Hey guys, been a very long time since I've posted to the board, but now I've got
a problem. This could be a very long story so I'll try to cut it down to the
bare essentials.

I've just completed a winter long project which consisted mainly of putting
headers on my car. After installing the headers, all connections and wiring
was checked and double checked. However, when we went to start the car, it
cranked very hard, but just wouldn't catch and turn over. After a few minutes
of trying off and on, we started noticing a gas smell. We then discovered gas
under the car, but couldn't tell where it was coming from. This afternoon I
jacked the driver's side up, preparing to put it back up on jackstands to see
if I could tell where the leak was coming from when I immediately noticed it
dripping again, from the passenger side.

It turns out it was coming from the joint where the y-pipe and cat meet. i
thought it might be leaking from above the cat, but there are no gas lines in
that area, and it's not running down the y-pipe, because it's dry, it's
definately coming from inside the cat. Not to put ideas in your head, but
here's what I think may be the problems, tell me what you think. The gas in
the car is 7+ months old, and I neglected to add any stabilizer to it before
putting it away for the winter. Te gas is now bad and thus the car won't
start, and when we tried to start the car, the engine became so flooded that
the unburned gas was forced out the cylinders and into the headers, running
down into the cat where i most of it sat until I jacked the drivers side up.
Does this sound plausible, are there other reasons the car might not be
starting. As I said, all connections and wiring was double or triple checked.

And if the gas is bad, what am I going to need to do to get the car started. If
I add some fuel stabilizer to it now, and drain what's in the fuel lines now,
will that help? I imagine I'll have to unbolt the cat and make sure there's
not a puddle of gas sitting in there or that could be bad once that thing heats
up to 1000 degrees. Any info, tips, precautions you guys could give me would
be greatly appreciated... I've been itching to drive the car for 7 months now,
and to finally have it back together and still not be able to drive it is
driving me crazy!!
(By the way, the car is an 88 GTA, L98, single cat.

Thanks in advance,

Dave M
88 GTA

 

**** I hope not I haven't started my car since November. I did put stabilizer in it back in febuary though. I would take off the fuel filter and hook a battery up to the fuel pump to drain all that old **** out then put some new gas in.

 

The only thing you did was install the headers?

Hmmn.

Have you checked the oil to see if there's gas in it as well?

That much raw fuel shouldn't be caused by 7 month old gas, IMO.

Is this TPI or TBI?

 

If it's a TPI, pull the vacuum line off the pressure regulator and turn the key to kick the fuel pump on. Be carefull because if the regulator diaphram ruptured, a nice flow of raw fuel will blow out of the line. This would cause alot of gas to flow up into the intake and flood 'er out.

It's an easy 1st check anywayz...