Cranks but won't start

hi Everyone, this is my first post here but i have already enjoyed a lot of very helpful information from you all... and thanks Tim and Gwen for this site.

my 85 van died a while ago. i was driving over a bridge and the gas pedal stopped giving gas to the engine but the engine still ran for another couple of minutes. i coasted as far a i could off the bridge (not far!) and pulled over. engine still running but no response from the pedal still. i turned it off and sat for a minute and then tried it to see if it had fixed itself, but it had not. now it would not start at all. it cranks ok but the engine will not start. the cable connected to the gas pedal seems to work fine.

i tested some fuses and pulled out the ECU and was going to test some things there (i thought it may be fuel injection electrical) but yesterday i noticed a small hose that was cracked through. it seems to be an air hose but i cant find in the manual what exactly it is (or is called).

heres where the hose connects (sorry the pics are small... i was not sure what size to upload.. but if you click on them they are big enough to see):
Attachment 1544

close up:
Attachment 1545

does anyone know what this hose is?
i am going to replace it today but do you think this cracked hose connection would stop the engine from starting?

there are other things that need fixing and have for a while so i am going to try and replace some hoses, the valve cover gasket is leaking bad too, and there is at least one rusty pipe going to the heater that may be ready to die soon (my coolant started getting rusty lately). i read a great thread last night where i realized replacing an o-ring in the power steering pump would be wise! i put in a new alternator a few years ago and now it s covered with PS fluid. the PS seems to me leaking in a few places.

thanks!
:bluevan:

THe missing hose in your picture would cause a giant vacuum leak which would cause the engine not to start and that's the first step I would take to resolve the issue.

This is the vacuum assist line for your power steering pump and the purpose is to raise the engine RPM when you are in tight turns while idling and or moving slowly so that the effort required to drive the pump does not cause the engine to stall.

If your engine is at idle and rpm does not increase when the steering wheel is turned the engine will likely stall especially if you have any other vacuum leaks present this is more true on the 84-85 Years since the power steering type is recirculating ball with pitman arms and drag links more linkage components harder steering.

The 84-85 Vans even new had difficult steering in parking maneuvering comparatively speaking to rack and pinion

The 86-89 Vans have rack and pinion which still requires the vacuum assists but requires much less effort to steer

Thanks for that info JPERL. i was wondering why it connected to the PS pump but had absolutely no clue. even though i have had this van for 7-8 years i cant say how the RPM are when turning tight but i know it has stalled when doing so a couple of times but not regularly. i do have to make a lot of tight turns to squeeze into parking spots in my neighbourhood and the van is sooo good at squeezing into tight spots but in my mind i did not connect the RPMs to the steering even though there is an actual connection!
it can get pretty noisy when making those slow sharp turns.

i really appreciate your help understanding this.

:bluevan:

i replaced the little hose but it still does not start. i will jump the the "Fuel Pump Test Connector" and see what happens. i have not checked for any saved computer codes since i figured they were erased when i connected the battery. i did some good info on other tests to do in the "dead van" thread.

dave