Hello,

I have a 1990 Camaro L03 with a 700R4. I have noticed that there has been sort of a whine when my engine runs, and I thought it was my smog pump, I haven't gotten around to fixing it yet but I will.

But here's the problem, coming home about 15 minutes ago from a really long trip, I was at a stop light and didn't stop, just had to slow down and turn left, so I did and while I was still going, I made the turn and my car just shut off. So I started it back up and it went just fine, made some right hand turns home, nothing big, and then on the final left turn home, turn the car, the car chugs and almost dies, but I straighten the wheel and it starts to run normal again. After this happens the temperature kind of gets hotter, maybe from the engine load being too much?

I forgot to say I also had the A/C on and was running my satellite radio, but I don't think that should strain the alternator that much.

I checked the power steering fluid and everything was fine, at the proper level, so I'm lost. Is it time for a new power steering pump?

Thank you for your input,
Steve

 

nobody knows?

 

Full lock on any car will tax the power steering to its limit, they say you should never hold it on full lock for long periods, not that you have.
First thing to check would be the power steering.

 

i had a pontiac 6000 that did that but only with 1/4 tank of gas, the fuel sending unit went out and it was empty and while turning i'd run out of gas

 

I drove around all day today so far and it hasn't done it.

I was driving around for a LONG time on the highway (about 2.5 hours) going around 75 MPH yesterday and it happened as soon as I got off the freeway, the heat index was over 100 F, so maybe it was vapor lock? I don't think that usually happens with electric pumps, but i'm confused.

I also forgot to mention that when I turn my wheel ALL the way to the left, it grinds profusely, but only when it's all the way turned, maybe it is the power steering?

 

I'd say go to a gas station and fill up and tell us if it still does the same thing. Otherwise, check for vacuum leaks (whining noise) and repair as necessary. Try some injector or carb cleaner. I was thinking it might be a general idle problem with your car, but the fact that only turning left does it makes me think you were low on gas. I've done it too, so don't be offended that I'm suggesting something so basic. Hope this helps.

 

Grinding on any side does'nt sound to great.
Certainly check the fuel, as that might be something else, but my old 83 doesnt grind at all either way, and if it did i would wonder why.

 

But my gas gauge was reading 3/4 full, and it's accurate, I don't think there was any possible way I was out of gas because it has been running all day long today with no troubles.

No worries, I don't take offense, any little suggestion is helpful to me.

 

low ps fuild maybe?

 

as far as that grinding noise is concerned, you need to make sure it's your wheels touching inside the wheelwells and not some other problem. This noise should only come from the wheelwells if the steering is turned all the way (it shouldn't make the noise at all, but you know what I mean). Might be time for new bump-stops or whatever they're called. That shouldn't cause your car to stall, but it'd be worth it to check. I know some carb setups have caused problems for circle track cars because not all the fuel goes to the cylinders evenly, and it screws up the motor really badly, but I don't think we need to worry about that here... check that noise and let us know

 

Alright i'll check the noise out today, I always assumed it was the steering column, never even crossed my mind it could be the wheels.

And Borst, that's the first thing I checked when I got back, it was the correct color, wasn't smoking, and was full.

I'll report back sometime later.

 

What condition is your serpentine belt in?

The general rule of thumb is 3 cracks per inch is acceptable/borderline. Personally, any cracks and I replace it because it will only get worse.

 

So thus far there is a complete randomness to the stalling? Or is there a pattern that you can tell of? Does/did the car stutter as it cut off or did it just stop without notice?

I doubt it has to do with power steering or anything of that sort. I doubt it is vapor lock as that is more of an issue with a puller-tpye pump typical of a carbureted system, not with a pusher running a higher (albeit, not by THAT much) psi.

 

Well I figured out it is the tire rubbing, no big deal as far as im concerned right now.

However, there is no pattern at all. It happened that one day when traveling for so long with it being so hot outside, and ever since then, i've driven a 60 mile round trip course back and forth and it hasn't done it since, i'm puzzled as all hell. I guess if it doesn't do it again that's cool, I just want to know why it did it.

