Running, but....

[fj40dave]

Well, the '80 Dasher 1.6na rebuild is running.....pimped GP wiring worked awesome with the manual switch set-up I installed.

But........I'm looking at a few "issues" now:

Brakes are pulsating when I test drove it.......it feels like a vacuum sort of thing versus a warped rotor feel.
I installed the vacuum pump, and I see that it's adjustable in a rotational manner, like the distributor is for timing a gas motor, but why is that?

No headlights, and the lights in general are goofy:
Parking lights selected, I get bumper lights front, and turn signal lights rear.
Headlights selected, I get red lights rear, and same bumper lights (amber) front, no headlights at all.
I'll be rechecking the connections and using compressed air on the fuse panel later today - the interior has a lot of moisture/wet because of bad seals....

Dead spot just off idle:
There's a hesitation between warmed up idle and accelerating.....kinda like what a bad accelerator pump gasket would act like on the gasser carb's....

So.....for the time being.....

the motor runs, but nothing is ever as simple as rebuilding the head, having the IP rebuild along with the injectors, and reassembly!

[TylerDurden]

Brakes: if the pulsing (felt in the pedal) is proportional to wheel speed, gotta be a disk or drum.

Electrical: you can remove the fusebox and take it apart, IIRC... I've seen rust bridges form between the steel pathways.


Accelerator lag: is there a dip in power, or just a delay in increase?

[fj40dave]

Tyler;
Not sure about the speed/brake pulse thing....gotta test drive in the day time (no headlights was scary the other night up & down the block)....but I'll check!

Going to pull that fuse panel and look close at it.....make sure it's not a rust bridge problem.

The fuel thing is a delay....it had plenty of power but there is a "just after you push the throttle" delay...

[82vdub]

You may have a missing ground connection as well that would cause all sorts of funky electrical to go on. Check those while your in behind the fuse panel.

The vacuum pump doesn't need to be keyed to go in only a certain way, just that it meshed properly with the oil pump shaft. Other than that, it doesn't care where it's rotated in the block.

[fj40dave]

You may have a missing ground connection as well that would cause all sorts of funky electrical to go on. Check those while your in behind the fuse panel.

The vacuum pump doesn't need to be keyed to go in only a certain way, just that it meshed properly with the oil pump shaft. Other than that, it doesn't care where it's rotated in the block.

I've been searchin the Bentley I have trying to find if the vacuum pump has a special position....THANK YOU for that tid-bit of information 82vdub!!!!! Day saver!

[TylerDurden]

Going to pull that fuse panel and look close at it.....

If it looks swollen or has bulges, I'd take it apart and clean it up. The swelling could be from rust or frozen water and debris.

They are assembled like a 3D printed circuit board made in layers that are sandwiched between the top and bottom panels, but the traces are actually bent sheet steel. It has been a long time since I took one apart, but that's how I recall it.

[Quantum-man]

Raise the front wheels and remove and inspect the rotors for patches. Then do the same at the back with the drums. Easier to spot on drums.

Check fuses. Could be bad earth at the back too.

[fj40dave]

Brakes worked their way to normal....just needed to be used I guess (the Dasher sat for about 2 months)...

I have power to the headlight sockets, but the bulbs don't illuminate....weird.!.!.!

[82vdub]

I have power to the headlight sockets, but the bulbs don't illuminate....weird.!.!.!

Maybe they're burned out? Have you hotwired them directly using a wire to the + and - terminals of the battery? That's a sure way to tell if the light itself works.

[fj40dave]

I have power to the headlight sockets, but the bulbs don't illuminate....weird.!.!.!

Maybe they're burned out? Have you hotwired them directly using a wire to the + and - terminals of the battery? That's a sure way to tell if the light itself works.

Ya know....I'ma gonn'a try dat!



and be if all four are toast!

[fj40dave]

Ready to scream!

I can not figure out why these dang lights won't work....
I get power through the brown ground wires at the headlights...UGH!

I have power at the large brown wire I cut when I disconnected the orrig GP system....

I just want to take this Dasher to a mechanic and pay for it to be fixed.....

If anyone has a wiring diagram in plain English, I'd love to see where there could be a ground/short at......or a diagram of the fuse panel as well....

Maybe I should talk the owner into pulling the motor and scraping the rest of this dang car!

[Fatmobile]

I get power through the brown ground wires at the headlights...UGH!

I have power at the large brown wire I cut when I disconnected the orrig GP system....

Kinda vague.
Power means voltage?
If you are getting voltage on the ground wire,
it means your ground wire isn't grounded.

Not clear where this large brown wire is installed.

Got a good frame ground cable off the battery?
...not just one going to the starter.

[82vdub]

Did you bypass 100% of the vehicle wiring and hotwire the lights directly?

[fj40dave]

I didn't do anything to the wiring when I did the rebuild and GP modification except cut the brown wire going to the orrig GP buss that was mounted on the side of the battery box (I capped it/sealed it) and I also disconnected the power to the GP relay under the dash.

I tapped a "key on" hot spade on the back of the fuse panel under the dash and installed the switch to manually select the GP relay on.

I have a light in the headlight switch that stay's on when the lights are off.....and I went through and pulled each fuse one-at-a-time, and the light never went out.

I don't have a negative wire going to the vehicle chassis, but the negative wire from the battery goes to a motor/tranny bolt attach point, and another ground wire goes to the valve cover.
I'll make a direct ground to the chassis ASAP!

I had the alternator checked, and it's fine.

I can't make heads or tails outa the wiring diagrams in the Bentleys

The brake lights are illuminating, but not the dimmer driving/rear red lights.

Thank You for thinking about what could be going on....!!!

[Fatmobile]

Get a ground cable to the frame and we'll see how many of these problems are solved.