Cars need a vacuum to run the brakes. When people convert their cars to electric cars, they need to generate a vacuum for their brakes so they install a vacuum pump and a vacuum tube to help during times of high braking. Its just an empty cavity to add volume to the vacuum source. Like an air compressor, but with vacuum. If you need more vacuum (volume), you can add a tank or resevior.

Your motor and your brakes are linked by your vacuum. So I thought you might have a vacuum problem which a tank might help. I guess there could be another think that links your motor to your brakes....

Lets say you have a short in your brake light wires. When you put your foot on the brakes, your alternator will receive a large electrical load...making the alternator harder to turn and making your motor turn slower or sluggish.

These are just thoughts off the top of my head. I think the chances are small.

I'm not sure that'll help you. What kind of carburation do you have? Fuel injection? Is your timming through a sensor and computer?

By go4mo (80.216.207.54) on Monday, June 27, 2005 - 11:36 pm:

airbox for brakes .. please explain ...
i was talking about my carb ..

my car is still idle hunting like crazy .. can't find any discernable vacuum leak ..

it's making me a bit nuts ..

By Darrell--Arizona-- (68.109.151.121) on Sunday, June 26, 2005 - 01:01 pm:

Hey mo.

Do you mean an airbox for your air filter or an airbox to help with your vacuum and brakes?

If you are making an extra resevior for your brakes, I've seen them made from large PVC pipe with PVC caps. The pipes are about 6 inches in diameter and 12 inches long. Electric cars need this as their vacuums are made from pumps, but this setup might help your vacuum/brake problem as well.

By go4mo (80.216.207.54) on Sunday, June 26, 2005 - 09:35 am:

haha .. kyle ! .. axles - yep ... gives a whole new meaning to "gone in 60 seconds"

i am relieved to report that it is NOT i repeat, NOT an axle problem !
thank the sweet baby jesus ..

i decided to fab up my own airbox - (as mine doesn't fit under the hood) - it's pretty crude -made it from a fairly solid cookie tin - anyone done this and have any tips? --

cheers
mo

By Kyle Thomson (24.83.30.135) on Saturday, June 25, 2005 - 12:11 am:

Oh I hope its not that, Mo is an expert at putting axles back in, I've seen her do it in under a minute (including running to the back to get the jack, jacking it up, crawling under to pop it in, dropping it and getting back on the road) =)

By Tim Calvert (69.11.53.19) on Friday, June 24, 2005 - 09:50 pm:

I did a swap with an 82 EN 1300 engine in my 76 Civic had some real grinding noises. Started with gear oil found out I should be using 10 40 engine oil so drained and replaced. Didn't solve the problem. Found the driver side inner knucle not all the way into the tranny. Finally got it to lock in place and no more grinding noises. Because I hadn't properly made the upper motor mount solid I think the motor was twisting ahead and up causing the axle to come away from the tranny enough to start grinding. You may want to check to make sure the axle is locked into place on both sides of the tranny

By Darrell--Arizona-- (68.109.151.121) on Thursday, June 23, 2005 - 02:27 pm:

Did you replace your brake booster? Maybe your brake booster leaks vacuum only when your brakes are pressed...causing your idle to go up.

Maybe check your brake booster for leaks with a vacuum tester with the pedal in and out.

So....Madonna needs needs a good bleeding. Eww.

By go4mo (80.216.207.54) on Thursday, June 23, 2005 - 01:46 pm:

ok, so update - incase anyone is following my thread(s) ..

- brakes are as spongee as madonna on a comeback tour ... however - after bleeding the snot out of them, they improved - slightly .. will do a bench bleed of the master to make sure all works .. there are no leaks anywhere to speak of, so at least that's good news ..

- idle is improved after warming the car up and letting a bit of water/air sputter out of a hose connected at the intake ..

- idle increases sharply when pumping the brakes .. i assume this is due to increase in vacuum usage and the spongee-ness of the braking system .. if anyone spots this as an odd symptom, please tell me what it means ..

- no discernable vacuum leaks - however, after revving fairly high, it almost wants to die out when returning to idle ..

- mystery noise went away, except once in awhile in reverse ..

- adjusted the rockers -- it liked it ! -- sounds way smooth now ..

- next big issue .. (JUSTIN maybe you have had experience with this ..) what is the normal operating temp. of the ER ? - i'm using my stock 1200 rad, and the fan doesn't kick on till almost 3/4 up ! - could it be that lower hose from the block messin up the flow?? (i haven't found an appropriate way to cap it yet ..)

i don't think it's my thermometer, and my temperature seniding unit is new and was working fine with the eb motor ...- for now i have wired up a manual switch to make sure i don't cook things ..

that's the news ..
always open to advice ..
mo

By go4mo (80.216.207.54) on Friday, June 17, 2005 - 03:31 am:

the odd thing is that in the donor car, none of these symptoms appeared .. i drove the donor car to the garage, swapped the motor, and now this ..

good news is, yesterday, it made NO noise .. none .. none at all .. i didn't drive it much, just down the street and back ..

