My Ram50 and Questions<----

[dondelusion]

Greetings from Northern Berks County here in PA. I have an 88 Dodge Ram50 (2.0L, 5-speed MT, 2WD) and here it is for your viewing pleasure...





And here is my question: My secondary air pipe is (as seen in the pic below) is not Grade A Prime. What symptoms could this cause?



It takes a year and a half to warm up and it's extremely under-powered, of course, but I know it could probably perform better with some TLC here and there. Is it worth replacing the secondary air pipe? Any info would make my day. Thanks!

[camoit]

If you live in a state with out smog then get rid of all the smog and swap out the carb. It will make lots of noise under there and even cause a back fire from time to time. As for running cold replace the thermostat and check the fan clutch. It might be locked up.

[dondelusion]

I see that swapping out the carb is usually the first advice given around these parts...for good reason of course. As for the thermo and fan, I should mention that once the engine warms up my heater works like gangbusters. How can I tell if the fan clutch is locked up. camoit?

[iceman]

With the engine off pop the hood and try to spin the fan, if it wont spin the clutch is locked.

[dondelusion]

Thanks! It spins with some resistance. From what I've read that seems spot on.

[camoit]

Yep. It should warm up with in about 5 minutes. If it's sticking or even a chance of it sticking you should swap it out. Over heating these trucks is a death sentence. Open is better then closed.

[Andy 2]

Your in PA, I'm in southern Ontario, We probably have similar temps in the winter. I find it takes about 5 min. like Camoit said. That's 5 min of fast idle in the driveway without driving. If I don't let it have warm up time my 89 takes an eternity to warm up. If your thermostat is good and your coolant level is good then another thing to check would be the air control valve. It should be making the breather pull warmed up air from the exhaust manifold shield when idling. Also check the flex pipe that connects the breather to the shield to make sure it's not blocked. The fresh air pipe should not really be an issue as anyone with a header can tell you.

[dondelusion]

Yeah, it takes a solid 15min to warm up. Thanks! You guys gave me some good leads, I have some checking to do.... I'll keep you updated, whether you want to be updated or not.

[pennyman1]

As long as the pipe is not cracked and leaking, it is not a problem. Check your vacuum hoses in the metal box on the drivers inner fender for cracked or broken/eaten hoses - it will cause major performance problems on that model of truck. When I had my Dads 88 dodge ram 50 sportcab, I had a piece of cardboard in front of the rad in the winter to get good heat. Also be sure that the thermostat is 192-195 and not 180 - these motors run better with the higher stat.

[dondelusion]

Thanks Pennyman. The secondary pipe is definitely not airtight. Camo is right, it makes a lot of noise under there. Might as well let it be known: I need a secondary air pipe for 2.0L 4G63/G63B. I still need to check the air control valve etc. I will keep ya posted.

[pennyman1]

Find a plug to screw into the hole where the pipe goes, or cut the pipe off and cap it. In the Weber conversion kits, they used to come with a plug to put in place of the pipe, maybe you could check with weberdirect and see if it is available separately.

[dondelusion]

Before I eliminate that pipe I'm going to keep trying to get obtain a new one. I went to Harry's U-Pull-it in Hazelton, PA. They had ONE Ram 50 and the scondary pipe was cut out and plugged...go figure. Got a new cab lamp lens and a manual though.

Checked the air control valve and it was carbonated to the nth and son of a gun if there ain't a little filter on the side of the air cleaner. Gonna replace the preheater duct hose thingy. The cardboard-like lining inside of it had shrunk thus restricting air flow. Should do some good. Spring approaches....dig it.