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cout
12-22-2010, 02:31 AM
Been meaning to start a project log for a while.

I bought an '89 Turbo Plymouth Voyager from tsiconquest88:

http://www.turbo-mopar.com/forums/showthread.php?40485-89-Turbo-voyager-5-speed...&highlight=


http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5170/5281824447_df5306dc81_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5281824447/) http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5243/5281824333_7443d0c6f1_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5281824333/) http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5046/5282425506_a06d207c81_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5282425506/) http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5049/5282425330_10d106222c_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5282425330/)

Had the van shipped from NY to SC. I don't think my neighbors knew what was going on; the truck it came on was longer than my yard! Wish I'd taken pictures, but I didn't think about it.

Joe sold the van partly because there was a short and it was turning out to be more trouble than it was worth to try and track it down. Since I've wanted one of these cars ever since I was in high school, I had high hopes that my numskull determination would succeed where technical experience had not.

Turns out I was right, because a few days and numerous wire snips later, I had tracked the problem down to a wire that was pinched between the fuel tank and the frame. Dropped the fuel tank and crimped a new section of wire in place. Then I used some wire nuts to put the harness back together in some meaningful fashion, and the car cranked right up!

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5002/5246636838_1341ceef00_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246636838/) http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5121/5246037617_30b049185f_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246037617/) http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5287/5246641738_d9e79cd65c_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246641738/)

Obviously this isn't the right way to put a harness back together, and it turned out to bite me. But that story will have to wait for another time.

cout
12-23-2010, 09:55 AM
First step was to start cleaning up the engine bay. Scrubbed off multiple layers of gunk to reveal that the transmission is in fact made of metal and not carbon. Replaced the PCV valve and added a breather element (but no catch can yet, and still using one of those cheap plastic valves from the parts store). Replaced the vacuum lines and ran them in such a way that they no longer cross each other:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5122/5246643836_d1aeb581c9.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246643836/)

The hoses are leftover blue hoses from HoseTechniques that I had purchased to replace the rats' nest in my rx7.

Took the electrical tape off one of the spark plug wires and realized that this is a problem waiting to happen:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5004/5246648710_84012ac00a.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246648710/)

It was actually taped on there just right, but after taking the wires off I couldn't ever get them back on the same way, so the car was misfiring like crazy. Since the distributor cap has had the spade-style connectors replaced with push-on connectors, nobody in town had wires that would fit, leaving me with the choice of replacing the cap, ordering cables online, or building my own. I went with building my own:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5008/5246052673_b101e4383e.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246052673/)

Good thing, too, since one evening while driving home, the wire from the ignition coil to the distributor came loose and got chewed into pieces by the timing belt. I still had all the pieces I needed to repair it, since the DIY kits in the store are for V8 engines. I had no lights or flares, and since I was working on the ignition, the battery was disconnected, which meant no hazards either. A police officer finally stopped and asked if I needed a tow. When I explained the problem and said I was almost done, he sat in his car behind me with lights flashing so I was good and visible to traffic on the interstate.

Also none of the kits fit quite right on my distributor cap, so I had to snip each connector to make it fit. First I snipped it short so the connector was fully inside the boot. Next I bent the connector open and snipped about 1/16" or 1/8" off, then bent it back into a cylinder shape (so the radius decreased enough to fit snugly on the post).

The boots are sorta hard to put on without lubricant, but it turns out that rubbing the wire down with engine oil works great. I didn't have any oil on hand, but there was plenty in the engine!