.. and, the idle won't sit down .. even with the screw adjusted fully out .. so it's revving a bit high ..

nother question .. what kind of mods have the city swappers done for the airbox (as the stock ER box is too tall on the motor to close the hood )+ ..

cheers ..
mo

By Adrian (Evocivic) (203.42.97.141) on Thursday, June 16, 2005 - 03:22 am:

Then that's probably not the problem, unless the flywheel center bearing is seized or very sticky and the input shaft keeps spinning even with the clutch in ...

By go4mo (80.216.207.54) on Thursday, June 16, 2005 - 02:56 am:

.. and what do you suppose it means if the sound doesn't completely go away ?

By Adrian (Evocivic) (203.42.97.141) on Wednesday, June 15, 2005 - 03:57 pm:

I'm not sure ... they just seem a bit weak. I've pulled apart several EB and EN boxes that have had collapsed bearings. If that's the problem then you can usually hear a low rumble when the clutch is out which goes away when you push it in.

By go4mo (80.216.207.54) on Wednesday, June 15, 2005 - 07:28 am:

and what would cause a gearbox input bearing to suddenly collapse?

By Adrian (Evocivic) (203.42.97.141) on Tuesday, June 14, 2005 - 10:34 pm:

Sounds a little like the gearbox input shaft bearing has collapsed. If that's what it is then it should go away when you push the clutch in.

By go4mo (80.216.207.54) on Tuesday, June 14, 2005 - 10:26 pm:

does the sound go away .. um .. well .. not really .. -- well .. sometimes -- thus the intermittent part ..

2 kinds of intermittent ..

1.) in neutral, it sounds sort of constent, if the sound appears at all ..

(it almost sound like the flywheel shield a bit .. i mean, when i had the lower mount pressed up against the shield, it made a wee dent ..)

intermittent 2.) this would explain why when i test drive, the sound also increases in speed ..

oddly, when i am in neutral and rev a bit, it seems to diminish - and sometimes disappears -
and as soon as i have it in gear and let my foot off the clutch, it shows itself louder ..

i'm gonna try draining the tranny oil and see if it "glistens" -- that will help me know if it's internal ..

it doesn't sound like a throw out bearing ..
somethin is rubbing somewhere ..

thanks for scrathcin your heads with me ..

mo

By Darrell--Arizona-- (68.109.151.121) on Monday, June 13, 2005 - 03:51 pm:

Sorry. I'll try to pull my head out before writing. Don is saying the same thing...oops.

Also I meant to say...

Does the sound go away when you don't use your clutch? (when its in neutral, foot off pedal)

By Darrell--Arizona-- (68.109.151.121) on Monday, June 13, 2005 - 06:49 am:

My Nissan truck has an intermittent sound from the clutch. I was told it was the clutch release bearing (I forgot the other name). Although my sound isn't grinding... Its more like a growl or a rumble.

Does the sound goes away when you don't use your clutch? (when its in neutral, foot off pedal)

By Don (63.135.203.88) on Monday, June 13, 2005 - 05:40 am:

The grinding is probably the throwout bearing sleeve going too far and hitting the clutch disk... done that !

By go4mo (80.216.207.54) on Monday, June 13, 2005 - 12:21 am:

hey there ..
update ...

the washers did the trick .. however, i am now getting a strange intermittent "grinding" noise coming from the tranny .. it wasn't there at all when i fist started the car, but appeared as soon as i started to use the clutch .. which i have tried adjusting all the way up and all the way down - (pain in the ass)

it still feels weird - no matter what the adjustment - for what it's worth, it felt weird in the donor car too ..

so i --

- switched clutch cables (using the one from the donor car) -- no difference ..
the pedal sits just as high with either cable, regardless of adjustment ..

is this normal?

cheers ..
mo

By Knifeboy (154.20.234.195) on Friday, June 10, 2005 - 03:19 pm:

Justin just slipped a couple washers in between my lower mount and tranny. That solved the problem for me twice. Just find 6 small washers that'll slide over the three 12mm bolts on the mount and you're set (assuming that's where the problem is).

By go4mo (80.216.207.54) on Friday, June 10, 2005 - 11:37 am:

yippee a simple solution ..
now, what do you mean "spaced over"? .. (my car is about 40 minutes from my house, so if i can prepare what i need BEFORE i go out there, it would be best .. )

- spaced over how much ?
- what did you use to space it with?

thanks for the experience and info ..

funny, just before i got home today (now) i was wondering if it might be the lower tranny mount binding ..

thanks again ....
mo

By Justin (24.69.255.203) on Friday, June 10, 2005 - 08:31 am:

lower tranny mount, it needs to be spaced over, it's probably binding on the back side of the flywheel.. been there done that

By Don (199.2.139.151) on Friday, June 10, 2005 - 08:19 am:

Yes the engine should turn by hand this is important. What we need to find out is if the binding is in the engine or external. The Push test will give us an Idea.
Putting more juice to a problem like this will only make more problems.

By Darrell--Arizona-- (68.109.151.121) on Friday, June 10, 2005 - 07:41 am:

Does the new engine need a bigger battery? Or maybe your old one is dead or dying.

