rescued Trans am , new day , new problem. Wont start
05-28-2019, 07:56 PM
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rescued Trans am , new day , new problem. Wont start
So i rescued a 87 Trans am and so far the score is 2-0 , been brought home on tow truck twice and under her own power zero
Have been battling the car an issue at a time just to get it to the point i can roll it in and out of the garage etc. , no desire to drive anywhere until it is thoroughly gone thru.
My first challenge was the brakes, gave me hell of a time and was solved with help from this forum.
www.thirdgen.org/forums/brakes/761556-rescued-trans-am-brakes.html
Fresh of that success and full of optimism I managed to get a tube into the gas tank and hit fuel . Was able to siphon out just over 5 gallons of 6 year old fuel . So with a tank just about empty, I started it up and drove it down the hill to the gas station at the end of my street , about 1/8 mile or less away. Remember the part about the hill. get to bottom of hill to turn into the station so i could fill it up with fresh fuel and a can of cleaner ( decided on sea foam) and she stumble , sputters and dies.
walked up the hill, got a gas can , walked to station and dumped in 2 gallons fresh gas. and nothing , car would not start.
let it sit for 20 minute, no start . she cranks great but would not start.
With that hill between me and my garage , i had to have it towed up the hill, score 2-0
I am assuming its either a fuel filter or pump due to the crap in tank . I am prepared to do both but have a few questions and of course welcome any input on an angle im just not seeing . I had to travel out of town for business this week and dont have the car to look at to verify. Want to order some parts to be at the house when i get there next weekend so was hoping for some verification.
rock auto list some variations for the carb car.
car
1987 Trans am 5.0 carb.
36,xxx miles, 100% stock
been sitting outside , never started past 6 years. garaged every other year
1. Fuel pump. from what i have read this is a ( main ) mechanical fuel pump on the block and an ( auxiliary ) assisting electric in the tank. seems i should be able to replace the mechanical on the block and the car should run well enough as it will draw enough fuel . Remember , just need to get the car to point where it moves around on its own power. A full tank drop/ clean can be in the future but not today. Did ALL 87 305 with carb have the mechanical pump on block?
2. fuel filter, Did all 87 305 with carb just have the element that drops into the fitting at the CARB? Or did some 87 305 with carb have the inline filter in the rear under the car ?
Than you for any verification you guys can provide. Im sure i will get this sorted and on my next voyage down the hill to fill the tank, the ejector seat will disable rendering the car unable to start .
Have been battling the car an issue at a time just to get it to the point i can roll it in and out of the garage etc. , no desire to drive anywhere until it is thoroughly gone thru.
My first challenge was the brakes, gave me hell of a time and was solved with help from this forum.
www.thirdgen.org/forums/brakes/761556-rescued-trans-am-brakes.html
Fresh of that success and full of optimism I managed to get a tube into the gas tank and hit fuel . Was able to siphon out just over 5 gallons of 6 year old fuel . So with a tank just about empty, I started it up and drove it down the hill to the gas station at the end of my street , about 1/8 mile or less away. Remember the part about the hill. get to bottom of hill to turn into the station so i could fill it up with fresh fuel and a can of cleaner ( decided on sea foam) and she stumble , sputters and dies.
walked up the hill, got a gas can , walked to station and dumped in 2 gallons fresh gas. and nothing , car would not start.
let it sit for 20 minute, no start . she cranks great but would not start.
With that hill between me and my garage , i had to have it towed up the hill, score 2-0
I am assuming its either a fuel filter or pump due to the crap in tank . I am prepared to do both but have a few questions and of course welcome any input on an angle im just not seeing . I had to travel out of town for business this week and dont have the car to look at to verify. Want to order some parts to be at the house when i get there next weekend so was hoping for some verification.
rock auto list some variations for the carb car.
car
1987 Trans am 5.0 carb.
36,xxx miles, 100% stock
been sitting outside , never started past 6 years. garaged every other year
1. Fuel pump. from what i have read this is a ( main ) mechanical fuel pump on the block and an ( auxiliary ) assisting electric in the tank. seems i should be able to replace the mechanical on the block and the car should run well enough as it will draw enough fuel . Remember , just need to get the car to point where it moves around on its own power. A full tank drop/ clean can be in the future but not today. Did ALL 87 305 with carb have the mechanical pump on block?
2. fuel filter, Did all 87 305 with carb just have the element that drops into the fitting at the CARB? Or did some 87 305 with carb have the inline filter in the rear under the car ?
Than you for any verification you guys can provide. Im sure i will get this sorted and on my next voyage down the hill to fill the tank, the ejector seat will disable rendering the car unable to start .
Last edited by slownlo; 05-28-2019 at 08:04 PM.