The officer gave me kudos and asked me if I do this for a living. Nope, I'm a programmer by trade; I just do this for fun. :)

cout
12-24-2010, 06:06 PM
I found a 2nd gen Caravan Sport at the junkyard that had a towing receiver. Grabbed the receiver and the sway bar and some other miscellaneous parts for a combined cost of $50. I haven't put the sway bar on yet (no hardware to mount it to the axle), but when my muffler came loose I figured it was a good time to install it and re-do the exhaust at the same time:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5206/5246657642_c207927896_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246657642/) http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5042/5246835946_fd61b98326_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246835946/) http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5249/5246836576_cee128b123_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246836576/) http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5165/5246235461_3014568082_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246235461/) http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5083/5246837904_8debabb557_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246837904/)

The exhaust had come loose one day when I went over a bump too hard. No big deal, since the exhaust piping was routed underneath the fuel tank rather than beside it, and I really didn't like that for everyday driving. A lot of the pieces had rusted from being up north. We tried to weld together what we could, but we really just didn't have the parts we needed to do it right (and the auto parts store was out of the 2.5" pieces we needed).

In the end we got it together, but still not quite right, because the exhaust came undone again and this time got completely bent out of shape when I hit a speed bump in a parking garage.

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5202/5246262121_2fdb73c9b3_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246262121/)

It's still not quite right because I can still hear the exhaust piping hit whenever I go over a bump, but all the exhaust pipes are new now and clamped tightly.

Once I get all the pieces cut to the right length I will consider welding them instead of using clamps.

austinlarg
12-26-2010, 01:34 AM
Haha cout reading your log brings back of memories of the countless times my old 300zx broke down and I was stuck on the side of the freeway in pitch black dark fixing it. Good stuff.

cout
12-27-2010, 10:07 AM
Thanks, austinlarg :) Getting stranded was really my own doing; the minivan wasn't really road-worthy yet, but I really wanted to drive her around, because she's so much more fun to drive than my truck.

Before all the electrical and exhaust problems started, I drove the minivan up to CMP for the LeMons South Fall (http://www.24hoursoflemons.com/southfall2010.aspx) race. There's nothing like sleeping on a regular size twin bed mattress in the back of a minivan; for waking up feeling rested, it beats tent camping any day. No good pics of the van at the track, but this pic (from under the hood of our mx3) says it all:

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4085/5054636904_9af962c9ca.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5054636904/)

We had known about the car's brake problem for months, but it wasn't until the night before the race that it occurred to us to change the master cylinder. That meant sourcing a master cylinder on the morning of the race for a car that was really only ever popular in Canada (we eventually found a similar one in a junkyard 2 hours away and used a sawzall to "make it fit").

We drove for not even three hours before our 200hp jpspec motor gave out (bearings?). Good thing I brought this spare Probe GT motor (only 170hp, though) in the back of the minivan:

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4149/5054645536_e78c2a6e8c.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5054645536/)

You can read the whole story here:

http://www.mx-3.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=46&t=73513&start=0 (cached (http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:hbYvs-aV94QJ:www.mx-3.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php%3Ff%3D46%26t%3D73513%26start%3D0+sit e:mx-3.com+lemons&cd=9&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us))

1BADVAN
12-27-2010, 10:41 AM
looks like a good project start! I love the Minivans!

Vigo
12-30-2010, 10:36 PM
(no hardware to mount it to the axle)

2 3/4" exhaust clamps from the parts store.

http://i408.photobucket.com/albums/pp167/StraX22/P1000026Medium.jpg

Nice project.

tsiconquest88
01-04-2011, 11:47 PM
Yea, as i said i used accel's but i hated them for the obvious reason of needing the stupid electircal tape there temporarily due to the boots that came with the accels not being right and i re-used the boots off my stock style spade NGK wires. I used the elec tape simply till i bought better aftermarket wires. There is tons of wires you could of bought or even other aftermarket DIY wires that would have worked so you didnt have to use the spade junk. But whichever those blue ones look good too, i didnt get to put nicer wires on as i had been chasing the electrical issue it had and didnt care to change the plug wies yet. The elec tape just kept water off the poor fitting boots since the van didnt have the splash shield on the distrib. It was broke and ripped off when i got it and the screws were locked up and stripped and i hadnt bothered to drill them out yet.
Either way glad your making progress with it. Keep the pics and re-build comming!!!

cout
01-05-2011, 01:44 AM
Actually I kept the cap, partially because I couldn't get it off and partially because of your recommendation against the spade connectors. The problem with the yellow wires was that 1) the connectors were _slightly_ too big for the posts and 2) the boots were too short, so the spark was jumping to the engine block. With the wires I've built (also Accel wires) I have fixed both of those problems.

