87 firebird formula, 350 TPI,

the problems im having are, all spark plugs smell like gas real bad, get oil fouled, when i start it it usaully dies right away, give it gas and something sounds like its poppin in the engine and theres a high pitch whine noise, snow got into at christmas, this is when the probs started, me and a friend put on new spark plugs, new cap and rotor, didnt help much, when we gave it gas then let off real fast it would run right for a sec then start dieing again, plus the battery keeps gettin drained. We did the code thing and it said the egr valve was bad and something about speed reference pulse???

the heck is the speed reference pulse

well if any help will be greatly apprciated, hopefully i can get this bird back to its steady diet of ****

 

FPR working? injectors leaking, have strong spark? check it with a spark cheacker and not a old plug. timing correct? hard to believe or understand your plugs becoming oil fouled trying to start the engine. compression good? just a few things to consider. need to trouble shoot it a bit and see where it leads you. i'd check the speed referance code, not sure what it is with out looking at a manual, and trouble shoot it. there ought to be a code meaning and trouble shooting referance in your manual, if not get one that has it.

 

Bird eight-seven,

Welcome Aboard!

Changing the cap and rotor was probably a good step, but if the distributor area got really wet, there are a few more items to check. Your ECM is also telling you that you still have problems there.

The distributor reference pulses are electrical impulses generated by the pickup coil and reluctor under the rotor (in the base of the distributor). This pulse is what triggers the HEI amplifier/switching module to operate the ignition coil. This signal is also sent to the ECM as a reference to engine RPM.

There is another input that references vehicle speed, This is generated by a Vehicle Speed Sensor (VSS) that is mounted on the tailshaft of the transmission on your Pontiac (or back of the speedometer on some other model cars). This sensor is supposed to generate 4,000 pulses per mile travelled. The ECM uses data from this input to trim fuel and spark, operate the electric cooling fans, cycle the EVAP purge and EGR, and operate the torque converter lockup clutch.

There is a chance that the electrical connections for the VSS, distributor, HEI and other circuits became saturated and corroded. The easy way to check is to unplug these connectors and inspect them. You could use an oscilloscope to monitor the signal inputs at the ECM, but this could get cumbersome.

The EGR error code could indicate several problems, including a stuck EGR valve, failed EGR temperature switch or solenoid, or more problems with circuit connections. The connections and solenoid are all near the distributor, so that would be a prime suspect. Take a closer look at all the wiring and grounding in that area and on the firewall.

 

thanks vader, it sounds like i got some real fun times ahead of me. when i fix the prob i'll be sure to post it.