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after 11 years I got my 1991 Firebird back on the German roads last October. Now after the winter pause a small oil loss issue that the mechanic told me not to worry about too much last year turned into a serious problem.
When I returned after a joyride I noticed smoke coming from below my passenger door.
Turns out my catalytic converter was covered in oil:
The only source of oil I could think of was the one that wasn't that bad last October, so I cleaned everything with brake cleaner once the car was cold.
Today I tried letting the car just idle for a while. Well, after just 2 minutes of idling the oil was already dripping at about a drop per second from below the car, so I shut it all off and cleaned the driveway...
(Turned out my oil level was also down to almost minimum since I last checked it before my first ride on April 1st (start of the season) . and I did not drive much at all since then.
I never knew that area had the potential to cause any kind of extreme oil loss.
Also I have no experience below the distributor cap that I had changed myself over a decade ago.
Does anyone know what seal this is? Do I need to remove the starter motor and have the ignition set up again afterwards by someone who still knows how to do so and had that pistol like thing required for that?
Quite a bummer that I am now basically stuck in the garage, because as bad as it is now I can't really drive at all anymore. Besides the environment I don't want to get some biker killed by covering the road in oil James Bond style.
So anything that might help would be very much appreciated.
Thanks and I hope you guys have your cars running fine and your families healthy during these strange times.
(I wanted to hike on the Appalachian Trail this year, now I am stuck here and can't even ride this stupid car that I own since 2004 and that still makes me smile.)
If I were a betting man , I'd bet the O ring that seals your distributor to the block is hardened/cracked and is the source of your leak . On the V6 the distributor O ring holds back the full oil pressure of the engine so when it fails the leak can be quite dramatic . The second option is the so called "china wall" at the back of the lower intake manifold , but at the rate you say it's leaking the distributor O ring is the #1 suspect here . And no , the starter doesn't have to come out , but the distributor does , which does need to be reset with the timing light (gun) that you mentioned . Were it mine , as long as you got the money , this would be a great time to put a whole new distributor in
Here is a picture of a V6 distributor (and a V6 distributor turned into an engine pre oiler) showing the O ring of which I speak ....
Oh, yes of course, distributor not starter motor. Sorry, no idea what I was thinking there, haha.
Alright, I will definitely get a new distributor then. Of course stuff like this always happens on a Friday evening, so I have some time until Monday to figure out how to get the car there and everything.
Economically this car makes not much sense anyway, given that it is just a V6 with a bad paint job and a few dents. But it is my first car and while you still saw one of them every once in a while when I bought it in 2004, you don't really see them here in Germany at all anymore. The German forums are also pretty much dead now.
When I got it on a trailer to the mechanic last year to get it registered again I was driving behind the trailer and some boy on a bicycle stopped, called for his buddy and pointed at my car and they both stopped to take a look. You know, you can get some old BMW here for the same money and it might be a better car or whatever... but here in Germany the 3rd gen. Firebird is still recognized as KITT even today.
Gotta remind people that one man can make a difference. Can't put a price on that.
I totally understand the keeping it because it's your first car and you like it sentiment , my first car (that actually ran well enough to drive) was a 1951 Chevy "Special Deluxe" that sure would be fun to have today (Ok , showing my age here a bit ) . And oh yes I remember that even though it was a U.S. based show , Germany loved both Kitt and the 'Hoff , he being German and was seen as quite the looker by the ladies of the time .
Anyway , with the amount of oil that O ring can leak , and with how wet your catalytic converter already looks with it , I'd have it towed to where the new distributor is going to be installed rather than try to drive it , to prevent a possible fire .
Oh, yes of course, distributor not starter motor. Sorry, no idea what I was thinking there, haha.
Alright, I will definitely get a new distributor then. Of course stuff like this always happens on a Friday evening, so I have some time until Monday to figure out how to get the car there and everything.
Economically this car makes not much sense anyway, given that it is just a V6 with a bad paint job and a few dents. But it is my first car and while you still saw one of them every once in a while when I bought it in 2004, you don't really see them here in Germany at all anymore. The German forums are also pretty much dead now.
