I Have a 1984 Caprice 305 with Quardra jet and 700R4
Its pretty much the same as the camaros, ive poped hoods next to a mid 80's camaro and it looked almost identical.

Anywho.
im trying to restore the 305. ive riped it apart, about to put in new crank, cam, pistons and all that.
My question is. I want to remove the egr/echeck setup. how can I do this while still having my ecm functional?
Im restoring the car but want to remove the echeck becouse everytime I have had any problems with that motor, it has been related to the egr and air system.

Thanks
Mike C.

 

New 305 crank? Why on earth would you waste money like that? Even pistons in a 305 rebuild is a waste of money. Cut your losses and go find a 350 shortblock, put your ported 305 heads on it. Spend money on the exhaust system, that's where you're going to get real paybacks.

Now, to your questions: You can remove A.I.R. with no effect. EGR is a different story. The ECM is calibrated assuming it is there. If you remove/defeat it, you'll get mid-throttle loaded pinging problems.

Exactly what kind of past problems have you been having with the EGR system?

 

so what needs to be done to remove the EGR then?

 

Either reprogram the ECM (this assumes your ECM has documented code so you know what to modify) or use an aftermarket timing controller (MSD) or at worst, an HEI distributor.

 

In theory, you can't. Many have removed the valve itself and never gotten a check engine light, but many have had problems with EGR codes out on the highway.

The EGR solenoid (vacuum modulation valve, directly controlled by the ECM via an electronic plug) MUST still be connected for sure. If it's not you'll get a check engine light right away.

There is no reason you should be afraid of the EGR system. It's actually a very reliable system. It gets lots of problems attributed to it that it doesn't actually cause. It's the valve, 2 vacuum lines, the EGR solenoid, 2 wires and the ECM. That's it.

 

The reason why i ask is because i just finished swapping in a 305 out of an 86 chevy conversion van into my 86 trans am. After about 2 minutes of running, i get a SES light. I havent checked the code, but i was figuring that it was from lack of an O2 sensor due to using a homemade y pipe (car had a set of demolished DIY headers on it, had to make something up so i could get the damn thing home). I need to weld a bung into the y-pipe so i can put in a O2 sensor. I have the EGR valve still on the engine, have the vacuum line just hooked to a vacuum source off the top of the manifold, otherwise the idle jumps way up. I guess i will have to pull out the trusty book and find out what all needs to be attached to have the EGR functioning.
Thanks, learn something new every day.

 

EGR trouble codes are on a carbureted car are either from the EGR solenoid being unplugged (or bad or completely missing) which will give you one almost right away, otherwise the ECM won't even know the EGR system has been defeated until you drive a few miles on the highway at fairly constant speed.

Unlike TPI cars, the ECM in a carb car has no way of DIRECTLY knowing if your EGR system is functional. It INFERS it by looking at various sensors while driving on the highway at fairly constant throttle, RPM and speed.

 

Alright, i wont be able to take it out for a steady drive for a few weeks, I have to get it licensed first, but the fiance says I have to wait until after the wedding (on june 17th). Ill get the O2 sensor in, clear the codes and see what happens.