RC Running Like Crap!

[9dawgs]

Ok, so I did a search on RC Central on several things like "loosing power", "distributor issues", and "power loss" etc and came up with some things but nothing that seemed to identify the issues I had this morning.  So I'm posting this request for help on both sites.

I'll give a little history to see if anyone else has experienced the same thing.

Truck: 1986 Mex RC 4x4, w/stock 318, 2bbl Holley, 727 auto.

Issue ongoing: Truck will lurch during normal driving on occasion like it's either starved for fuel or having electrical issues. Idles fine

What I've done: Replaced fuel pump & filter, rebuilt carb, replaced plugs, plug wires, dist cap & rotor, treated gas with B12 Chemtool, replaced vacuum lines, replaced coil w/ACCEL Super Stock, been running 93 octane gas in it

The issue seems to come and go.  Then, this morning on the way to work I pulled up to a stop sign a couple of miles away from the house and when I started to go the truck would just creep along at about 3-4 miles per hour no matter how far I pushed down on the gas peddle so I pulled over to the side of the road. The truck seemed to idle ok but it did seem to idle at a lower RPM. I popped the hood to take a quick look to see if I could ID anything obvious but nothing stood out.  I closed the hood and tried to back up but it didn't even have enough power to do that.  It would just rock a little.  So I sat there for a bit with it running and played with the gas peddle and all of a sudden it picked up again.  So I put it in gear and turned around for the house.

The weird thing is when I'd push down on the gas peddle it would be super sluggish and then lurch like a bat out of heck and stay there as long as I kept my foot on the gas.  I did this all the way back to the house.  If I had to stop at a light, it would do the whole 3-4MPH thing again until it would lurch and shoot down the road.  by the time I made it back to my neighborhood it would shut off at the stop signs.  It would start right up again though.  Also when I would give it gas and it would lurch it made a noise like detonation or it almost sounded like a diesel when under power.

I parked it in the driveway and took another car to work. I'm not looking forward to digging in to it tonight as it's hot as crap outside...  Any HELP would be greatly appreciated.

My thoughts are to replace the distributor with an OEM unit first off. The one in it is original equipment and when I replaced the rotor I noticed it was a bit corroded inside around the base of the distributor.  I suspect its from all the water that dumps between the firewall and the hood when it rains.  It's been monsoon season here lately and we get some heavy showers.  I did put a seal between the hood and the valance though to try and prevent that, but just recently.  Let me know what you experts think.  Thanks in advance. :P

[SixGun]

Ryan, (rjtx) turned me on to this on RCC.  Confirmed fixes - cheat sheet.  Helped me.

http://ramchargercentral.com/vehicle-help/confirmed-fixes-cheat-sheet/

[crazzywolfie]

i don't think you would need to go as far as replacing the distributor. was there anything in the carb that was not normal when you rebuilt it? i would probably at last put the stock coil back on. personally i don't trust those accel super stock coils.

[rjtx667]

is this a model that has the lean burn junk in it? I don't do carbs so cant say 

If it is that lean burn junk can cause a mess and go bad. could be ignition?

But yeah follow the cheat guide

[9dawgs]

i don't think you would need to go as far as replacing the distributor. was there anything in the carb that was not normal when you rebuilt it? i would probably at last put the stock coil back on. personally i don't trust those accel super stock coils.

It was doing the lurching thing before I replaced the coil, it was one of the reasons I replaced it.  The only thing abnormal in the carb was charcoal from a bad canister.  I put a clear fuel filter in the vacuum line between the carb & canister to catch the charcoal.

is this a model that has the lean burn junk in it? I don't do carbs so cant say 

If it is that lean burn junk can cause a mess and go bad. could be ignition?

But yeah follow the cheat guide

I think it is the lean burn system.  I've been considering doing a "lean burn delete" as described in RCC.  I did look at the cheat sheet for something similar to my issue but found nothing...  I'll keep looking around.

Can't really do anything with it this afternoon as the 5pm Thunder Showers are blowing through at the moment.  They usually last till dark and are charged with lightning. Good show to watch from the inside.  You don't want to be out in it though.  I've seen too many tourist become charcoal from walking the beach in a storm...or worse, playing golf!

[workgoats]

I doubt this applies but I had a 1970 Fiat with a Holly 2 bbl.  It was staged to open the second barrel after the first was wide open.  The way the carb was made put the least amount of grit in the carb would collect in the primary jet.  It had the same symptoms as what you are having, even to the point of running good part of the time.

I don't see how that would apply to the Dodge carb but it might be worth the time to blow out the primary jet.

[crazzywolfie]

i would probably still put the stock coil back on for piece of mind in the future. now did you blow out the carb with compressed air or something before you reassembled it? maybe some of that charcoal got where it should not be. if you do have the lean burn system and want to replace it you should check out summit racing for the 4 pin ignition system wiring harness. you can get them for about $20 plus shipping.
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/dcc-3690152/overview/

[9dawgs]

i would probably still put the stock coil back on for piece of mind in the future. now did you blow out the carb with compressed air or something before you reassembled it? maybe some of that charcoal got where it should not be. if you do have the lean burn system and want to replace it you should check out summit racing for the 4 pin ignition system wiring harness. you can get them for about $20 plus shipping.
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/dcc-3690152/overview/

With taking out the lean burn system do I have to have a different carb?  It's a completely stock setup.

[crazzywolfie]

different carb for what? if you remove the lean burn system i think you will have to get a different carb.

[9dawgs]

different carb for what? if you remove the lean burn system i think you will have to get a different carb.

Yeah, that's what I was wondering.  The original carb is a Holley 2bbl. Some of the info I've read says you can use the old lean burn carb and others say you need to change it to a "non" lean burn carb so you can have a ported vacuum source for the new distributor...

[crazzywolfie]

ya. you can use the carb but it don't have the ported vacuum port. it will run but i don't think it will run the best it can. now some people say you can use intake vacuum and just adjust the timing accordingly. if you upgrade to the 4 pin ignition system but can't afford a new carb i think you could also just leave the old distributor with no vacuum advance.

[SixGun]

The charcoal cannister might be worth looking into.  Cheap and easy fix.  Can't hurt and may help.  My TBI has been getting crudded up real fast and I was thinking of doing this as well.

http://ramchargercentral.com/vehicle-help/84-prospector-carb-(fixed!!!)/

[crazzywolfie]

he said he installed a clear fuel filter on the charcoal canister line but i am wondering if some charcoal was hiding somewhere and missed  when cleaning things.

[9dawgs]

he said he installed a clear fuel filter on the charcoal canister line but i am wondering if some charcoal was hiding somewhere and missed  when cleaning things.

I don't know, I pulled the carb apart and got out everything I could see.  It looked like it was limited to the throttle body ports.  I cleaned those out pretty good with parts cleaner and compressed air.

I'm seriously thinking of just taking out the lean burn system to see what happens.  I've been dealing with this since I bought the truck last year, that's why I did everything in my first post, it's just gotten to a point where it's not drivable now.

If I did buy a new vac advance distributor from a parts store, any idea what year Dodge I should get that will fit my '86 318? I cant afford the Jeggs or Summit conversion kits, so I'll have to piece my own kit together.

[crazzywolfie]

did you also blow out the charcoal canister line before you hooked it back up? you should be able to get a distributor with vacuum advance for 86 ramcharger. now if you can't afford to spend a lot of money then you don't have to replace the distributor with a vacuum advance version. it will run. its not like you would really have a place to hook up the vacuum advance anyway.

now you could try the HEI distributor on ebay. then just get a 12v coil and some spark plug wires off a magnum engine and you will have got rid of the lean burn ignition system for about $150.