walter34payton2002

I agree. It was obvious to me that previous owner had fuel problems. I saw he eliminated the switch for both tanks, put in new fuel pump and filter. We will see. Thanks man.

aliens8mycow

I been through the fuel thing too... so let's get this all right - you have a single tank working, second tank blocked off, new fuel pump, new filter, no switch?

Fuel pump is running and filter is clean? Next thing in line would be the regulator - did you pull the vacuum line to see if there is fuel in the vac line? Check fuel pressure?

And you can play with the timing anyway - mark it at the base of the distributor so you can put things back if it goes wrong. Loosen the bolt at the base, and give it a slight twist while idling - not a lot, just a little bit, and use your ear. If it sounds better with a slight advance/retard, tighten the bolt and give her a drive. You might be surprised! Might be too much of a good thing, and you'll need to back off a bit. Just make sure you mark it before you start in case you need to retreat completely!

walter34payton2002

You got it right Aliens (selector valve gone, new fuel filter I believe, and new fuel pump and relay, 2nd tank eliminated, sending unit bad on main tank). I haven't checked fuel pressure yet, but my neighbor has a gauge I can borrow. In the meantime I got a regulator coming brand new. I did try to check it. When I pulled the vac line it seemed ok and the rpms went up, so I figured it was good, but you can't be sure that way so like you said the next thing was the regulator. I'm just replacing it. Now as far as the timing, the truck will decide when to run rough. It is usually when just started up and put into gear or sometimes randomly when I haven't been driving too much yet. The rpms eventually stabilize, but it can get erratic sometimes. Also, load on the engine does not allow the rpms to go back up. For example, if it is idling at 650 and you trun the air on, it goes to maybe 550 and if you turn the steering it goes to maybe 500 and if you put it into gear it wants to die then will shoot back up and idle in D at maybe 550-600. When you first start it up it idles at nearly 2000 then comes down slowly to about 1000. When the air is on it idles in park at about 650-700, which is where it should be, but without air on it idles high. I thought that would be the IAC, but no. It does not seem to idle rough in P except randomly and it feels like a slight misfire, but put it into R and misfire city. I'll give it all a try and report back. Thanks for the response!!!

bwaredware10

I think the timing might very well be the issue Mr.Payton. Let me know after you get the timing checked.

aliens8mycow

I'm still thinking timing too... or on a completely random shot in the dark?

Are the battery leads in good shape? All of the main ones going to the starter, ground, alternator, etc. - nice big wires, no corrosion up through the insulation, good contact at connectors, etc.

I promise - my truck took me down this road too, acting just like you describe, and new battery leads made the difference.

...who am I kidding - my truck has taken me everywhere except for more than 10 miles from home!

walter34payton2002

Ok, here is the update. I changed the regulator and it did not fix anything. My old one was fine. I also played with the timing by moving the distributor. It appears to be spot on. I moved it to both sides before about to die and it is sitting somewhere in the middle. The battery leads all appear fine. I did have a failure of the starter solenoid being stuck on today. I gave it a few taps and it worked again, but I had a spare from another truck that I put in anyway.

One thing I am noticing is a ticking noise from what sounds like under the dash. It sounds like a turn signal noise, but every 5 seconds or so. When I look at the ammeter (battery gauge) I can see it dip just a hair when the tick happens. Also, the lights on in the cabin just dim slightly.

I am out of ideas here. My only other thought is maybe it is electrical???? Maybe the torque converter??? The tranny shifts fine and engages quickly. I don't know. I put on a new coolant temp sensor and oil sending unit today. I thought it ran hot today as the coolant needle went to the R on NORMAL today so I shut the air off. I also charged the a/c today. Irrelevant if it runs like crap I guess.

ANY IDEAS GUYS???? I am so close to just getting a sledge hammer and going to work on her.

alwayshear

Step away from the hammer! A truck is just a bunch systems riding on wheels. We just need to figure out which system is in need of repair. I suspect it's fuel related but you need to test the fuel pressure first. When working on a "new" old vehicle, it's actually a good idea to check all systems. The electrical system should be checked next if the fuel pressure tests ok. Take your time, the answers are right in front of you. Oh yeah, you need to find out which motor you have because the 302 and 302 HO have different firing orders.

Good luck!

walter34payton2002

What exactly is the 302 HO. Also, someone mentioned some numbers maybe located on the block? Any idea where I may find such numbers exactly? I did see some numbers on the valve covers. I have tried to get clever and search for parts on rockauto for both mustang and f150 engines seeing if there was an answer by some slightly different parts that my engine has compared to those. They use the same stuff by and large and I haven't been able to tell what I have in there yet only that I have at least different heads judging by the plug it uses. So, I will test fuel pressure then and report back here. I am starting to lean towards the injectors, but I'm not gonna throw that money on 8 new injectors just yet. The hammer is in the garage. For now.

alwayshear

At some point between '84 and '87 the 302 got a different firing order. The firing order was changed to the 351 firing order. It was also changed to a roller cam. I do not know when this happened, I don't know why. But what I do know is I have two 302 motors; one from my '84 F150 and one of unknown origin but casting # E7TE. The E7TE casting decodes to '87 truck motor. They have different firing orders and the '87 has a roller cam. For purposes of this discussion I'm calling the '87 motor "302 HO". If someone else knows more on the matter, I'd be interested in hearing about it.

alwayshear

More helpful info,

http://www.classicmustang.com/decoding_part_numbers.htm