05-28-2019, 11:24 PM
#2
Re: rescued Trans am , new day , new problem. Wont start
I wouldn't be nearly as concerned about the stuff in the tank, as I would be about the stuff in the carb. Carbs don't like to sit. Worst case scenario the gas in the tank will turn brown, and it won't run really well. First the galvanizing on the inside of the tank will go, then it'll start to rust, but none of that will enter the fuel system because there's generally a filter on the pickup in the tank. Meanwhile, the gas in the fuel bowl of the carb evaporates, and turns to various garbage, potentially corrodes the inside of the carb, rubber bits dry out, all kinds of finely machined parts get crusty, and suddenly the carb stops ureting and you're stuck.
Siphoning and thirdgen tanks don't really go together. The tank is anything but a straight forward shape. The filler neck is specifically designed to prevent tampering. If you do manage to get a small diameter hose inside the tank, you'll be well above the 1/2 tank water line. If you manage to flip and flop it into the bottom of the tank, you'll still have such a small diameter tube you'll be there all day trying to get anything out of the tank. Not to mention if there's any crud in the tank, it'll probably clog your tube. Even with the tank out of the car, you can't really dump the gas out the filler tube or the sending unit access hole, because again the filler neck dumps in the upper half of the tank, not at the top, and not to an edge, it extends almost to the middle of the tank. The sending unit access hole isn't the lowest point even with the tank flipped over... It's kind of like trying to shake your coins out of a piggy bank, but the bank is razor sharp steel, smells awful, and is generally an awkward shape to handle.
I'd probably start by filling the fuel bowl of the carb through the vent tube, and see if it'll run out the fuel bowl. Then if it does work your way back from the carb one step at a time. Or just jump in and refurb the entire fuel system. Beauty of a carb is you can disconnect the fuel inlet from the carb and run it into a gas can and eliminate the entire rest of the fuel system for testing. If none of what I'm saying makes any sense at all, nevermind, I was never here.
Good luck.
Siphoning and thirdgen tanks don't really go together. The tank is anything but a straight forward shape. The filler neck is specifically designed to prevent tampering. If you do manage to get a small diameter hose inside the tank, you'll be well above the 1/2 tank water line. If you manage to flip and flop it into the bottom of the tank, you'll still have such a small diameter tube you'll be there all day trying to get anything out of the tank. Not to mention if there's any crud in the tank, it'll probably clog your tube. Even with the tank out of the car, you can't really dump the gas out the filler tube or the sending unit access hole, because again the filler neck dumps in the upper half of the tank, not at the top, and not to an edge, it extends almost to the middle of the tank. The sending unit access hole isn't the lowest point even with the tank flipped over... It's kind of like trying to shake your coins out of a piggy bank, but the bank is razor sharp steel, smells awful, and is generally an awkward shape to handle.
I'd probably start by filling the fuel bowl of the carb through the vent tube, and see if it'll run out the fuel bowl. Then if it does work your way back from the carb one step at a time. Or just jump in and refurb the entire fuel system. Beauty of a carb is you can disconnect the fuel inlet from the carb and run it into a gas can and eliminate the entire rest of the fuel system for testing. If none of what I'm saying makes any sense at all, nevermind, I was never here.
Good luck.
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WildCard600 (07-29-2019)
07-29-2019, 08:57 AM
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Re: rescued Trans am , new day , new problem. Wont start
So got some time to figure this out , replaced the fuel filter and the car started right up . idles and runs much better . was able to get the car down to the station and filled the tank with a bottle of seafoam . unfortunately , seems like 2 steps forward and 1 back. now the gas tank builds extreme pressure and blows fuel out the neck..
i am happy with forward progress though
i am happy with forward progress though
08-01-2019, 08:48 PM
#4
Re: rescued Trans am , new day , new problem. Wont start
You need to drop the tank. It will be disgusting inside. 6 year old fuel is old enough to be really foul, and new enough to have ethanol in it...... which means it's even MORE nasty if it sat. So till you drop the tank (most likely have to replace it - cleaning them just isn't worthwhile), you'll be fighting this on and off till you get sick of it. A new tank is like $110 delivered. I understand all too well the pain of dropping the tank, but it's unavoidable.
The original tanks had plastic anti-slosh containers inside that surround the fuel strainer. The new aftermarket tanks have a steel container inside. They are actually really nice - I have used two of them. Both my cars sat for over 10 years and run flawlessly - thanks in part to completely new fuel systems from the tank to the injectors. It's just required when you are dealing with the consequences of them sitting full of fuel like that.
GD
The original tanks had plastic anti-slosh containers inside that surround the fuel strainer. The new aftermarket tanks have a steel container inside. They are actually really nice - I have used two of them. Both my cars sat for over 10 years and run flawlessly - thanks in part to completely new fuel systems from the tank to the injectors. It's just required when you are dealing with the consequences of them sitting full of fuel like that.
GD
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