When I first put them on I didn't care much for the L-shaped connectors/boots, but they do fit nicely. I found out later that one of the race shops in town carries the straight connectors like you had, but as I had already put the effort into getting these to fit, I stuck with them.

When I put the wires together I did think I had the wrong boots. This is because, for the DIY wires that Advance here carries, the connector sticks out slightly from the boot. But the cap is built in such a way that the connector needs to be slightly _inside_ the boot. The problem, then, isn't with the boot, but with the connector. I solved the problem by cutting the connector shorter (by about 1/2" or so). As I mentioned before, the connector was still to large a diameter for the post, so I also bent it out, cut a bit off one side, and bent it back into a circle, effectively reducing the diameter. Once I modified the connectors, the boots fit on quite snug.

Also FYI it turns out that a TV coax cable stripper works great for spark plug wires. Something else I just "happened" to have with me when I broke down.

tsiconquest88
01-05-2011, 08:01 AM
Yea i already typed that the wires sucked lol. But i was just saying you didnt need to change the cap. Personally those 90 degree boots didnt look to bad that you have on the cap in the one pics. And those blue wires are accel? Look like something else. I didnt know accel made anything but the yellow's. I was going to do some MSD red's to replace those ---- yellow's.

And yes those gold terminals that were in my accel kit were POS's to say the least. They fit like ---- and like i said why i had used elec tape temporarily to stop the arching at the boots!!! Until i got around to getting the msd wire kit. The electrical wire issue happened like a week after i did the wires. I had been all up and down those fuel pump wires!!!! EXCEPT the damn spot where the wires were apparently pinched at the tank. I wasnt even about to drop the tank again. Didnt feel like it or care to, to see if there was an issue there cus i figured what was the odds of there being an issue in that one foot area i didnt see. I was able to see back pretty far with the access cut i made to check above the tank to look so i didnt have to drop the tank and under the van as far as i could see/feel. I did notice the wires were a little tight under there at the tank to body area, but it had always been like that even before i put the walbro in. So either the stock pump had been replaced prior sometime, or It has always been pinched there. I had noticed it sometime after i got the van when i was under it checking everything out and all for anything i didnt see when i looked it over when buying it. Seen how the wires went up in there (like any other van) but didnt know why they were so tight right there at the tank. But didnt care, assumed maybe there was a clip up there for them or soemthing above the tank. 2 years or so late-r 2 tank drops, and it still was fine till that electrical issue happened.

cout
01-12-2011, 12:35 AM
Thanks, Vigo! I don't think anyone carries that size in town, so I guess I'll have to order online?

Yes, the blue wires are Accel. If I ever get a chance I'll try to take some better pictures.

cout
01-12-2011, 12:56 AM
After the race was when the electrical gremlins REALLY started to get to me. First, the hack job I had done on the wiring backfired when the wingnuts came loose on me:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5125/5246650136_87c536d821.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246650136/)

Then the alternator stopped charging and I couldn't figure out why (http://www.turbo-mopar.com/forums/showthread.php?54952-Erratically-overcharging-and-undercharging&highlight=). I replaced the alternator:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5163/5246286295_acb8051bb8.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246286295/)

but it didn't solve the problem, and now the belt squeals like a baby pig.

Next I tried hooking up an external regulator. I wanted to make sure I had it hooked up right before I hooked it up permanently, so I used alligator clips:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5043/5246864588_fd66f3eba6_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246864588/)

I guess I didn't have it hooked up right.

turbovanmanČ
01-12-2011, 02:54 AM
2 3/4" exhaust clamps from the parts store.

http://i408.photobucket.com/albums/pp167/StraX22/P1000026Medium.jpg

Nice project.