By go4mo (80.216.207.54) on Friday, June 10, 2005 - 06:37 am:

i spent my four letter words AND bought a few extra vowels !..

i suppose it is possible that i screwed up the tranny somehow ..

but say i did -- .. shouldn't the mooter at least TURN?

By Don (63.224.193.77) on Friday, June 10, 2005 - 06:14 am:

If your getting any pedal feel at all clutch wise the your probably ok on adjustment... It just has to release to turn over. Follow the manual for this adjustment just to be sure.
If it doesn't roll freely in gear with the clutch in, the running gear has to come apart anyway then its easy to eliminate possibilities
The pin is not too bad if you have a punch that fits the hole exactly, I went and bought one it saves allot of four letter words

By go4mo (80.216.207.54) on Friday, June 10, 2005 - 05:48 am:

thanks don ..

for the several repeat posts, as well as the advice .. ;)

i didn't swap a thing .. pulled out the old motor/tranny combo and stuck the new one in .. no changes at all --

i'm wondering if it is about clutch adjustment? --
or maybe i did something to the tranny when i put the axels in, or maybe the when trying to get that god forsaken pin out of the linkage ...

there are so many maybes ...

but trying to trace it down ..

so ..if it doesn't roll freely with the clutch in and in gear, what do you think the problem might be?

cheers
mo

By Don (63.135.195.54) on Friday, June 10, 2005 - 05:42 am:

opps cruddy software anyway
ps stop using massive amounts of juice! you will have two problems instead of one!

By Don (63.135.195.54) on Friday, June 10, 2005 - 05:38 am:

spinning the wheels in neutral with the clutch in doesnt tell anything... stick it in any gear, and put it on the ground - put the clutch in, if the thing doesn't roll very freely you have a problem even with a seized engine the car should roll easy with the clutch depressed and the car in gear. PS if you did happen to squish a early clutch into a latter flywheel then I do think a new pressure plate may be in order depending on what flywheel you end up using ..(dont reuse the squished pressure plate)

By Don (63.135.195.54) on Friday, June 10, 2005 - 05:38 am:

spinning the wheels in neutral with the clutch in doesnt tell anything... stick it in any gear, and put it on the ground - put the clutch in, if the thing doesn't roll very freely you have a problem even with a seized engine the car should roll easy with the clutch depressed and the car in gear. PS if you did happen to squish a early clutch into a latter flywheel then I do think a new pressure plate may be in order depending on what flywheel you end up using ..(dont reuse the squished pressure plate)

By Don (63.135.195.54) on Friday, June 10, 2005 - 05:38 am:

spinning the wheels in neutral with the clutch in doesnt tell anything... stick it in any gear, and put it on the ground - put the clutch in, if the thing doesn't roll very freely you have a problem even with a seized engine the car should roll easy with the clutch depressed and the car in gear. PS if you did happen to squish a early clutch into a latter flywheel then I do think a new pressure plate may be in order depending on what flywheel you end up using ..(dont reuse the squished pressure plate)

By Don (63.135.195.54) on Friday, June 10, 2005 - 05:27 am:

Paul that incorrect if it wont turn over by hand then a starter is not the problem.... Did you mix clutch and flywheel parts??? Like using the flywheel off the city and the clutch from the 1200? Early civ stuff is different than gen2 or possibly city.

By paul (24.81.146.102) on Friday, June 10, 2005 - 01:19 am:

Hey Mo

Have you tried removing the starter?? & bench testing it could be the brushes in the starter. Then while it's out try hand cranking the motor to see if she spins. could just be a seized starter.

By go4mo (80.216.207.54) on Friday, June 10, 2005 - 12:34 am:

hey all --

so i swapped in a city motor (non turbo) -

here's the situation --

the donor car was running like a klock when i drove it in to the garage .. the motor was pulled ..

motor was put in my 76 ... all systems hooked up to spec --

BUT

the motor won't turn over .. well, sort of, but it takes ALOT of juice ..

symptoms ..
- won't turn by hand --
- with mega juice i get a few turns ..
- has spark,
- has fuel ..
- jacked up the car, tried it in neutral with the clutch in .. still no go ..


- checked all grounds ..
- connected power and ground directly to the starter from a start pack - starter engages, but can only manage a few revolutions ..
- attempted to cross the solenoid -- got only clicking ..

- went back to investigating the tranny ..
- while jacked up - in gear, both wheels spin
- in neutral, wheels spin independently
- tried pushing while it in gear, (5th) right wheel doesn't want to co-operate

- took out the plugs - still no turning by hand, although again with massive juice got about 6 - 7 revolutions ..

- timing belt was not touched - and when getting the few turns out, things sound normal ..

-- i was thinking there must be something messin with the fly wheel, but, the whole unit was running smoothly right before the swap, and no mods were made ..

- could it be my clutch adjustment? -- but no, when the car is jacked up and in neutral with the clutch in (just incase -) - both wheels spin freely ..

so i don't think it's the clutch ..

i would find it almost impossible to believe that the motor suddenly seized, but could still make a few revolutions with massive juice ..

any ideas?

really appreciate it ..
mo