A Good Day in the East Bay
Posted: Sat Jun 09, 2018 2:07 pm
Greetings IACFers!
It's been awhile since I've posted in depth. My bus, Miss Zora, hasn't been part of the Itinerary Lap for several years. It was a magnificent, annual ritual that I plan to continue from here on out.
For the years in absentia, she has had an annoying intermittent bucking/chugging that would appear under a variety of circumstances that never seemed to add up. Since it started I've replaced the Head Temp Sensor II, upgraded my existing exhaust system (with original parts), replaced the cylinder heads, repaired vacuum and fuel leaks, replaced the coil, the double relay, checked wiring, split open a fuel filter...and on and on. She's been to five different mechanics - 2 in Portland, Oregon, 2 in the San Francisco Bay Area and 1 in Reno. Although each time the mechanics found something that could be the issue and for a while Miss Zora seemed to be cured, the issue would sneak up again out of the blue. Last year I made a journey up to Oregon for the Eclipse, over the Cascades and almost to the California/Nevada border without issue.
For awhile I suspected a loose wire. Simple. The only common thread I could come up with was that it seemed that if I hit a pothole or a significant bump the issue would show up. Sometimes not immediately, sometimes instantaneously but it would almost always resolve enough to make it seem that it was something else. People suggested a clog in the fuel tank and I even had a day where I literally rocked the bus hard to dislodge anything that could've been blocking the outlet.
So, Colin and I started our day sipping coffee, sitting in rickety, peeling, Adirondack chairs in my sunny backyard (he loved it, I wanted it to rain) catching up on each other's lives and adventures.
First order of business was to determine whether there was crap in the gas tank. Fuel filter was good. We emptied the tank using fuel line into buckets stopping occasionally for Colin to blow back into the tank to see if we could dislodge anything that might be floating around. The gas was absolutely clean, nothing came out.
We inspected fuel line - replaced a few inches of inferior stuff with the good stuff. Moved the fuel pump into it's appropriate position and reattached the fuel filter.
I knew the s-boot was cracked (recent discovery) and we started to repair it but after a quick call to the BusLab in Berkeley and an extended errand run by my husband we had a brand new one installed within the hour! Soft and squishy!
Throughout the day we checked a variety of things related to ignition. We found my points were tight. OK, filed and fixed. Replaced the condenser with a nice looking Bosch one. Checked timing. Checked spark. Checked the spark plug wires themselves. Replaced the spark plugs. Took each cylinder out of the running by pulling the spark plug wire...all four were contributing to the shake and shudder. Swapped my "new" coil for my old one. Cleaned connecters with a razor blade - as you do when you work with Colin. Adjusted the fuel/air mixture. Got her purring at idle but she still shuddered and sputtered at high RPMs. We actually started swapping parts between Miss Zora and Naranja since they are both 1977 buses - complete distributor, spark plug wires, etc. - to eliminate potential issues. Still couldn't resolve the problem.
As the sun started to set behind the hill above my house, I brought out a work light. We were not stopping. Colin was determined and admittedly getting crankier. We had been very methodical in our diagnostic approach. Even fantasized about how cool it would be to scope the working valves while the engine was running - not possible but that lead us to thinking how cool it would be if someone would make heat resistance clear valve covers. Anyway...
The sputter/shudder created matching puffs out the tailpipe. Combustion vs. a loss of power?
One of the last things on our list was to check the electrical signal to the fuel injectors. We had a simple test light and rigged up a couple wires. What Colin noticed was that when MZ was revving and ultimately doing her shudder/sputter, the test light would get brighter correspondingly. Huh. Colin said the electricity was looking for a place to go. Ground wire?
He reached in and checked the three ground spades under the intake manifold on the case and found one spade that was loose although it was fully seated. He pulled it out part way for a better, more solid connection and boom! The engine started to run perfectly.
He drove her, I drove her. We got her home and he went to the engine compartment and purposely fucked with that one ground spade again and got the issues we had all day long to repeat. Then he adjusted the spade and the problems cleared up. Holy shit. Really????
Well, I'll take it! And it did validate my theory about something loose in the wiring though!!! I've suggested that for years!!
I do need to get in there and replace that spade and probably many others that are just due.
It took awhile to get to sleep last night because I was so excited. My bus has not been reliable for so long that it was a source of stress rather than pleasure on long road trips.
After 20 years with my girl, Miss Zora lives on!
