dead bird, need help

[emailer33]

well i have a '93 w/ a 3.8 v6, and i just replaced the head gaskets myself. firs time job, only thing i let other people do is things like cleaning the parts. anyway i have it all re-assembled now, and i got it to start temporarily, but it was very sluggish and seemed like only 3 or 4 cylinders were firing. That was when the EGR valve wasn't attached as i was trying to move this into my garage. now that it's attached, i've accidently broken the plastic "christmas tree as the dealer calls it" that links up all the vacuum components with the vacuum from the manifold. Also the rubber hose that held the hose from the fuel regulator to the manifold has also decayed and broke. I've sealed the regulator to the manifold with a hose i found laying around my house, and as for the broken "christmas tree" i used the plugged top plug and sealed the bottom one. problem is i'm afraid it's still leaking air at these connections as now the car won't start at all. when starting you will occasionly hear a cylinder fire, but that's like 1 every ten seconds, not enuf to keep it going.i know for a fact that the engine timing is off but i can't set it as the car won't even run barely. can anyone help me on what i need to look for and fix? or if i need to get hte plastic "christmas tree", where can i get a new one? The Ford dealership said they discontinued it and that i'd have to go looking. Please i've been working on this for a long time now and any help would be appreciated.

[Mike75]

Maybe at a junkyard? I understand that the chances are high that the one you may or may not find is just as dry-rotted as your current one was before it broke, but it might be worth a look.

Actually, I'm going to the local Pick-A-Part here this weekend. Give me more detail of what to look for if you're still looking. If I find one in really good shape, I'll get it and you can just pay me back for the part and shipping. I understand how it is, so let me know if I can help. It's one of the few things I can do to pay you all back for all of the priceless advice I've gotten here. Let me know!

[emailer33]

alright it's a plastic tube w/ 5 ports coming out of it. the top one is sealed with a rubber plug, and all the others are attached to the following items:

the easiest way to find it is go from the back of the upper intake manifold and follow the black tube to it. the "christmas tree" will be held by a nut and bolt to right below the cowl. the rest of the tubes go to a check valve, EVR, and another "christmas tree" that goes to the speed sensor and brake booster. Hope this helps you see what i'm talking about, thanks.

[97Bird]

A good auto supply store should have an assortment of vacuum ports to choose from along with different sizes of vacuum hose

[Mike75]

Okay man, I'll go look for it on my car which is the same year and engine as yours.

If you DO find it before this weekend, please let me know in here so I don't waste my time or money at the junkyard. I'm not just blowing smoke up your ass - I'll try to find one for you.

[emailer33]

thanx man, and i'll be looking too.

the thing that confuses me is why would this cause the car to not start? I mean it doesn't even seem like the engine is firing. I checked fuel pressure and sparks, but I thought a vacuum leak wouldn't cause this. hmm :P

[emailer33]

so any luck?

[Mike75]

Sorry dude, a very good friend of mine from back in the Air Force came into town this weekend, and we were hanging out over the weekend. Needless to say, I didn't want to miss out on his visit by going to the junkyard.

Anyhow, I'm definitely going this weekend, just please keep me posted between now and then whether or not you still need the part. I really have to go because I have to get a new headlight mounting panel so my lights will sit down, so I don't get a ticket while driving at night (lights are pointing up into the trees while I'm driving).

I'll check this thread one last time before leaving for the junkyard, just to make sure you still need the thing.

[Mike75]

Shit, my post didn't go through...

Anyhow, I went today and there were only 2 Thunderbirds there in the MN12 body style, but the engines were gone from both of them. There were several Cougars, however, and a few had that part. My question is: what years of the Cougar/TBird 3.8 are compatible with your 93-3.8L? If anyone knows, please post! I'm going to go ahead and get one for you, but if anyone knows the answer to this question, please tell me! I'm doing this as a favor to emailer, but I really don't have much cash at all. So please help me out if you know the answer to this so I don't buy a part that won't work.

Thanks!

[emailer33]

i didn't know if this will help, but i took this pic w/ my cell phone. the circled red is where another lil' nozzle comes out, about the same size as the one that heads toward the brake booster.

[emailer33]

if you're still reading this Mike75, just start PM'ing me. no point in keeping the thread alive after this post.

[Mike75]

Okay, sorry I didn't get back to you on your last post, but I saw it.

I did find two, but one was already busted, and one of the stem things came off in the hose in the other one as I tried to disconnect it. I was looking at it, and was wondering: would super glue fix yours for the meantime? I know you probably don't want to do this, but it looked to me like it would work. I took the pieces to the cashier, and he told me 3 bucks for it - 5 if it was unbroken. Tell me what you want me to do. It's 2 miles away from my house, so going back and forth is no big deal to me. Especially since I pick something up for myself everytime I go. Let me know!

[emailer33]

nope, when i broke it the plastic stretched and i did try gluing, but since i tried putting hte part back on, it just broke off again from the tension.

[97Bird]

As I said before-Go to your local auto supply to get vacuum ports (tee's) Go to this website and to page 35 of the catalog to see some of what should be available to you. Don't bother trying to find one in a junkyard because 9 out of 10 times it will break when you try to remove it. They become very brittle from heat after a few years. If your local supplier doesn't have a 4 port tee that you need just combine a couple to get 4 ports. http://www.sherco-auto.com/winter02.pdf

[emailer33]

oh well i'm selling hte car anyway, for now i just attached it to the top port which was originally capped. it wasn't hte right size so i just a lill' rubber gap filler.