Recently I had been having problems with my 1983 Imperial. After a short
drive, the car would start acting up, refusing to climb hills at speeds
greater than 20 kph and take forever to get up to any decent city speed. I
thought the problem was with the spark control system, CCC.
Fortunately, Dick Benjamin wrote to me before I started plunking down some
hard cash for some electronic items and urged me to do some cleaning on the
EFI. I listened to his experience, and I am extremely grateful to Dick for
his advice.
I took everything apart (almost) and soaked the fuel rails in carb cleaner
overnight. The nice blue carb cleaner was a murky grey-blue in the morning.
And I took every electrical connection under the hood apart and cleaned them
with electronic connection cleaner. And I mean every one of them - the EFI,
CCC, alternator, regulator, windshield wipers - everything. Plus changed
the fuel hoses at the back of the engine.
The re-assembly went well. All the connectors were put back together and I
made sure they were all connected tightly. While I was putting the fuel
rails back in, one bolt went back in no problem but the other fell into the
depression where the power module sits.
My index finger is just a fraction of an inch wider than the despression,
but with the help of a slotted screwdriver and my finger, I retrieved the
bolt. I also came across something else - a piece of fabric electrical
tape. The piece is about 1" long and 3/4" wide. It has a couple of small
holes in it, like it has been worn in places. I found it on the bottom of
the depression while fishing out the bolt.
After getting everything together, the car started the first turn of the
key. Took it out for a spin and it performed beautifully. I have been
driving the car for a little of a week now, taking it out on the highway and
around the city. No balking, no popping, no snorting, just power when you
need it. And it performs flawlessly regardless of whether the engine is
cold or hot.
There is one sharp corner near where I live. The turn is to the right, and
is sharper than than 90 degres angle, more like 75, I guess. And it is
uphill as you make the turn. Before overhauling the system, the car would
stall everytime I made that turn. Now, it flows through the turn without a
hiccup.
Do not know what it is like in rain, though. The monsoon season will be
starting in a month or so, so I guess I will find out then.
My thanks to all for the help and information on the CCC. I do not need one
at this time, but I am keeping the e-mails in case I do in the future.
And, again, I must thank Dick for getting me on the straight and narrow with
the EFI. As he has said in the past, the problems with the EFI appear to be
related to dirt and grunge built up over the years. I can vouch for that
diagnosis.
Bill
Vancouver, BC
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