Eric Hysteric wrote:
After removing the airfilterhousing i discovered two things, that irritate me.
1. connector without without a connected cable
2. some vacuum unit(?) without a hose
Do you know what it is?
I wouldn't worry about the loose wire connector. It's common to find unused connections in OEM wiring harnesses. (The same concern/issue was discussed recently this thread.)
Manufacturers, including Dodge, use a single wiring harness for a variety of engine and vehicle configurations, to simplify manufacturing and reduce costs. Depending on the particular vehicle and engine equipment, some connectors are simply not used. (For example, on vehicles where the radio is an option, the radio power connector is left unused and loose in the dash if the buyer chose to forgo that option.)
Where your connector is located, close to the vacuum choke pull-off, I'd say it's probably for the electric choke heater used on some engine configurations.
(Here is a general purpose article on carburetor choke systems.)The canister with the missing hose is probably part of the smog equipment, disconnected at some point after the vehicle left the dealership. There's a part number partially visible in your picture. If you can provide that number, I (or others with an OEM parts catalog) may be able to identify what it is.)
Off the top of my head, without more information, I'd say it's probably part of a fuel vapor recovery system.
Both of these are a PITA in places that require OEM configurations to pass smog inspections. In the case of the loose wire connections, the inspector has to establish it wasn't part of the original OEM configuration for that engine/vehicle.
'Disconnected' smog equipment (if that's what the canister is) is even more difficult/annoying/frustrating to deal with because it often involves missing vacuum hoses. (Personally, I find bringing vacuum systems back to 'correct' OEM configuration more frustrating than dealing with electrical issues.)
You mentioned possibly converting your motorhome from gasoline to LPG (propane) fuel. This makes sense because LPG is a 'cleaner' fuel and the EU is big on that. As a result, LPG refueling facilities are more common in Europe than in North America.
Unfortunately, LPG conversion is illegal in some places in the U.S. because it's
not an OEM configuration. Many places with stringent smog inspections do not allow anything other than OEM configuration, even if the alternatives are cleaner and produce less emissions.
Been there, done that. After I rebuilt, adjusted, and tuned the engine in my '80 Ford Bronco, it was tested on a emissions detection machine. For comparison, a new automobile, with only a few thousand miles on it, was also tested. Much to the surprise of the people conducting the tests, my carburetor engine was putting out
less emissions than the computerized EFI engine in the new car.
(If the local government hadn't done away with vehicle emissions testing, I wouldn't have been able to register my Bronco because of some of the things I'd done to make it cleaner and more efficient.)
