Chasing a slightly lumpy idle...still

[AllHailKingVolvo]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

You have a "secret weapon" in the fight against engine wear though Rob! As you run it on LPG, the oil stays much cleaner for much longer which reduces engine wear and clogging of the PCV system.

Also i suspect you are more attentive to any minor problems than the previous owners of Phils car have been, hence he has found so many "silly" things wrong that have all improved matters a little and combined have improved it a lot.

I think you’re right, Dave. I get the impression that my car had regular oil, filter and plugs but other than that it was just run as is.

Today’s been a productive day-being a musician by trade, I generally work Thurs-Sun, so the start of the week is car fettling time-the muso’s weekend!

I’ve cleaned the PCV, flame trap, IAC, all breather pipes and have replaced the vacuum tube from the flame trap to the intake manifold as it was split. I also replaced the distributor cap with a new unit, all of which has really helped the general grunt of the car and made it smoother still under power. The PCV wasn’t badly gummed up but had its fair share of crud as they usually do. The IAC was in really good shape but is cleaned and lubricated anyway. The dizzy cap made the biggest difference I think, the engine revs really cleanly now and hesitation under power is almost totally gone. The idle is still tiny bit uneven but nothing that I can’t live with. Just to complete the ignition system overhaul I’ve ordered a new ignition amplifier, and in the next week or two will also replace both fuel pumps and FPR too just to eliminate any of the usual consumables that tend to fail around the 150-200,000 mark.

After that, it’s just cosmetic work to do, barring the two rear shocks!