mellowyelloe

I have an 87' camaro that I got a 305 out of a donor car, made it carbrueted. Now I have installed my TPI set up I bought off of ebay a couple years ago.

I tried installing it once and couldn't get it to work right because the computer was fried, it was doing nothing but dumping fuel constantly. I got a new computer and now tried to install it again.

It is now running. It normally starts pretty easy, every once in a while I will have to give the accelerator a little push to let some air in. But, while it is running, the idle is far from steady. When I push on the accelerator more than a little bit it falls on it's face and some times pops through the throttle body(probably being so advanced). However if I gradually push it down it does alright. I have not taken it on a hi-way so I don't know how fast it will go but so far my speed has not been limited(I've went 50-55mph). I have an air fuel ratio gauge and when I'm going down the road at a constant speed it reads just a little on the rich side or on the high end of the stoich.

Right after I got it going I tried to time it. When I checked the timing it was, oh, I'd probably say 25-35 degrees advanced. If I back it off any with it on it runs rougher and pops through the intake when trying to rev it. Also, it won't start, with it any less advanced.

Now I'll list what has been done since I have bought the TPI set up:

Fuel injectors checked(3 bad and were replaced)
new cap and rotor
new fuel regulator
reman ecm
new idle air control valve
new electronic spark control module
all new relays
new fuel filter
new knock sensor
new oil pressure switch

Now what I am thinking it is, is something in the distributor since the timing seems all messed up. Some one told me I might have the distributor a tooth off, however I swear I put it in the same spot(I took a picture of where it was before I pulled it out with the carb). But, I may be wrong. Would a tooth off cause all this? At first I was thinking the TPS, but would that cause it to have a sporatic idle? Would the MAF cause this? Besides these three things, what else is there?

Thanks for any help you can give me.

Seanmay1

Is it throwing any codes?

mellowyelloe

Oh, yeah forgot that. No codes however the light does act kind of weird to me. When I turn the key to the on position the light just flashes on for a split second and then back off. I thought the light was supposed to stay on as long as the key was on and it wasn't running. I have never seen the light on while it was running however.

Scott 88 GTA

When you're checking the timing you are unhooking the ESC wire (tan/black on the passenger side firewall) right? If you're not then you're going to be fighting the computer trying to advance it all the time.

If however you are unhooking the wire, and it still needs to be that far advanced to start then try checking your EGR valve. Mine got stuck open on me one time and I had to advance my timing to around 40* BTDC to get it to start. It took me weeks to figure out what it was.

mellowyelloe

Oh, no I forgot to unhook the ESC. I know it is not the EGR valve though I took it off and made a block off plate.

Even if the timing is right though, that won't solve my problem with the car not beable to accelerate faster than a 95 year old grandma on sleeping pills. I don't understand how an engine can even run with it as advanced as the timing light shows. With the carb, it wouldn't start or run with it any further than, oh I'd probably say, 20-25 degrees advanced.

Thanks

Seanmay1

the timing being off can make a car run like ****, go set the timing right and test it out and see how it runs

Scott 88 GTA

The way timing works on a TPI is different than a carb. The base timing (with the ESC unhooked) is supposed to be 6* BTDC. The ECM then controls the timing from there. I know from reprogramming PROMs that the stock base timing maps are in the 15-20* BTDC range below 1000 rpms. So if you're timing is 20-25* at idle, then you're probably advanced about 5-10* too far.

Reset your base timing to 6* BTDC and report back. I think you'll find it will make a huge difference.