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Vaccum leake issue

BigCountry011695

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January 30, 2016
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City, State
geneva - Florida
Year, Model & Trim Level
96 Ford Explorer XLT
I have a 96 explorer xlt 4wd and i have a vaccum leak somewhere my truck will sometimes stall when i start it up rarly tho anf when i do get it started i have to rev it up a bunch to keep it runnin and on other days itll just start right up with no problem. It does spit and sputter when the ac kicks on but ive spray brake clean all around my motor to see if the motor will rev indicating a vaccum leak but still cant find any sign of a leak i have replaced the egr valve and the egr tube that goes from the valve to the manifold i do not know if there is any other part of the system but if anyone has had this problem please let me know if there is any solution i really dont want to have to take it in to a dealership or mechanic or nothin thank you
 



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Yeah, that cold start & bad idle issue is a pretty solid indicator of bad intake manifold gaskets...

Dear Ronev,

See if the following synopsis of temperature dependent engine conditions pertain to your vehicle:

COLD START – ENGINE NOT OPERATED OVERNIGHT – 40 DEGREE AMBIENT:

Upon cranking engine starts right up and the idle jumps to about 2K. Then it starts idling back to about 500 rpm then it jumps down to about 300 rpm and almost dies and then it settles down to a rough idle. This process lasts approx 15-30 seconds.

COLD START – ENGINE NOT OPERATED OVERNIGHT – 30 DEGREE AMBIENT:

Upon cranking engine starts right up and the idle jumps to about 2K. Then it starts idling back to about 500 rpm then it jumps down to about 300 rpm and almost dies and then it returns to about 2K and the cycle then repeats. This process lasts approx 2 to 3 minutes before settling down to a rough idle.

COLD START – ENGINE NOT OPERATED OVERNIGHT – 20 DEGREE AMBIENT:

Upon cranking engine starts right up and the idle jumps to about 2K. Then it starts idling back to about 500 rpm then it jumps down to about 300 rpm and almost dies. At this ambient temperature the engine acts like it is running on 4 cylinders; it sounds like a Harley V-Twin and the truck shakes violently (approximately 4 to 6 inches of side to side movement measured at the roof). It returns to about 2K and the cycle then repeats. This process lasts approx 10 to 15 minutes before settling down to a rough idle.

WARM START – ENGINE OPERATED WITHIN LAST 2 TO 3 HOURS – ANY DEGREE AMBIENT.

ALSO - COLD START – ENGINE NOT OPERATED OVERNIGHT – ANY TEMPERATURE ABOVE APPROXIMATELY 40 DEGREE AMBIENT:

Occasional extended cranking to start. Rough idle.




If any of the above sounds familiar you can tend towards the lower intake o-rings leaking. As to your recent issue of an idling issue once engine has reached normal operating range; i would respectfully suggest repair of the original fault condition (o-rings change out) before pursuing and further troubleshooting in this area. Is it possible for the o-rings cause complete idle failure? Yes. Likely? No.



To ensure your sense of humor remains: I recently stumpled upon a rather interesting diagnosis by a Ford Dealership (read "group of male reproductive genitalia") upon an "x', with 56k onboard and similar symptoms to yours and the above. The above captioned "group" decided the customer may best be "serviced" with a mere $700 being invested with them, for a work scope that included intake manifolds removal (as with o-rings change out), allowing them access to the rear side of the intake valves, of which they were to clean. Apparently, according to their diagnosis, the rear side of the intake valves were "choked" with carbon build up. Said build-up was responsible for soaking-up such voluminous quanties of fuel/air mixture that engine supply deprivation was the route cause of all ills.


Anyway, change your o-rings and check out your IAC isn't sticking (soak the mechanical mechanism in carb cleaner (ensure the cylindrical shaped solenoid is not).
 






Best way to find vacuum leaks is with a smoke test. There are many places that could account for a vacuum leak (intake manifold gaskets, various vacuum lines inside and outside of the engine compartment, cracked vacuum reservoir ball, PCV valve grommet, PCV elbow PCV hoses, bad power brake booster, rusted out or defective fuel tank emissions components, bad charcoal canister purge valve or related hoses). Without a smoke test you can spend a lot of time checking all these things. It may end up cheaper for you to pay for a smoke test. What's your time worth?
 






Wow thats alot of stuff @koda2000 and i i will definitly try that smoke test whats it called and where can i find it
 






Also your IAC which controls your idle.
 






yea, have you pulled off the IAC and at least cleaned it? hell, I had an IAC dirty in 2009 giving me same issues... cleaned it... was fine, then only occasionally for about 12 months it acted up... cleaned it or tapped it to get it to work.... I still have the same IAC in, no issues at all.

Not sure if I'd be using brake cleaner for testing out a vacuum leak.... get some starting fluid.... just saying...
 






Sometimes you can check the various vac lines by pulling them off the intake, one at a time, and plugging the intake hole where they were to see if that improves idle.
 






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