david_0161

Today i was waiting at a stoplight waiting for the light to turn green. My camaro died out of no where. One second it was running like a beast and the next thing i knew it was dead. I started it right back up and no more problems yet. No service engine light or anything. When i bought the car i heard the popping noise and the owner said that he put a new cat on and that the heat was making it expand and that was the reason for the sound. Someone said that was a load of !! and said it might be unburned fuel in my cataylic converter due to the popping noise and to try using a diff grade of fuel or i had a timing problem.....

I would appretiate all the help i can get!!!


Another question.....electric start/ i think thats what it is when u turn the key over and push the button to start it. bad or good? Sorry not good with names of things. lol.

sqzbox

First, about the dieing engine. Were you running the air cond? every once in a while mine dies at a light with the air con on but not very often. It start's right back up. Do you have the VATS system in your car? Sounds like someone tryed to by-pass with a remote start button! And, your poping sound, is that when you decelerate, accelerate, or when your at idle? might want to check the 4 wires going to your external coil and make sure that they aren't touching each other or anything else. Timing might be off too.

Nixon1

What he said. And also with the random stall..it's possibly just a slow IAC motor or a gunked up IAC valve. Either will cause slowed or inaccurate IAC movement which, in certain conditions, could cause a stall.

david_0161

VATS System?? The popping noise starts from the second the car heats up just a little bit and continues.

david_0161

Accelerating, decelerating, and idling. Popping noise is always there.

david_0161

Once Again it died. This time it was after driving it for at least half an hour then tapping the gas to get it up the rest of my steep driveway and just died... WHAT IS HAPPENING?!?!?!?! Is this the IAC or something more??

Nixon1

Well it could be your IAC valve, or it could also be something like a random misfire that's enough to cause the car to shut off.... Or it could be the fuel filter clogging up, which COULD also cause popping due to running lean....but normally you can feel a fuel filter starting to clog as the car will feel held back and doesn't want to accelerate past certain rpms.

Oh and you asked what VATS is....Vats is Vehicle Anti-Theft System. It's a factory thing, if your key has a little black chip-like thing on it, it's a VATS key. That key has a resistor in it, that's like 1 out of 15 levels....so if someone makes an exact copy of your key, but the resistor isnt there or it's wrong, the car will disable the starter solenoid. I think it's more hassle than it's worth really cause once your key or the system gets old, it will malfunction sometimes and disable your car for 5 or 10 minutes...

david_0161

Hey now theres an idea because when i get on the gas it takes a good 3 seconds for it to get up over a certain rpm and feeling like it was being held back but i wasnt sure by what. Ill check out the filter. Oh and with the IAC valve should i just replace it or try to clean it.....?

When i get on the gas and accelerate fast i can hear the engine wining up but the rpm's are still under 3 and has never went above.

Also one more thing when driving and accelerating the oil gauge jumps up and down and usually stays way at the top.

With the VATS system bypassed through the start button under the wheel if i made a copy of my ignition key would it need the chip?

Nixon1

IAC valve---try cleaning it first. If it runs better, it may be ok. But if that doesn't help, it may have a problem with the motor itself, and need replacement. Cleaning it will just allow it to move faster and operate more efficiently...since its whole purpose is to allow air to bypass the throttle blade to prevent stalling and to sustain a normal idle.


The oil gauge jumping is more than likely an electrical problem. The gauges on these old cars aren't very accurate, and they WILL bounce, stick, and fail.

You probably WILL need the VATS chip...even if you have a pushbutton starter, as long as you need to have the key in the ignition and turned forward for the car to run, you will need the VATS key chip.