semoorma

Got the value covers on, got the upper intake on, had to put o rings on the injectors - had professional help from local mechanic. Gad, did the man (kip) know his business I'd never got it done without him. Started right up, Needs a fine tune job and my man said I should double up on the exhaust header gaskets. Drove it down the road after kip left pulling back into the garage I notice a wet trail following the car in. Put her back on the jacks and looked. Looks like the power steering arm has a gasket behind a big bolt on the drivers side has fallen apart. Can I just unscrew the bolt and replace the gasket? Could it be that simple for simple ole me?

wbrockstar

If its the large one you're referring to,you might wanna leave it alone or see if a local shop can do it.The one Im thinking about is used for the yoke adjustment & if you just simply remove it,youll probably mess something up.I don't even know how/why its adjusted,but do more research before you touch it.

semoorma

Thanks for your reply and interest. Had to replace the rack & pinion assembly plus get alignment done. I thought my boat was a hole I poured money down.....

Car bogs down on when I push on the gas and hiccups going down the road. I did slowly push the peddle to the metal and the car zoomed up pretty quick. From what I read in the forum here a new gas tank is recommended. Guess I'm going get a code reader so I know what the whole system is doing. Gotta start saving those quarters.. In the mean time I'll reassemble the interior and trouble shooting 3 of the power windows that don't work.

wbrockstar

Don't waste your money on a scanner unless you just want one.You can pull codes with nothing more than a short jumper wire and a test light.If your car was a 89+ model,you wouldn't even need a test light,but since all 86-88 Foxbodys didnt come equipped with a check engine light from the factory,the only means the ecm has for flashing codes out is through a scanner or test light.
:Instructions:
Once you locate the diagnostic port & the STI terminal,run a jumper wire from the STI terminal to the Signal Return terminal then run a test light from the positive battery terminal to the STO terminal.Make sure the ac is turned off,the engine is at operating temp and the transmission is in neutral (5 speed) park (auto),then wedge something between the driver seat and the clutch pedal
to keep it to the floor.Turn the key on/engine off and the test light will begin flashing the codes out,if any.If there are no codes,the ecm will flash code 11,which means "system passed".If the test doesn't begin when you turn the key on,turn the key off,move one end of the jumper wire from the Signal Return terminal to the negative battery terminal then turn the key on again & the test should now begin.
"Special Note"
Make sure you use the correct terminal for the STI terminal and not the hood light terminal.If you connect the jumper wire to the hood light terminal instead of the STI terminal, a trace on the ecm circuit board will get fried as soon as you push the clutch pedal down then turn the key to start.The hood light terminal wire is black/orange, so make sure you don't connect the jumper to this color wire.
The diagram below shows several connection methods to run the tests,but the one you need to use is the diagram in the upper/left corner.

BTW - whats your reasoning for buying a new gas tank??

**UPDATED INFO*
I added the following link which is step by step instructions on how to pull koeo & koer
codes and how to do a cylinder balance test.

http://sbftech.com/index.php/topic,2471.0.html

semoorma

Thanks WB. I gotta digest what you've shared. Looks like you saved me a bunch of money. My thinking on the new gas tank was all the comments I found regarding the engine bogging down with a major cause being the gas tank - baffle falling apart, old pump, a host of things that seemed to relate to my engine. It is 30 years old and looks awfully corroded. Comments, advise and suggestions always welcome.

wbrockstar

By all means replace it if its in that bad of shape,especially if the baffle has broken loose from the tank.If funds are low & youre willing to do the work of removing it,Pull-A-Part might have some 86-93 4cyl Mustangs to get a tank from.The 2.3 & 5.0 models use the same tank & pump.Their site has a car inventory list,so you can see if any of those models are on their yard before you go. Inspect the fuel pump hanger & fuel gauge sending unit also.The metal supply pipe,on the fuel pump hanger that the fuel pump rubber S hose connects to,has been known to crack which causes a loss of fuel pressure.If your fuel gauge isnt working or seems like its not reading correctly,test the sender/float assembly with a multimeter.Lift the float to its highest point to read the full ohms value and drop it to its lowest point to read its empty ohms value. It should match the values below.
Empty= 22.5 ohms
Full= 145 ohms

The stock pump output is 88lph.If you don't plan on doing any mods,a 110lph pump will work fine.If mods are in your future, a 190, 255lph is needed.If you haven't done it already, make sure to replace the fuel filter,mounted under the car,passenger side.
A fuel pressure gauge is a good investment too.You can mount it on the Schrader valve which is a few inches from the fuel rail/stainless fuel hose connection point.It'll
keep you from having to run to the parts store, to rent a fuel pressure test kit,everytime an efi issue pops up that requires fuel pressure testing as a trouble shooting procedure.Where the bogging is concerned,many things can cause it.Remove the vacuum hose from the fuel pressure regulator,with the engine idling, & check the inside of the hose for wet fuel or an odor of fuel and make sure fuel isnt seeping out of the regulator port too.Either condition indicates the regulator is leaking fuel into the intake through the vacuum hose.This will cause a excessively rich fuel mixture and bogging.It may/may not cause rich (42/92) codes.

You can do quite a few mods while still retaining the SD(speed density) system,but if you step up to a aftermarket camshaft,a maf conversion will be mandatory,so keep this in mind if/when you decide to take the plunge.

semoorma

Good stuff and suggestions, thanks. Now again, I gotta digest all the knowledge you're sharing with me. Right now, I think its the gas tank first as it looks so ratty. Did do a maf to a bbk 65mm, don't think a cam is in the picture as taking everything apart again is just too daunting for this ole man. Just want to get the beast up and running for the late Fall cruising with the top down. While I'm at it another question for you. I put shorty BBK exhaust headers on and a mechanic suggest I double up on the exhaust gaskets because there's a tendency for them to leak (which one port on the passenger side is.) I used the gaskets that came with the heads - does his suggestion makes sense to you?

wbrockstar

Ive personally never tried running two gaskets on each header,but I guess its worth a try.Copper gaskets work good too since they crush easier than a regular gasket & they can also be re-used.
Its always made me wonder why oem parts never seem to cause any issues while most aftermarket parts do.Example: the oem exhaust manifolds have a flange for each runner and they never require you to pry on a runner to get the bolt holes to line up,they never leak & the bolts never come loose.
Aftermarket headers,with individual flanges or one long flange,oftentimes require you to pry them in place for hole alignment and retighten the bolts after a few heat cycles,once theyve been installed/removed/ reinstalled a few times.Future bolt tightening is usually required too after they've been reinstalled and went through a few heat cycles.You can also buy locking header bolts too.You install the bolt and torque it to spec,then push a ice cream cone shaped locking tab (with a hex shaped hole in it) over the bolt then push a clip over the bolt to keep the tab secure.When the bolt tries to loosen and the triangle shaped portion hits the runner,it'll prevent the bolt from turning any
more.

semoorma

The guy at LMR convinced me to do the copper and those fancy bolts. Will be here around the 11th. Gas tanks are on back order won't be available until November. will keep you advised.

wbrockstar

Good luck on it.Keep us posted & we'll be here if you need more help.WBRock