98 windstar - p1538 intake manifold runner control

[rtcat13]

Glad to have found this site, Cartracker still seems to be down. Anyways if anybody can help me....have 98 windstar, p1538 code, IMRC.
I have physically checked both IMRC's and they are functioning as they should. (if they were bad, they would not move at all right?) Assuming they are good, does anybody know which step in the troubleshooting process I go to now? The van runs perfect, just that darn light! LOL Do I start going for the O2 sensor now? Can anybody tell me what to next in the chain of troubleshooting? Thanks in advance!

[wiswind]

I have a '96 3.8L....so that is my point of reference...

On the passenger side of the engine....you will be able to see the 2 IMRC actuators.

Follow the linkage to the end of the shaft that passes through into the lower intake manifold......On the end....you will be able to see 2 stops.....1 for fully open.....and 1 for fully closed.

With the engine OFF....verify that the IMRC is against the fully OPEN stop for BOTH the front and back shafts.

Start the engine....verify that the IMRC is against the fully CLOSED stop for BOTH the front and back shafts.

If one of these conditions is not correct......you will need to correct it....maybe dirt in the way.....or some other easy & cheap solution.....a little dirt built up on the stop.....or in the linkage can cause the problem.

I have read posts about the plastic bushings breaking / binding....can be bought and replaced.

If they are both correct.....verify that the connections to the sensor / acutators are good (unplug and plug again)

Mine are vacuum actuated.....and electrically sensed. If you have a code reader....you can clear the codes.....and try checking the sensors.....unplugging 1 and seeing if you get a different code....etc.
Is this a solid failure?.....as in...clearing the code....does it come right back?

[rtcat13]

Hey Thank You for that advise Wiswind. (The name just hit me..are you from Wisconsin? Neenah, Wi here!) Anyways, I will be checking those tomorrow- ie. the linkage on the other ends. Yes mine is also vacume actuated and electrically sensed too. Yes this is a solid failure as well, I have cleared the codes twice now and within 2-4 days they return. I think it strange now a days how the vehicle can be running perfectly yet but the light is on etc. Once again thank you, and I hope to get more input from you if you can think of any. I will post back here after this weekend and let you know what I found. Have a good weekend.
Chad

[rtcat13]

Unbeleivable!!!! Thanks for the advise WisWind, as I was looking for the things you mentioned, I heard a hissing...there was a main vacume line disconnected on the backside of the engine! So far so good, autozone cleared the code and it is not back as of yet! thanks all

[wiswind]

Great!......
That is the fix I like.....Cheap & Easy (once you find it).

Greenfield (south of Milwaukee here).

There are a few vacuum lines on the back of my '96 Upper intake manifold.....lots of oppertunity of something coming loose.

I have over 140K miles on mine....
I am very happy with how it is running.

[road_rascal]

One thing about the IMRC- Ford really put some thought into designing those things. My '96 had a leak at one of the o-rings where the shaft exits the manifold to the actuator. You have to replace the whole manifold because you can't replace just the o-ring. Nice. That had to be done twice.

[12Ounce]

Road rascal, I agree with you and more so... The whole IMRC thing makes me boil. All the cost of parts, machining, controls ... plus all the troubles ...and fuel costs for dragging the additional weight around.

For some device that activates at 3000 rpm!! What's that ... 95mph in top gear? I think I could have done without it.

[jborecky]

Hey Guys, I just went through the whole thing. First of all thanks for the info. This got me started on the right track. I talked to a Ford mechanic while he was on his lunch break and he gave me some great advice.

To find out which one is leaking pull the vacuum line from one of the controllers and plug the end with your finger. The other one should move. The one that does not move is the leaky controller. Be prepared to pay a heafty price to replace though. Ford is proud of this little unit at over $200. The mechanic said 90% of the time the one closest to the radiator is the one that leaks.

Also if this condition has existed for a while you may also get a P304, and P402 error codes which is a miss fire in cylnder four and excess EGR flow. This most likely is caused by the problem with the runner control. What happens is carbon builds up in the other two EGR ports on that side. If this happens he told me to pull the upper intake manifold, and underneigth you'll find the EGR ports. Clean them out and reinstall the manifold. This took me about an hour and a half to complete. The most troublesome part was removing all the vacuum lines on the back side.

Hope this helps and Good luck!

[Dngrsone]

Piggybacking on this, if you don't have the bushings in there, the IMRC can easily stick closed, so you don't get the extra air in the above-2 or 3K power band and your gas mileage sucks.

Downside-- you pretty much have to pull the upper intake plenum in order to get the little rascals in.

[rescue22]

Thank you all so much, you have saved my butt...
the IMRC has went out on my windstar i bought 3 days ago. until 15 minutes ago i had no idea what an IMRC was.
I called FORD and they want $249 for the part and $60 an hour to check and replace it... Now that I know what it is I'll replace it, and save a little cash

[jef1qr]

Just looked at my IMRC 's .
BOTH rods were completely off the manifold just lying there. Ordered the new bushings from " ROCKAUTO.com" for 2.90 each.

[kszyman59]

I started getting 1537 and 1538 DTC's about 3 months ago which is the code for "Intake Manifold Runner Control Stuck Open". About the same time I noticed that my A/C and vent would only blow out the defroster.
Any chance that both are related to a vacuum leak?

Thanks

[94LebConv3La604]

Originally Posted by kszyman59

I started getting 1537 and 1538 DTC's about 3 months ago which is the code for "Intake Manifold Runner Control Stuck Open". About the same time I noticed that my A/C and vent would only blow out the defroster.
Any chance that both are related to a vacuum leak?

Thanks

Sounds like a very good place to start. What year and engine do you have? The IMRC actuators change from vacuum driven to electronic between 98 and 99 I believe. Another thing to check is the bushings where the actuators attach to the IMRC shafts. Often times these wear out and fall off leaving the IMRC butterflies open.

[kszyman59]

Mine is a 1997 Ford Windstar with the 3.8 V6. Its pretty hard to actually see them. I can see the front rod and bushing or grommet and it looks intact. The replacement part pictures online appear to have a vacuum line attachment so I'd guess you are correct about them being vacuum driven.

Would I be correct in assuming that if the engine vacuum tests OK they are either defective or the actual runner controls are gummed up?

[94LebConv3La604]

Originally Posted by kszyman59

Would I be correct in assuming that if the engine vacuum tests OK they are either defective or the actual runner controls are gummed up?

I think it's pretty safe to assume that. One way you can check is to have somebody else start the car while you watch to see if the IMRC actuators pull the rods into themselves. You can also check to see if they aren't holding vacuum by removing the vacuum tubes, manually closing the runners (pull the rods into the actuator housing), and place your thumb or another finger onto the vacuum port. If, when you let go of the rods, they spring back to the open position, you have a defective actuator that no longer holds vacuum. The actuators shouldn't be difficult to access, however the IMRC vacuum solenoid is best reached with the cowl removed and could be your issue since both stopped working at the same time. The runners should actually move manually with little resistance other than the attached spring. If you can't seem to move them easily while the car is off then you may have some gummed up runners and you would have to take off the upper intake manifold to verify the issue. It is really pretty simple, but I would recommend removing the cowl to accomplish the task as well as picking up a Haynes manual or at least registering at Autozone.com so that you can access their FREE repair guides.