ok i need some basic help with my engine since im new to working on engines.

some symptoms,

the engine does not feel strong. or at least not what it should be,
it seems to be running rich, alot of sut out the exhaust
there is also a bubling hollow sounds from the exhaust, mostly from the right side. (and its not the good sounds like a aggresive cam, it sounds bad like its misfiring)

also some things to note. its a fuel injected 5.0 302 out of an 89 mustang
its wired through a painless wireing kit.

like i said i dont know much in this department, what should i look for, test or do first.
compression test,
check the timing,
maybe spark wires are out of order???? etc

 

firing order is 15426378. you can check that first. are the injectors dumping too much fuel?

 

ok so what do i do with that firing order? how do i check it?

also i do have 24lb injectors, which the stock were 19, but i do also have the maf sensor calibrated to 24, so that should be fine, i guess

 

turn the crank to TDC (top dead center)(theres a mark on the harmonic balancer, it sohuld be lined up with the needle), take off ur distributor cap and watever spark plug wire its point to should be #1. then go around in a counterclockwise direction and it should be 15426378. and the cylinders go like this: driver side front-most cylinder is #1 . then drivers side next closer cylinder is #2. so the drivers side is 1234 and the passenger is 5678. so whatever wire the distributor rotor is pointing at is the cylinder the other side of the wire should go to.

 

ok i get everything your saying except this part
"turn the crank to TDC (top dead center)(theres a mark on the harmonic balancer, it sohuld be lined up with the needle"

i understand the concept, but dont know how to turn the crank, and where the harmonic balancer is etc. any pics you can show me, so i have an idea what to look for, or how to do it, do i need any special tools?

also seems your pretty knowledgable, is it hard to do a manual compression check?

 

the harmonic balancer is the big washer-type looking thing on the crankshaft. it has a pully bolted to it. on the perimiter, there is marks with numbers on it. to turn the crank over, you can spin it by turning the fan(if you have one, and it will be easy to turn it over if the spark plugs are out)

 

The harmonic balancer is right behind, connected to the bottom pulley; it connects to your crank shaft. The easiest ways to turn it to TDC is by using a rachet. There are markings on the balancer.

 

the yellow arrows point to the harmonic balancer (with the pulley bolted to it) the red point to where the needle should be as a refference point to where TDC is. so look at your engine at see how close TDC is to the red arrow. if its not exactly lined up, then turn it till it gets there.

 

awesome thanks guys esp for the quick responses, i will be back at my shop in the next day or so, so ill check it out then, i will keep you posted as to my findings.

also tru66gt nice engine pic. is that your engine or just a pic on the internet?

 

its off google. mine will look WAY better than that one. no srsly, im not into ford blue. thats why im painting my block and heads black to match the rest of the car when i paint it.