86 escort problem

[atv087]

i have a 1986 ford escort with 31k original miles. i ran seafoam through the carb to clean it out because it feels like it has no power at all even after a tuneup and now it looks like its burning oil. Any ideas on whats wrong with it and any ideas on why it feels like it has no power

[mightymoose_22]

Does it FEEL like it has no power or does it really have no power? What makes you think it is lacking? What makes you think it is burning oil?

[12Ounce]

If the car hasn't been running well for a while, or not in much use for awhile ... there's a good chance the carb needs an overhaul/cleaning. Not much can really go bad in the carb except maybe for the float (it can get gas-logged and not float) ... but there are several little passageways in the carb that can get plugged up.

If you disassemble it (make good notes about what part, jet, etc ... goes where) , you can clean the insides well using a "turkey baster" and gasoline/cleaner solution to flush out the crud. Compressed air is also useful ... just be careful you don't blow some small part out of some recess and lose it. You can wrap the whole operation with some plastic fabric mosquito netting or some landscape fabric to keep parts from flying away.

Rebuild kits for carbs are becoming very rare, and have fewer parts included than they use to ... you can probably find one at NAPA. Hopefully your carb still has the little aluminum foil tag under one of the screw heads that shows the correct carb series number ... don't lose it!!

[mightymoose_22]

This could be unrelated to the carb... something as simple as a vacuum leak or plugs/wires.

I once had a problem with my car... it was running just fine but had no power on acceleration. Turned out that somehow the plug wire on the #1 had slipped loose and I was running on 3 cylinders. Could hardly tell the difference driving around in town at low speeds.

Check your plugs and look for a vacuum leak too.