Thread: Engine swap done, new issues to address - help please!

Originally Posted by BillBoost37

Let's address these in what I think is the order of importance: Smoking.. how long has it run? Depending on how the engine was stored and how long it's run. I had one that was involved in a rollover and there was enough oil in the top end that it it smoked for 45 min in the driveway and then another 20 around town. Kept getting better the longer it ran. If it's getting better as it runs more.. let it run.

The electrical issues: you have a ground or positive wire loose etc. At the transmission where the main battery cable ground hooks up, do you have the battery cable and two small black wires? Because you should. Are all the connections snug at all ends of the battery cables, because the behavior you mention... something is loose.

Don't go into the harness to chase it, it's something you specifically touched and just retrace the main power cables, you'll find it.

That was something I had thought of shortly after posting this thread, and that turned out to be the source of my problems. I hooked up the two small ground wires and the HUD/oil pressure switch issues disappeared. So that problem is solved, but my new problems still need attention. I updated the first post (in case any new viewers wander across this thread) to say that the car idled for about 45 minutes in the garage (my dad decided he needed to play with the throttle, which p*ssed me off to no living end, but I don't have the gall to tell him to stop because, well, father knows best...) The car was also driven for the last 2 days, mostly around town and to/from work. I have about 30 miles on the new engine, plus 45 minutes of idling, and the smoking, if anything, has gotten worse.