I have a 1982 D150 'miser' with the manual overdrive transmission. When I received this truck, it ran horribly. As it had a broken exhaust manifold, I decided to do the 'super six' conversion, as I had to go through the trouble of manifold R&R anyway. A suitable vict.. er..ah.. donor car was located in a junkyard, which turned out to be a 78 Volare wagon. I got the manifold stack and carb, air cleaner, distributor, ignition module, ballast resistor and a good bit of the wiring harness for cheap.
I removed the truck air cleaner with its attached 'electronic spark control' computer, the manifold stack and the ESC distributor. I installed my junkyard haul and got back on the road in short order. It indeed made a new truck out of it.

It has been awhile since I did this conversion, and I'm very happy with the boost in performance. There are a few unfinished items that I need to do. As this vehicle is not a daily driver, things like this tend to get put off (note lame excuse) In no particular order, these are:

• EGR Control - the ESC computer isn't there any more to open the vacuum line to the valve. I believe there's some kind of water temp device that's supposed to do this.
  Air Cleaner - The air cleaner intake points to the opposite side of the engine compartment, so the cold-air snorkel no longer reaches it. I've considered punching a new hole in the firewall under the battery tray so I can move the inlet side of the snorkel over, but there may be a better way to do it.
  Air Cleaner - The super-six air cleaner hits the A/C compressor before it seats on the BBD's air horn. I need an air-horn extension thats lifts the air cleaner about half an inch. As this is a truck, underhood clearance doesn't appear to be an issue. I haven't been able to find this sort of air horn extension tube off-the-shelf, however.
  Exhaust - The gasket between the exhaust manifold and the header pipe flange fails frequently. To complicate matters, I have a busted pipe flange stud in the manifold. It's not broken off flush, but I haven't been able to get it loose. At the minimum, I want to increase the pipe diameter of he whole exhaust system and put a low-restriction catalytic converter on it. One of Doug's front manifolds appeals to me, but it appears that the A/C compressor support strut would interfere with the pipe connection, so it would require modification as well.
  Other - This engine has an air pump. I don't know if it's required for proper converter operation, but it also functions as the fan belt tensioner so its removal is complicated.

I would appreciate any suggestions on ways to deal with these issues, particularly the air horn extension tube. I have new cab weatherstrip, which in conjunction with some bodywork and painting should make the truck last another 20 years. It will need a new clutch before then, however.

Thanks-
Dan (not the same Dan)

The ESC never operated the EGR system. The coolant temperature sensitive vacuum valves are only one part of a fairly complex thermo-electro-mechanical EGR valve control system. To put in a factory-type system would require a fair number of parts no longer available new (EGR timer, vacuum amplifier, etc). If I were in your position and I had taken the deliberate, thoughtful decision for whatever reason to have a functional EGR system, I would likely put together a system loosely based on (but not identical to) the one described here, and replace the original EGR valve by a more advanced type that is a direct bolt-on. Standard #EGV490; RockAuto's got them on sale for under twenty bucks and you can knock that down further with those 5% RockAuto discount codes that are always floating around. This valve has a backpressure transducer that modulates vacuum to the EGR valve to match EGR flow rate better to the engine load. Takes a smaller bite out of driveability than the non-transducer type valve.

But what is the reason for seeking to put the EGR system back together? Do you have to have it intact to pass a state emission test? Is the engine pinging?
Check for an existing hole; I am fairly sure V8 engines of that year range had the air cleaner snorkel on the driver's side.
Find the Super Six air cleaner that has the flatted front for compressor clearance.
That's another option.
Right, it doesn't exist. You'll have to fabricate it. Piece of PVC pipe, perhaps. Probably have to figure out an extension for the air cleaner lid stud, too.
Means the headpipe flange or (less likely) the exhaust manifold flange is warped. It'll never seal without flat flanges, no matter what gasket you use.
That would also account for frequent gasket failure.
Where are you, and what (exact) type of emission test are you required to pass with this truck?
Yes indeed.

_________________
一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Thanks for the reply, Dan. Your info has been most helpful in the past.

I live in North Alabama, where we have no emissions testing (yet). I became interested in the EGR system after reading about its supposed benefits. I do not notice pinging issues with the engine. (I do get dieseling occasionally). I was under the impression that the ESC enabled the vacuum amplifier through a solenoid-operated valve. Currently, the EGR valve is inoperative (stays closed) There is no hole that I see. The snorkel attaches to the passenger-side via a plastic adapter, where a rectangular hole is located. The current air cleaner has this flat. The 78 Volare had the older Chrysler V compressor, whereas this truck has a longer compressor (swash plate, maybe) that still interferes with the air cleaner. For an extension, I originally used a short length of PVC electrical conduit with a section removed to get the diameter correct (~2 1/8 ") and a cable tie to squeeze it together. It worked for a while, but didn't tolerate the heat in the long term, so I thought about a short length of aluminum tubing. It's not a 'standard' tubing diameter, however. As the stud appears to be an ordinary carriage bolt, I don't anticipate problems in finding a replacement if necessary. The may be the case. There's a decent exhaust shop in this area from which I intend to get a quote. I also want to see if this shop can get the broken stud out without pulling the manifolds.

From what I've read about this engine, it responds well to flow improvements in the exhaust system. If this is indeed the case, I would like to improve this area, especially as parts of the system are in need or replacement.

Thanks-
Dan