22r barely runs after doing valve cover gasket
12-28-2021, 11:08 AM
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22r barely runs after doing valve cover gasket
My 22r leaks like heck so I did a quick valve cover gasket change to slow it a little. I disconnected the vacuum lines to the air cleaner, the throttle cable bracket and the spark plug wires. I put everything back exactly as it was...as far as I know.
When I went to start it again, it misfired and shook like crazy, not really holding an idle and quickly flooding itself to the point of not even turning over again until things dried up. When this happens I can see dampness around the seams of the carb bowl area. It seemed like timing was off or that one cylinder wasn't firing. It seems to run very rich, smelling like gas and puffing lots of smoke through the exhaust. The downpipe flange seam even smokes and looks a bit damp.
After testing for spark, quadruple checking plug wires on the dizzy, resetting the carb screws to factory spec (also tried where it had been which was 4 turns out on the mixture) and looking over all the vac lines 100 times, I gave up for the time being and didn't touch it for a month or so. Today I tried it again and it actually held a very high idle. It didn't sound great but it was enough for me to do a vac leak test with carb cleaner. Didn't seem to do anything except maybe nudge the idle down a tiny bit. Still, couldn't find anything and most of the lines are relatively new since a shop replaced the carb right when I got the truck 2.5 years ago.
But with a smoother idle that didn't seem to be misfiring, I tried driving around the block. Under load it seems to make a knock sound once every couple of seconds. It really doesn't like any more than 1/4 throttle and won't give me anything when I try other than that knock.
I'm just baffled at what could've happened when I changed that gasket. You can probably tell I've only been dabbling in working on cars for a couple of years. I suspect it's a carb issue and my next objective is to take off that top choke plate thing to get in there and clean it. I'd also like to just replace all carb-related vac lines since it's a cheap thing to try, but I'm not optimistic.
Thoughts?
When I went to start it again, it misfired and shook like crazy, not really holding an idle and quickly flooding itself to the point of not even turning over again until things dried up. When this happens I can see dampness around the seams of the carb bowl area. It seemed like timing was off or that one cylinder wasn't firing. It seems to run very rich, smelling like gas and puffing lots of smoke through the exhaust. The downpipe flange seam even smokes and looks a bit damp.
After testing for spark, quadruple checking plug wires on the dizzy, resetting the carb screws to factory spec (also tried where it had been which was 4 turns out on the mixture) and looking over all the vac lines 100 times, I gave up for the time being and didn't touch it for a month or so. Today I tried it again and it actually held a very high idle. It didn't sound great but it was enough for me to do a vac leak test with carb cleaner. Didn't seem to do anything except maybe nudge the idle down a tiny bit. Still, couldn't find anything and most of the lines are relatively new since a shop replaced the carb right when I got the truck 2.5 years ago.
But with a smoother idle that didn't seem to be misfiring, I tried driving around the block. Under load it seems to make a knock sound once every couple of seconds. It really doesn't like any more than 1/4 throttle and won't give me anything when I try other than that knock.
I'm just baffled at what could've happened when I changed that gasket. You can probably tell I've only been dabbling in working on cars for a couple of years. I suspect it's a carb issue and my next objective is to take off that top choke plate thing to get in there and clean it. I'd also like to just replace all carb-related vac lines since it's a cheap thing to try, but I'm not optimistic.
Thoughts?
Last edited by kabobkabobkabob; 12-28-2021 at 11:09 AM.
12-28-2021, 11:50 AM
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Did you torque the little acorn nuts that hold the valve cover on correctly? If you over-do them, they can interfere with the valves. Speaking of, did you set the valve lash while you had the cover off?
Did you make certain you put the PCV back in right side up? Don't laugh, I happen to know from experience it can happen <ahem>.
Did you compare the vacuum lines with the little sticker on the inside of the hood, top left when it's open? That's the correct routing of ALL the vacuum lines for your truck.
Did you try replacing the distributor cap and rotor? Did you check the timing?
Did you use OEM plugs when you replaced them? Check the gaps? Not always correct out of the box.
All I can think of right ff the bat. Pay special attention to the vacuum lines that go to/from the carb. They can mess things up pretty badly. Again, check the sticker I mentioned.
