Ivan_B

Sounds rather silly... BTW, do you really clean the shafts by hot soaking, etc.? I usually just spray with\dip into something, or just wipe the lobes... If you don't like the carb cleaner, you can use diesel oil 😁

https://www.ebay.com/itm/267086047070 Would this fit?

How about something like that? https://www.ebay.com/itm/126578045722

Well, okay. If you are confident that the problem is the intermittent lack of spark, troubleshoot the power coming to the coil and its respective output. However, depending upon how that EFI is made, I suspect that the ECM could be cutting the spark, as well, under certain conditions. So don't be surprised if the lack of spark turns-out to be the effect but not the cause. Also, have you already posted on a car-specific forum, such as this one? https://www.chryslerminivan.net It sounds like there is some pretty tricky troubleshooting bits about these older vans.

Or, you can stick a large cork plug in there. That'll sure look fancy, and be a great conversation starter 😁

Do you still have the OEM cooling system and the 201 motor? If so, there is no pressure. Just make sure that the new cap fits the rad and you have a gasket to prevent spills. What's wrong with the old cap? Rusted away? 🤨 If you want, someone from over the old colonies way can probably mail you another one.

Did you get yourself a repair manual, already?

So, the car is not running very well, is that it? I would not panic just yet. First, get it into a warm garage and do a regular "tune-up". Check the spark quality, check the points, adjust timing, dwell, idle speed (use a vacuum gauge). Make sure that the carb is clean, not flooding, and you have no vacuum leaks. And, yes, do a proper compression check (no plugs, throttle all the way open) just to see what you are dealing with 🙂

Okay, I've read the entire engine saga... I would probably do some more troubleshooting before cutting into the harness, etc. Can't imagine faulty wires doing fine at 50mph and then somehow loosing it at 74. Let's re-evaluate the situation. The engine starts to work poorly, intermittently, at (mostly) high speeds and after driving for a while, correct? What's different at those times, in comparison to your normal driving? How do you know that the spark is bad? What kind of tester do you use and what is it showing? What kind of distribution does this engine uses, all electronic, mechanical, or a combination of the two? What's your battery voltage like, during these poor running times?

Are there any good parts you can pull? 😃

Thanks... I did not dare to look into the bores, again, but all the plugs look dry, now. And no misfires on #1 detected, anymore. So, what ever I did, something fixed it. I tried draining the tappets completely, they would bottom-out with the valves still open. Compared to the old OEM, the plunger is +2mm too high, so this is obviously not the right fit, despite the fact that the aftermarket manufacturer has them listed for my car 😒

Non-applicable things were here; I'll come back with something else later 🙂

Had to re-use the old tappets (after cleaning). The engine is back together, compression is back in existence, and the car is running alright, thus far 😃 Happy End!

I concur, and even better: if the car was sitting for decades, I would want to take the valve covers and the engine pan off to inspect the internals before even thinking of touching the crank. If you have a borescope, you should also inspect the bores, etc. Otherwise, the head is coming off as well. Better to be safe than sorry.

How long ago was it running the last time? If you are not very mechanically inclined, you might want to invite a buddy, familiar with old cars, to get it going. Depending upon the current condition, attempting to start it might mess things up even worse. If you watch some of those "will it run" tube videos - do not do what those people are doing. Most of them are doing bad things, just for show. Since this is your family car, you don't want that 😉

An old-school sealed-beam I bet if you try to un-solder that old bulb, the remaining chrome plating on the reflector will come right off... You could try to replace the bulb with an alternative, but I am not sure if this is what you want. You might be better-off carefully cutting the old one off, and attaching a modern socket\bulb holder to the reflector instead (what ever you can find that fits). You might also want to fabricate some kind of screw-on clamp to re-attach the lens to the reflector, instead of these tabs. BTW, the original bulb looks similar to GE MAZDA 2331, and is probably some variation of the same 🙄

Good point, same here. Also, greasing the suspension is very useful Steve's car looks to be in great shape, though, so I think he is all set there.

Maybe the shop is unable to fit the kingpins into the old ones? 🙄

I think that, unless you are buying them fancy radial replacements for classic cars, it is simply what ever you can find to fit your rims with the closest possible height, at this point So, did you have a chance to compare a representative sample of Broncos running with radials + radials replacement versus the radials + ply replacements? The story is a bit condensed, so I am trying to clarify the experimental controls employed here 😁

The door needs to be closed, you are inside 😉 Push the ring by hand and push the pin (in/out) with another tool, using your other hand 😅

The engine saga continues... I wish I had some good news to share, but I don't 😅 I installed the new stem seals and put everything back together. I wanted to check compression right after the head went back on, but the starter would not spin with half the engine missing, and I did not have time to mess with it. So I continued the assembly process. Later on, I determined that even if it did spin, I would not be able to test compression without the valve-train assembled anyway 🙄 Long story short - the engine is assembled and I have 0 compression on all 4. After hours of troubleshooting, I determined that my new hydraulic tappets are too high and keeping the exhaust valves partially open. What a bunch of nonsense 😒 I spun the engine for quite some time but the tappets are not bleeding down. And there is no way I can start the engine, like this, to warm them up either. Thus far, it looks like i have to pull the cam and manually bleed them (squeeze some oil out) so that they have a chance to adjust to the proper height.

The manual looks correct, here is a quick test: Two bottom contacts are for the button, two top contacts are the actual switch doing the work

Yes, you are correct. That's probably how it all started

Well, our statements do not necessarily contradict one-another 😁 I went with LEDs (in the aforementioned application) for the extra brightness and reduced load on the alternator. I am keeping the headlights (of course) and the cluster illumination lamps stock because I like the look of the old-fashioned, authentic, "warm" lights in the cabin 😉

I am running LEDs and they are great (stops, parking lights, turn signals). I just got the brightest ones that fit the socket and clear the reflector.