A filthy air cleaner question.

[MJRemi]

The 88 I just obtained failed the smog test last week. I replaced the MAP with a new one and started double checking all the air and vacuum hoses. The large diameter hose from the air filter box had a crinkle under the hose clamp so I dismantled the air box connections to see if I could straighten it out. Upon inspection, I saw a large amount of black gunk coating the entire end of the air box adjacent to the rear end hoses. It took 30 minutes to really clean all the crap out of the interior. It seemed like semi dry oil or grease. What would be the source of this greasy gunk and how do I prevent this in the future?

[vaquaro]

The other end of the equation is the CCV , if the VC grommet or the plastic tube to the throttle body are full of crud the system won't function correctly , this will pressurize the valve cover and pump oil into the air box thru the breather tube you are refering to . You can clean them out , but the grommet and tube are cheap to replace with new parts :thumbsup:

[MJRemi]

Thanks. The hoses look new so I'm guessing the PO had them replaced when they did the rebuild but apparently failed to clean out the air box. I always thought the air flowed out the back of the box, not realizing it can flow into the box from the engine.