You need to rotate the bar so the end links are parallel when its resting on its own weight, empty.


After the race was when the electrical gremlins REALLY started to get to me. First, the hack job I had done on the wiring backfired when the wingnuts came loose on me:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5125/5246650136_87c536d821.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246650136/)

Then the alternator stopped charging and I couldn't figure out why (http://www.turbo-mopar.com/forums/showthread.php?54952-Erratically-overcharging-and-undercharging&highlight=). I replaced the alternator:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5163/5246286295_acb8051bb8.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246286295/)

but it didn't solve the problem, and now the belt squeals like a baby pig.

Next I tried hooking up an external regulator. I wanted to make sure I had it hooked up right before I hooked it up permanently, so I used alligator clips:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5043/5246864588_fd66f3eba6_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246864588/)

I guess I didn't have it hooked up right.

The SMEC controls the charging, so to test the alt, you need an amp meter. Disconnect the 2 small wires at the alt, these are the field wires, now hook the top one to power then hook up your meter, start the van, hook the lower field terminal to ground, you should get 100 amps or so, DON'T do this for very long or you'll fry the alt, so if you get amperage and 14-15 volts, the alt is good. So check the wiring and if good, replace the SMEC or run an external reg.

I sell decent wires for the stock cap, the dist terminals are very heavy duty and don't wear out.

Great project, van's rock, :partywoot:

cout
01-12-2011, 11:15 AM
During my final voltage regulator experiment, I noticed a spark jump near the fuel rail. Next step, then, was to repair all the faulty wiring in the car. Before I got very far with that, the accordion-style intake literally fell apart in my hands, and I found this lodged near the turbo:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5166/5246241833_c5c053b595_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246241833/) http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5166/5246242837_e88a69a972_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246242837/)

I guess that explains some of the sounds I couldn't explain.

turbovanmanČ
01-12-2011, 03:13 PM
During my final voltage regulator experiment, I noticed a spark jump near the fuel rail. Next step, then, was to repair all the faulty wiring in the car. Before I got very far with that, the accordion-style intake literally fell apart in my hands, and I found this lodged near the turbo:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5166/5246241833_c5c053b595_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246241833/) http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5166/5246242837_e88a69a972_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246242837/)

I guess that explains some of the sounds I couldn't explain.

Damn, lucky that didn't do any turbo damage, :banghead:

cout
01-13-2011, 12:03 AM
Damn, lucky that didn't do any turbo damage, :banghead:

No kidding! At least I now know where socks go when they don't come out of the dryer: they go through a spacetime vortex and get eaten by someone's turbo!

cout
01-13-2011, 12:25 AM
So like I said, the next step was to fix all the wiring problems I could find. No frayed wire was to be left un-heatshrinked. And I wanted to fix this mess and do it right:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5006/5246267087_43423a40ea.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246267087/)

First step was to sit down with my colored pencils and fill in the wiring diagram again, since I'd lost the diagram set I did first (if you've never tried using your service manual as a coloring book, I suggest you try it. It's way more enjoyable than you might think). Then I went to the junkyard and got a wiring harness out of a V6 so I could replace the fusible links:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5042/5289034454_3c93479138_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5289034454/) http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5250/5246880272_29f3c940d9_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246880272/) http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5128/5246278881_31518d75bd_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246278881/) http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5242/5246879802_e498de9e0b_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246879802/)

Oh, and I figured now was a good time for a new air filter:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5042/5246285493_dffe651d19.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curlypaul/5246285493/)

Someone warned me about the Spectre filters coming apart, and while I like the way the blue looks, I know that living near the salt marsh, it's not going to stay this color forever. I might as well start shopping for one that I like.

I'm also not too crazy about location (it's not exactly a cold air intake anymore), but it's out of my way and not interfering with my wiring.

tsiconquest88
04-15-2011, 12:29 AM
how in the heck that did that coupler get in that hose like that? It is a coupler right?