Good luck!
Pat☺
Did you make certain you put the PCV back in right side up? Don't laugh, I happen to know from experience it can happen <ahem>.
Did you compare the vacuum lines with the little sticker on the inside of the hood, top left when it's open? That's the correct routing of ALL the vacuum lines for your truck.
Did you try replacing the distributor cap and rotor? Did you check the timing?
Did you use OEM plugs when you replaced them? Check the gaps? Not always correct out of the box.
All I can think of right ff the bat. Pay special attention to the vacuum lines that go to/from the carb. They can mess things up pretty badly. Again, check the sticker I mentioned.
Good luck!
Pat☺
12-28-2021, 02:43 PM
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I suspect the acorn nuts were too tight but loosening them did not change anything. I did not set valve lash. The only thing I touched was the timing chain to take a look at the guides (guide is starting to break so I'll have to get into that soon. But for what it's worth the majority of the guide was still there and holding strong). It ran perfectly before all this.
PCV has to be in correctly since the bottom and top fittings are different sizes. I also checked to make sure it isn't stuck closed.
I've checked the vacuum diagrams, both on the hood and online but nothing stands out. When I disconnected the lines I did so in a way that prevented mixing them up (air cleaner ones were disconnected male/female accordingly). There's one open vacuum fitting on the carb with nothing attached to it but it's always been that way.
Distributor & rotor are both quite new and I did make sure they are still clean.
Plugs are generic but it ran great with them before. I tried a new set of the same brand to no avail.
I should really get a timing light. Is it possible for timing to have changed at all with how few things I touched to do this?
Cheers.
PCV has to be in correctly since the bottom and top fittings are different sizes. I also checked to make sure it isn't stuck closed.
I've checked the vacuum diagrams, both on the hood and online but nothing stands out. When I disconnected the lines I did so in a way that prevented mixing them up (air cleaner ones were disconnected male/female accordingly). There's one open vacuum fitting on the carb with nothing attached to it but it's always been that way.
Distributor & rotor are both quite new and I did make sure they are still clean.
Plugs are generic but it ran great with them before. I tried a new set of the same brand to no avail.
I should really get a timing light. Is it possible for timing to have changed at all with how few things I touched to do this?
Cheers.
Last edited by kabobkabobkabob; 12-28-2021 at 02:44 PM.
12-29-2021, 05:30 PM
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I suspect the acorn nuts were too tight but loosening them did not change anything. I did not set valve lash. The only thing I touched was the timing chain to take a look at the guides (guide is starting to break so I'll have to get into that soon. But for what it's worth the majority of the guide was still there and holding strong). It ran perfectly before all this.
PCV has to be in correctly since the bottom and top fittings are different sizes. I also checked to make sure it isn't stuck closed.
I've checked the vacuum diagrams, both on the hood and online but nothing stands out. When I disconnected the lines I did so in a way that prevented mixing them up (air cleaner ones were disconnected male/female accordingly). There's one open vacuum fitting on the carb with nothing attached to it but it's always been that way.
Distributor & rotor are both quite new and I did make sure they are still clean.
Plugs are generic but it ran great with them before. I tried a new set of the same brand to no avail.
I should really get a timing light. Is it possible for timing to have changed at all with how few things I touched to do this?
Cheers.
PCV has to be in correctly since the bottom and top fittings are different sizes. I also checked to make sure it isn't stuck closed.
I've checked the vacuum diagrams, both on the hood and online but nothing stands out. When I disconnected the lines I did so in a way that prevented mixing them up (air cleaner ones were disconnected male/female accordingly). There's one open vacuum fitting on the carb with nothing attached to it but it's always been that way.
Distributor & rotor are both quite new and I did make sure they are still clean.
Plugs are generic but it ran great with them before. I tried a new set of the same brand to no avail.
I should really get a timing light. Is it possible for timing to have changed at all with how few things I touched to do this?
Cheers.
if you spray starting fluid around your vacuum lines you'll likely find a leak. Just stay away from spark plug wires and distributor or you'll have a fire.
an unlit propane bottle works too, when you are near the leak the engine will rev up.
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