This is what she likes to do...
Thank you, Colin!!!!
It's been awhile since I've posted in depth. My bus, Miss Zora, hasn't been part of the Itinerary Lap for several years. It was a magnificent, annual ritual that I plan to continue from here on out.
For the years in absentia, she has had an annoying intermittent bucking/chugging that would appear under a variety of circumstances that never seemed to add up. Since it started I've replaced the Head Temp Sensor II, upgraded my existing exhaust system (with original parts), replaced the cylinder heads, repaired vacuum and fuel leaks, replaced the coil, the double relay, checked wiring, split open a fuel filter...and on and on. She's been to five different mechanics - 2 in Portland, Oregon, 2 in the San Francisco Bay Area and 1 in Reno. Although each time the mechanics found something that could be the issue and for a while Miss Zora seemed to be cured, the issue would sneak up again out of the blue. Last year I made a journey up to Oregon for the Eclipse, over the Cascades and almost to the California/Nevada border without issue.
For awhile I suspected a loose wire. Simple. The only common thread I could come up with was that it seemed that if I hit a pothole or a significant bump the issue would show up. Sometimes not immediately, sometimes instantaneously but it would almost always resolve enough to make it seem that it was something else. People suggested a clog in the fuel tank and I even had a day where I literally rocked the bus hard to dislodge anything that could've been blocking the outlet.
So, Colin and I started our day sipping coffee, sitting in rickety, peeling, Adirondack chairs in my sunny backyard (he loved it, I wanted it to rain) catching up on each other's lives and adventures.
First order of business was to determine whether there was crap in the gas tank. Fuel filter was good. We emptied the tank using fuel line into buckets stopping occasionally for Colin to blow back into the tank to see if we could dislodge anything that might be floating around. The gas was absolutely clean, nothing came out.
We inspected fuel line - replaced a few inches of inferior stuff with the good stuff. Moved the fuel pump into it's appropriate position and reattached the fuel filter.
I knew the s-boot was cracked (recent discovery) and we started to repair it but after a quick call to the BusLab in Berkeley and an extended errand run by my husband we had a brand new one installed within the hour! Soft and squishy!
Throughout the day we checked a variety of things related to ignition. We found my points were tight. OK, filed and fixed. Replaced the condenser with a nice looking Bosch one. Checked timing. Checked spark. Checked the spark plug wires themselves. Replaced the spark plugs. Took each cylinder out of the running by pulling the spark plug wire...all four were contributing to the shake and shudder. Swapped my "new" coil for my old one. Cleaned connecters with a razor blade - as you do when you work with Colin. Adjusted the fuel/air mixture. Got her purring at idle but she still shuddered and sputtered at high RPMs. We actually started swapping parts between Miss Zora and Naranja since they are both 1977 buses - complete distributor, spark plug wires, etc. - to eliminate potential issues. Still couldn't resolve the problem.
As the sun started to set behind the hill above my house, I brought out a work light. We were not stopping. Colin was determined and admittedly getting crankier. We had been very methodical in our diagnostic approach. Even fantasized about how cool it would be to scope the working valves while the engine was running - not possible but that lead us to thinking how cool it would be if someone would make heat resistance clear valve covers. Anyway...
The sputter/shudder created matching puffs out the tailpipe. Combustion vs. a loss of power?
One of the last things on our list was to check the electrical signal to the fuel injectors. We had a simple test light and rigged up a couple wires. What Colin noticed was that when MZ was revving and ultimately doing her shudder/sputter, the test light would get brighter correspondingly. Huh. Colin said the electricity was looking for a place to go. Ground wire?
He reached in and checked the three ground spades under the intake manifold on the case and found one spade that was loose although it was fully seated. He pulled it out part way for a better, more solid connection and boom! The engine started to run perfectly.
He drove her, I drove her. We got her home and he went to the engine compartment and purposely fucked with that one ground spade again and got the issues we had all day long to repeat. Then he adjusted the spade and the problems cleared up. Holy shit. Really????
Well, I'll take it! And it did validate my theory about something loose in the wiring though!!! I've suggested that for years!!
I do need to get in there and replace that spade and probably many others that are just due.
It took awhile to get to sleep last night because I was so excited. My bus has not been reliable for so long that it was a source of stress rather than pleasure on long road trips.
After 20 years with my girl, Miss Zora lives on!
This is what she likes to do...
Thank you, Colin!!!!