 

my tires rub on a rare occasion, and my car stalls on a rare occasion (unrelated), but I just take them both with a grain of salt =)

 

UPDATE:

Well, now it happens when the car is not even turning. It first started after I had parked my car and went into a restaurant to eat, I came out and started the car and it started but then the RPMS went way down, shot way up, went down again, and then leveled itself out again, this struck me as odd, but as long as the car ran I didn't care, I wanted to go home, so I was going down the highway, in traffic, the temp was at about 1/2, which is normal for my car, and as soon as traffic clears, i'm going about 75 down the highway, boom RPMS bounce up and down like it's needing fuel, does this for a couple of seconds, shuts off, so I pull to the side of the freeway.

Then I turned it back on about 3 minutes later after muttering every nasty word you can think of at my car, and it starts up, and makes it to my g/f's house with no problems. There it sits for about 4 or 5 hours and I make it to my house (about a mile away) with no problems.

So now it seems to happen when it gets hot (not overheating) and it's under some sort of a load. I replaced my fuel pump about 6 months ago, and i'm not ruling it out, but I don't think that would be it, fuel pumps should last longer than that, right?

Also when I did the fuel pump I replaced the fuel filter too, i'm so lost, I don't know what to do now, any suggestions?

EDIT: Forgot to mention that the whole way home there was a slight scent of gas around my car, nothing too big. But after it died on the freeway, the whole ride home it reeked of gas, the scent got like 4x worse than before, if that means anything.

 

pumps can be defective.


or installed incorrectly.



sounds to me liek a fuel problem



who did your pump?

 

Are you sure the fuel lines didn't just rust up and start leaking. That would explain the smell and stalling because of the pressure loss. Doesn't quite explain why you'd be able to start it back up and keep driving though.

 

Check your wiring to the fuel pump. A loose wire or poor ground could temporarily interrupt power to the pump. Since this is a recent replacement that would be my guess, especially as loose wiring tends to get looser with time and cause more frequent problems. Doesn't necessarily explain the gas smell, though, so I could be off-base.

Check all the connections you can.

Don't know what equipment you have but I'd rig an amp probe on the pump power wiring somehow and look for a drop when the stalling occurs.

 

lol, this thing is ridiculous, it's finicky, I think it just wants to play games with me.

I went to Costco today, drove around for a bit, did some WOT tests, and everything was fine, but now when I run it WOT, it smells like it's running lean and not getting enough fuel.

I have searched and found that the Catalytic Converter may be the problem. This makes sense because I have leaky valve stem seals and all that oil can't be good for the converter.

I also poked my head under the car, looked at the fuel lines, and everything is perfect, No leaks or anything. I will check the connections next.

My dad and I installed the pump Borst, and while we might have installed it wrong, we definitely made sure the connections were right, we even double and triple checked because we DID NOT want to drop that stupid *** tank again.

Ill check the connections, and is there anyway to visually tell the catalytic converter is going bad? I know it should glow red after a long ride, but I don't want to drive it until it dies again, but if I have to I will.

Thanks everybody for your inputs, it is greatly appreciated and I would not be able to do this without you guys, keep em comin if you have more suggestions.

 

Converters can begin to disintegrate inside and cause intermittent blockage as stuff gets shaken around. You may want to pull it and "rod" it out. I think it will then be called a gutted cat. Someone else may chime in with a better way to check it. Or you can search on the exhaust boards.

 

i think you got a bad pump.

 

get a fuel pressure gauge and mock it up so you can read it in the car. Drive around until it acts up.


If the fuel pressure gauge acts funny, then you've narrowed it down a lot.


at this point it could be anything... and dont rule out that this is just a problem with one part, it could be a couple parts going out too.


All I'm trying to say is... dont just replace things... make sure you know what area your problem is in first before you ***-U-ME

For what it's worth, I never assume anymore... I always "presume"

 

Have you checked the catalytic converter visually to see if it's glowing when it stalls like that? Another question is, have you checked to make sure your intake isn't leaking or loose? Is the P.C.V. and E.G.R. valves working correctly? Another thing to check would be your vacuum lines. The air filter is worth checking too. If all of these things are good, then the fuel system is probably where the problem is.

 

Hmmm..

Well, upon looking under the hood, I noticed a hissing noise near the Charcoal canister.

There was a vaccum leak near that T connector by the canister, so I plugged it up.

Would that make the car stall like that? If it does, I really hope so!

 

It's possible.

 

I guess ill find out if that was it when im on the side of the freeway again.

 

Let us know what happens.

 

I know it’s been 15 years but did you ever get this issue fixed? I’m having this same issue