My previous post has gotten "lost" and I really would appreciate some advice with this. A week and a half ago, I replaced my LS1 Alum Drivershaft w/ the stocker I took out a while ago. That very night, I began to have a couple seperate but hopefully related issues. Everything happens after about 30 mins of driving, a break to turn the car off for a few, and then upon restart.

1) During the initial drive (before shutting down the car) the temperature is normal in the cockpit. After restart, it gets pretty damn hot inside. Hotter than normal, I can feel my shifter ball get hot to the touch. Rolling the windows down doesn't really help. The water temp remains normal around 180* What in the world is this?

2 The main issue is after the 1st launch or 2 (5 speed car) the car sounds like it is chugging or running on 4 cylinders. I have to rev it to 3k or so to get a somewhat smooth launch. It will do the same for a turn taken in 2nd gear w/ low rpms. This only happens at launch, not at speed although it is sluggish. Normally at speed in any gear, I press the loud pedal and I MOVE. After restart I press the gas and it waits a second then slowly builds for a second then accelerate at maybe 90% of what it should.

What I've done to try and fix or diagnose it: (nothing on this car is but a year old)
-replaced plugs with ones I took out a few months ago (those 4 electrode ones I took out had some minor fouling-I run MSD, I shoulda known better)
-checked plug wires all the way back to distributor
-inspected cap, rotor
-ohmed fuel injectors ->cold all showed 16.7-16.9, hot all showed 17.9-18.0

Please if anyone can point me in some direction, I hate sitting around not being able to at least test my car.
Eric

 

Have a fuel pressure gauge?

 

No I don't have one, but if you're suggesting I check the fuel pressure, I'll do it. I still use the stock FPR; I also run an Edelbrock 67 gph pump installed last September.

 

Check/change your fuel filter lately?

 

Adam; the fuel filter was changed when I had the pump put in (September, probably 1000 miles ago)

Vader; -the fuel pressure tested with KOEO 28 psi, no bleed off
-with the engine on I got 36 psi, no bleed off
-after I turned the car off, the pressure settled back to 38 psi no bleed *the test was done with cold car, not up to op temp..does that matter?

Since the pump is new, can I safely infer the stock FPR may be faulty? I also use a vented fuel cap because I think the fella that put my pump in may have messed up the vent. If this is the case, why would it foul my plugs and how might it be related to the heat inside the car?

 

check your cats

 

Lee; cats are 6 months old

 

Why did you change the driveshaft?

Sure you got the original one on there? U-joints free?

Sounds a little like drive-line bind. Pumpkin filled up?

 

I am as sure as I can be that I have the original DS on, it was the one on it when I bought the car. It's original to me anyway.... I took the LS1 shaft off because there was an unnerving rattle & hum at 70 mph. I also didn't like the fact that only 1/2 of the yoke was into the tranny tailpiece. I wiggled/jiggles the u-joints on the steel shaft before I put it back on, they were free.

I have had a little drip from the pumpkin (although it's black now), I'll check the diff fluid.

 

The diff was a little low so I topped it up w/ oil & posi fluid. I know I have a drip coming from the rear most torque arm bolt but I'm going to let the fella that put the 10-bolt in deal with that.

My rear sway bar was a tad offline so I realigned that. After a short test drive it is mostly in the position I put it in but it is torqued to spec so guess it is what it is.

Please keep the advice coming...
Eric

 

Fuel pressure seems adequate. 36# running is fine. If you test pressure while the car is having an "episode" you may find something different.

The heat in the vehicle could be due to restricted exhaust, which is why Lee asked about cats. That doesn't explain why the car runs normally for the first 30 minutes, however.

 

I don't know if I am a hypochondriac, but I think the hot-floor issue has dissipated. I checked the bottles of gear oil & posi fluid, and it looks like I used a combined 6oz or so. I wonder if the low differential could have been the cause of my heat issue. My theory is the aluminum driveshaft was kind of a heatsink, dissipating the heat coming from the low-diff. The steel shaft let my shifter handle know it was low. I'm pretty certain most of the heat is an overreaction on my part as my true-dual 2.5's are probably cooking my bacon. I dunno, I may be a hypochondriac grasping at straws even. Any ideas on my theory?

I took the car out just incase the swaybar realign may have helped, and overall it did not. I tried to take a fuel pressure reading during the episode. I don't think I will try that again until I get one that I can leave on the rail. I had 3 strong squirts of fuel spray onto my HOT engine. I'm not that eager for diagnostics. How do you guys take a FP reading on a hot engine?

I did check my exhaust and it is not leaking or loose. See hypochondriac theory above.

Any more advice, do I need a FP guage on the rail or is there another direction I can go? (not to my mechanic I hope).

Thanks guys...
Eric

 

I would get a little worried if my shifter started to get a bit hot.

6 oz making it overheat

 

Seems like you have tried a lot of stuff. How about putting the aluminum driveshaft back on, an seeing if thats causing your eratic engine issue. Probably not related to the driveshaft, but if you say it happened after you swapped it out...you never know....just my guess.

 

I took the weekend off from this issue because it was Bristol & it is frustrating. The last thing I have tried was to double check the driveline and, other than a high spot in one of the drums, it spins freely. I don't think I'm so much worried about the heat issue at the momemt, more the chugging that seems to have no answer.

If you guys have any other suggestions I'd love to hear them. I cannot understand why 19lb injectors on a 350 with MSD would foul-rich and I wonder if that somehow correlates to my chug problem. I will probably try my question with a different source but if I fix the problem, I will post it here. Thanks to everyody who lent some advice.

Eric

 

If the shifter was hot the first thing I'd check would be the fluid in the tranny.

 

After the initial hot-shifter issue, I topped up the tranny the next day with AMSOIL Syn ATF (Dex II & III). Funny I thought that was the case too but I only put in a couple oz of fluid at that.