Hey people!

Just bought my very first 83 Trans Am (305 V8) for $10 (you read that right, $10 US - the previous owner just wanted me to take it off his hands) last week and am looking forward to draining my savings to make it run and look great...

Here's my problem though, the car has a stalling/surging problem and idles at about 1100rpm. The Check Engine light has been going on and off intermittently and minutes after that, the car starts to stall. A buddy who owns an 84 Trans Am thinks that the stalling/surging issue may be caused by a faulty O2 sensor. I was thinking of taking it in for a diagnostic and a major tune up to just get everything up to par..

Should I take it to a Pontiac dealer and have them work on it? Is it worth the $$$ spent as opposed to taking it to a good independent mechanic?

Any suggestions?

 

WELCOME TO THE BOARDS.
Well since your check engine light is on that means your computer is throwing a code. If I were you I would take it to a local mechanic and have them put it on a scanner and find out what code(s) its throwing then go to autozone and buy the part to fix it. Also while your there buy a haynes manual for your car it will help you out alot. Also now would be a good time for a tune up. If you dont plan on working on the car yourself its really a toss up between taking it to the dealer or a local mechanic. I think the things I just listed are to easy to do to pay someone elso for. Good Luck oh and congradulations on getting your first Fbody.

 

A good tune up goes a long way. It may be time for a carb rebuild. I am pretty sure pre 84 vehicles did not have an 02.

 

I would start with a tune up and maybe clean the carb, could need a rebuild

 

Thanks! This board has really been great at giving me a crash course on ThirdGens..

Anyway, I've called around town to find out how much shops charged to use a scanner and they've ranged from $75 for independent shops and $160 at the local Pontiac dealership!

The first thing I bought after I got the Trans Am was Chilton's Repair Manual for the 82-85 Firebirds so I think I'll take it in for a scan and try to fix the problem myself depending on how easy a job it is then take it in for a full tune up right after. By the way, the Pontiac dealership also quoted me $600 for a major tune up on the T/A while a pretty reliable local mech says it should cost about $300-$400...so thats still a toss up.

I'll keep you guys updated..

 

Just check the codes yourself do a search on how to do it . Only
requires a jumper wire , or paper clip save that $75., $150. and get a sense of accomplishment. Welcome aboard

Dynodan

 

Thanx for the suggestion! I couldn't find any paper clips but I found a short jumper cable and I think I'm ready to check the codes myself..

How accurate are these codes anyways?

By the way, first major problem I had with the Trans Am today - went to fill it up with gas and as I was driving out of the gas station, it stalls and the engine dies! Try to fire it up but it seems like the battery was dead. I was afraid that the starter might have taken a dump but I got a jump and after three tries, it started and ran fine till I got it home. Seems like I might need to shell out some $$$ for a new battery (though its only 5 months old) and while I'm at it, probably get a new alternator too?

Well, I'm off to check the trouble codes...couldn't think of a better way to spend my Friday nite...fiddling with a Trans Am...

 

CHECK ALL THE WIRING!!...any battery/alternator/ignition type problems...allways check the wiring first....lotso times you will find loose ground/burnt through wires. while a new *insert item here* may fix the problem for a while any bad wiring will cause it to go bad much faster....jsut some food for thought

 

I don't think the LG4 (5.0L 140hp) had an O2, but I know the L69 (5.0L HO 190hp) did, because mine has one.

 

Guess I missed anything written about the induction system. What are we working with here? Is it carbed? Is it CFI? I assume the ECm is still there since the engine light is off then comes back on. Just use a paper clip or jumper get the codes and post them. Usually when a car has been around people fart with the vacuum lines and decide to unhook thing that look funny to them without understanding why GM put them there. BTW all 3rdgens came with 02 sensors from the factory at least all produced for sale in the USA.

Now if it were me I'd start looking for that vacuum leak thats most likely causing your problems maybe even back the timing off since the previous owner probably decided to bump the timing up to make her run a bit better.

$50 please

 

I'm a total noob at this so I'm not too familiar with the tech jargon yet, sorry..but its a 305ci V8 LU5 with Crossfire Fuel Injection, if that helps any..

Took my jumper cable today and tried to retrieve the trouble codes. With the ignition off, I hooked up pin 5 to pin 6 since it looked like it only had 7 pins (6 on top and 1 on the bottom). I The Check Engine light comes on and flashes 12 three times but then I noticed smoke coming from the dashboard vents and I smelled something smoking so I immediately unhooked the jumper cable and turned off the ignition.

What's going on?