I already knew that. I didn't see a vacuum hose going to the distributor.

 

Now I'm thinking that one of the new wires is bad. I've had that happen more than once.

 

If it ran great, then you changed plugs/wires and it ran bad, please double - triple check your plug wires for correct firing order. You description screams wires mixed up to me.

 

Going to as soon as I get good weather again. It rained all day today.

 

great weather today. 65 degrees and sunshine. Checked the spark plug wires and #6 & $8 were switched. Not anymore. Haven't test driven it yet.

 

I applaud you for letting us know what you found. And will be interested in what happens.

 

Well after I retraced the plug wires and got them right I did a Sea Foam spray job to clean things out. Took it for a test drive and roasted the tires. Now it's time to fix the turn signal lever and trace down the parasitical battery drain.

 

Hmmm. The T/S lever is a PITA, but easier than a newer van with an airbag. The power drain is a little harder. Any accessories added during it's long life? And have you tested how much current is being drawn?

 

Don't know how to test for that. The one test I did do is to pull all the fuses, wire a test light between the positive post and the positive cable. It stayed lit. Last winter there were a few times that the horn honked on it's own. I have another horn relay to try. I don't know how to test them. I also have another turn signal lever from the salvage yard. What happened was the end that turns and has the cruise control switch and button broke off. The one I got at the junk yard doesn't have the cruise stuff. That's ok mine didn't work anyway. I just need to be able to control the windshield wipers and turn signals. The van is running great now BTW.

 

Well I've been lazy and haven't worked on my van. I thought I should post this because it's hard to believe. Before the tune up work on my van every time I started it I would get a huge cloud of blue smoke. Several people told me bad valve guides. After getting it running properly I put a can of Sea Foam on the tank with 10 gallons of gas. I Used a spray can of Sea Foam and followed the instructions pretty closely. Sprayed the entire can in the intake while revving the motor. Shut it off for 15 minutes. Started it up and drove it hard like the can said. Today I noticed no cloud of smoke when I started it.