When I got it on a trailer to the mechanic last year to get it registered again I was driving behind the trailer and some boy on a bicycle stopped, called for his buddy and pointed at my car and they both stopped to take a look. You know, you can get some old BMW here for the same money and it might be a better car or whatever... but here in Germany the 3rd gen. Firebird is still recognized as KITT even today.
Gotta remind people that one man can make a difference. Can't put a price on that.
Hmm... du fährst wohl in den falschen Gegenden herum... Ich kenne jemanden in Aachen mit zwei Trans Am und ich selbst bin keine 50 Kilometer von Aachen weg. So klein ist die Welt. Wenn du interessiert bist, ich bin Co-Admin in der größten deutschsprachigen WhatsApp Gruppe, die sich nur um die 3rd Gen in allen Facetten dreht. Schreib mir eine PM, falls du an einem Beitritt interessiert sein solltest. Und ich gehe mit meinen Vorrednern konform, es ist mit großer Wahrscheinlichkeit der O-Ring des Zündverteilers. Neuen Verteiler rein, Zündung auf 10° vor OT einstellen und fertig. Und danach viel Öl wegputzen.
For those who don't speak german: I think he's driving around at the wrong places. I do know someone who owns two Trans Am in Aachen where he lives and I live about 35 miles next to Aachen. And I am the Co-Mod in a german speaking WhatsApp group especially for 3rd gen cars. And I too think that the o-ring of the dizzy is the culprit here. New distributor, set timing at 10° BTDC and good to go... And after all, a lot of cleaning.
Last edited by J.C. Denton; 05-08-2020 at 06:21 PM.
Well, if your valve cover gasket is gone along the bottom, that would leak a lot of oil right into that area. I'm not sure about the distributor. That seal only seals the crankcase. It's not an immersed oil seal.
Well, if your valve cover gasket is gone along the bottom, that would leak a lot of oil right into that area. I'm not sure about the distributor. That seal only seals the crankcase. It's not an immersed oil seal.
On the 8 cylinder you are correct , but this gent has a 6 cylinder , and if you do a quick search you will find that the 6 cylinder does indeed have pressurized oil behind that O ring , and it is a well known oil leak failure point that lets out a whole bunch of oil when it fails ...
I don't know for certain why , but if I were forced to guess I'd think they were looking for better distributor shaft lubrication . I looked everywhere and couldn't find a diagram I've seen in the past showing the oil flow through a GM 60 degree V6 engine that shows the area under the O ring as being in the path of the oil .
I don't know where Viersen is, but I had my current firebird over there in Idar-Oberstein for a couple years. Anyway, if OP gets a new distributor, check the o-ring slot, as I had a 'cast' slot on my new distributor, instead of being milled, and a small divit in the casting caused a spot where the oil could slip past the brand new o-ring, and result in a leak.
Alright, I finally managed to replace the distributor and the oil leak is indeed fixed. Just to let people know who might find this in the future.
Old vs, new ("World Power Systems"):
New distributor installed:
Tuning everything has also been quite easy using the cheap light pistol I ordered from Amazon.
I just had to turn the distributor cap counter clockwise initially, otherwise the car would only run for 2-3 seconds once the connector of the computer was unplugged to get started with the light pistol.
Thanks for your help, I am glad I can finally drive again.
i thing i have the same problem . Can somebody tell me step by step how to change that o-ring ?? Do i have to disconect any cables or battery ? Why do i need that gun ? thx for all answers .
"Do I need the gun"? Answer: Yes, you need a timing light to set the initial timing on the engine. You can buy (or possibly rent) a timing light from most parts stores.
As far as a step by step tutorial, generally any distributor replacement tutorial on Youtube or any other forum will walk you through it. Also, you don't necessarily need a new distributor, just a new o-ring on it. The most difficult part, in my opinion, is loosening and tightening the single bolt that holds down the distributor. And yes, you do have to disconnect the negative battery cable from the battery.
05-08-2020, 03:00 PM
) . And oh yes I remember that even though it was a U.S. based show , Germany loved both Kitt and the 'Hoff , he being German and was seen as quite the looker by the ladies of the time . 
Your welcome , and I am happy your leak is fixed . 
