since I got the car I have used it to go to work. It’s about 45 miles depending on route each way. 95% highway cruising. Traffic often goes 75-80 for about 20 miles. Then about 55-60 the rest of the way. There are a couple miles at the start and end of city driving so. There is a long grade about 6-7 miles. I don’t know the elevation but traffic still goes 75+ up it. The car could do this easy and I was a left lane cruiser everyday. So it got lots of fast lane use for the first 6k miles. Then the issues started. It never over heated the gage stayed dead center, it never burn or lost oil, never used coolant. Basically a perfect highway cruiser. I was very happy with it.
Then it developed a miss, slight but it caused a lack of power and the converter and trans acted up. Dropping out of lock up then out of OD. I thought the trans was the issue. I went to 5 well known shops and all wanted expensive trans repairs. However I was suspicious since I was driving the car everyday and had begun knowing it. So I asked if this would definitely fix the issue. They all said the trans was the issue but said the motor was fine. I wasn’t buying this besides there was no guarantee they problem would be fixed.
So I looked for good shops with OBD 1 scanners. Few had them. Some wanted to charge me to upgrade their stuff. Forget it. I finally found the shop I’m at. He also does trans. He had it for a day and really flogged it. He said the trans was perfect but there were issues with the motor.
Long story short, step by step issues were addressed before a really complete scan of the motor operating was done. The Opti Spark was full of oil and caused ignition issues. Bad oil seal. It was replaced with new old stock unit. Along with wires and plugs.
And so on, everything was done with discussion of why this or that needed fixing. Bottom line is today there is nothing showing on his scans and mine using EEHACK except for low manifold vac.
There is no real anti freeze smell, no oil smoke, just a random puttering in the right exhaust. Scans show the front cyl and the back two on the right bank dead rich. BLM maxed out. The plugs on the right bank are all fluffy black but not packed. We have replaced them three times already.
So we spent an hour discussing where to go. I have to give him credit for being patient with me and not over charging me. I know he needs to make a living so his time is of value. I have no choice but have someone do my work as I simply do not have a place to work on cars.
I’m at a loss now so depending on others who really know this system. I’m trying to learn too. In some cases tests simply need to not be done and just fix a suspected problem. Certainly not the best way but economics enter too. I hate this but it’s less Expensive to just do it and look at the cause afterward. Certainly a poor way of doing things.
If you scan this thing with a parts store scanner it will show nothing wrong. It takes something that scans deeper so enter the SnapOn or Matco or EEHACK. And now we see an issue. Every attempt has failed to fix this. Certainly some were unnecessary. I know this and have to accept this.
We now are at perhaps what should have been done earlier position. Were it a carb the manifold gaskets would have been replaced early on....I think. I would have done this myself based on carb experience.
So maybe by late tomorrow I’ll know what happens. Even this I still have misgivings. I can’t imagine real hard parts failing this way. The switching side for side of the problem keeps coming up. But now with the intake issue “fixed” it may point some other direction.
I don’t like making long post but I like to present the issue as complete as possible.
I did try to post my scans but I simply can’t from my iPad and down here on the boat our WIFI is very unstable. I’ll take my laptop up to my sons this weekend and see if I can work something out.
I know y’all are trying to help out so thanks again. I’m listening ...reading.
Byron

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