does my 85' van even have a ballast resistor? when I splice in a HEI and bypass the spark control module, is their different instruction than for an older model slant?

thanks

You may have the Lean Burn system, which IIRC doesn't use a ballast resistor. If you have that, you'll need a standard distributor.

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"Mad Scientist" Matt Cramer
'66 Dart - turbocharged 225
My blog - Mad Scientist Matt's Lair

My truck had lean burn. And from the descriptions of a ballast resistor, I think I have one mounted on the engine, possibly the head. It's a ceramic looking rod, just under 1cm square and 4-5 long. It has two wire sticking out I believe.

Yes that is a resistor but it is for the choke heater, not the ballast resistor.

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82 D150-225/727
02 Dakota-3.9/5 speed
87 GMC C7000-8.2 Detroit Diesel/5+2

I dont have lean burn because my carb is not computer controlled and dont have an O2 sensor. I dont believe I have a ballast resistor because I never came across one. I dont know if there is any different wiring arrangement from say a pre 74' setup that has been described in the past by Dan, Reed and others?

There are lean burn systems that don't have computer controlled carbs or O2 sensors. It sounds like you may have one of them (they dont' use a ballast). The chances of having an '85 w/o some sort of leanburn is incredibly low.

If you have the spark control module then you don't have a ballast resistor. If you did, it would be mounted on the firewall over the middle of the engine.

All you need to do to hook up the HEI unit is to attach the wires to the distributor, attach the (+) lead for the HEI unit to the (+) terminal on your coil, and attach the (-) lead for the unit to a good ground. Ground the body of the unit and you are set.

Incidentally, I would be interested in buying your lean burn computer, wiring harness, and distributor when you remove it, if you are interested in selling it.

Did the one I sent you no longer work?

I haven't tried running it yet. I am still running a non-computer BBD and HEI, but since I am only getting 8mpg I am going to try hooking the lean burn back up.

I am interested in another lean burn system just for experimentation. I am getting the bug to try and find a cheap a-body sedan and build a gas fuel efficient daily driver. Vans are comfy and all, but I just can't afford the $300 per month on gas...

Reed,

We have got to get together to see what's whrong with your van. My 318 powered B300 gets better than 10 MPG when I'm not towing.

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Joshua

Reed, I have an 85' van with the black box w/ vacuum pod right where yer' pointing and thats all so I don't know, lean burn, lean burn with spark control, or just spark control? there isn't any ballast at least.

If your van has lean burn you will have a computer controlled carb and an O2 sensor (unless soemone has swapped out the carb and exhaust manifold). If your van has spark control you will not have a vacuum advance pod on your distributor. If your van has both a vacuum pod and a computer controlled carb, then you have both. My van is an 86 that had the California emissions package and my computer used to control the spark and the mixture.
I think the problem is that I have a rear axle with 3.54 gears and the distributor curve and kickdown are misadjusted, plus the little slant six just can't push a 4500 pound van along. THe motor is tired with 148,000 miles on it. I get a huge cloud of blue smoke when I start it and the previous owner did a compression test before I bought the van- no cylinder had more than 95 lbs compression, most had less.

When I first got the van it had some vacuum leaks, a tired Holley 6145 one barrel carb, and the vacuum pod for the lean burn was blown. The van got about 10 MPG. Rather than the computerized stuff, I swapped to a Offy intake running a super six BBD and an HEI ignition. I now get about 8 MPG but have better performance. The van is rated at 15 city and 17 highway, but I am guessing not with 3.54 rear gears. To go 50 I am turning 2750 RPM, and by the time I get to 0 I am over 3000 RPM.

By contrast, my 84 Ford Econlone full size van with a 351 four barrel gets 15-20 MPG on the highway and about 17 MPG driving around town. I think the more powerful motor doesn't have to work as hard as a slant six to move such a heavy vehicle, and the rear gears are a bit more economical.
In contrast to my Dodge van, the Ford will do 85+ turning 3500 RPM.

Slants are great for light vehicles, but I think heavy non-aerodynamic things like vans need a more powerful engine.

That's the truth, some of the biggest engines Ive driven were exellent on gas mileage (360 chrysler cordoba, 472 cadillac, 350 suburban) compared to some smaller engines like a 305 pulling a 77' monte carlo (way to big of a car for a 305) and it ate gas notoriously. So somebody thought if they opt for the small slant in a big van when it was new, they might have thought it was more economical on gas, ........WRONG!

On the other hand, I am currently finishing up refurbishing my brother's 83 Dodge shorty van (its the one in the picture above). It too has a slant six. His drivetrain is a 76 225 rebuilt to 76 specs but overbored .030, a 1974 727 tranny, and a 3.2 rear axle ratio. I installed a Super Six setup (inclusing the fctory Super Six distributor with the stock Super Six curve) on the van but haven't driven it enough to get any idea of what sort of gas mileage it will get. Peformance wise it is much better than my 86 van. I think the distributor and the camshaft have something to do with it. His van has much better pickup and cruising "power feel" than my tired old 86.

Reed,

I didn't know your engine was so wheezed. My 318 got 11 MPG on the highway with the BBD and 4.10s. The van weighs 4600 lbs with me and very little else aboard. The 4.10 geared Dana was noisy so I bought another van for parts just because it had a quiet rear end. The '71 parts van had 3.54s and those gears just killed the towing performance. The van used to get up and go around town, but now it's just ok. I put my Holley 390 from the '66 Dart on the van and it helped some, but the gearing still isn't so hot. I'm sure my tires (8.75R16.5) are taller than yours so my cruise RPM is a bit lower. I bought a good 4.10 geared rear axle, but I haven't done anything with it as I drive the van very little any more.

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Joshua