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Is fourth an “overdrive” gear? If it is, you won’t get much throttle response until the transmission downshifts into 3rd.
Perhaps there’s an issue with the transmission, causing slow downshifts out of that gear. It’s got over 1/4 million miles on it after all is said and done.
I’m not a Honda or transmission expert, so maybe someone more knowledgeable than me can pick up on this.
Off the top of my head, either your AC idle booster isn’t getting vacuum, or the booster is faulty and isn’t holding vacuum.
Check the vacuum lines going to the booster for leaks/splits/blockages. I’ve seen old rubber vacuum lines deteriorate internally and clog themselves. Truth be told, your rubber lines should be replaced anyway; they’re almost 40 years old.
Now, for some automotive foreplay. To check the booster diaphragm, remove the vacuum hose from it, remove the booster from the engine, retract the booster rod by sucking on the metal nipple and seal it with the tip of your tongue. If the booster rod stays retracted, the diaphragm is probably still functioning. If the rod moves back out, the diaphragm is shot.
Start with simple things first.
The first thing I would check would be loose heat sheilds and other loose components of the exhaust system, like hangers and such. Things like that can sometimes rattle/clank intermittently.
Another thing to check for for would be failing engine/transmission mounts. They can seem fine under most conditions, but make themselves known under a particular load range.
Perhaps there’s an issue with the vacuum line that runs from the mid-mounted engine to the forward-mounted brake booster.
[quote=”ComputerNerdInside” post=198441]I know there’s no “Engine-Rebuild-in-a-Can”, but how do I slow it down until we have the time to drop the pan and get new rod bearings?[/quote]
The only way to keep things from getting worse is to park the car and not drive it.
At this point the thought of failing rod bearings is just a suspicion. To really find out what’s going on will require a complete tear down, with a lot of precise measuring. And you’re going to find other things that require rectification. There’s no point in disassembling/measuring an entire engine, only to reassemble it half-fixed. Are you up to the task?
In a case like yours, I would recommend changing the oil and filter twice in 12 months. Ideally before the big seasonal temperature changes, so, an oil change in the spring, and the next change during fall.
I’m afraid you’ll be wasting your time with a compression test. It’s not going to tell you much about a coolant leak.
You’re consuming coolant, the plugs are wet, and you have sludgy oil. It all points to a coolant leak into your cylinders. Seeing as how the fouled plugs all came from the same cylinder bank, the leak is on that side of the engine. It’s very rare for the head gasket, on its own, to fail across all the cylinders it seals, so I’m going to assume you have a warped head.
Has the engine been driven while overheated?
What does your coolant smell like? If you get a whiff of gasoline odor, it confirms that you’re consuming coolant. Run the engine at idle with the rad cap off. The coolant should flow like a creek. If it boils, bubbles, froths and spits, that will further confirm coolant and cylinder compression mixing.
A car from that era more than likely has metal cables inside nylon sleeves connected to your dashboard Heat & Vent controls. It could be a case of a nylon cable housing breaking where it’s held in place by a clip/clamp under the dashboard somewhere.
You’ll have to dig into the dash a bit to see what’s going on. Dashboards of that vintage are usually quite simple to take apart. A lot of the fasteners were usually exposed back then, making disassembly quite easy.
Those old 4.0 I6 engines have a reputation for durability, so I wouldn’t jump to catastrophic conclusions just yet.
If you could post a video or an audio clip of the noise, that would be helpful. One man’s knock is another man’s click.
If you have the gear, you can pressure test the coolant system. Or, you could spend a bit of time with a bright flashlight and look for signs of coolant leaks.
Nothing you describe sounds like cause for alarm. Just keep a watchful eye on the coolant level to see if coolant keeps disappearing.
Yep, gasoline is an effective solvent. Makes me wonder, though, why modern gas contains even more cleaners and detergents.
Love the closing comments. Carbs are fun. I wonder how many of your viewers have never heard the throaty symphony when the secondaries open up.
The next time you see an ’05-’09 Mustang in a parking lot, have a quick look underneath to see how things are held together.
I believe Mustangs were restyled in 2010, so they might be different in that kind of detail from your car.
When you replaced the rad, did you replace the rad hoses as well?
In most vehicles, the bottom rad hose usually contains an internal stiffener which prevents the hose from pinching shut under pump suction. Stiffeners can break or rot away, allowing the hose to collapse and causing overheating.
Using your example of 20mm, if the discs can be remachined and still have a minimum of 20mm thickness, then you’re good, at least in theory.
When you get close to the minimum limit, it’s a judgement call. Personally, I would consider replacing the discs when they are very close to their limits.