oh ok. I seen he changed almost everthing did he try changing out the ignition module

 

My friend still doesn't have time to take a look at my car so I haven't done anything to it in about 2 weeks. I still have the same issue. Still not sure if it's 'misfire' or 'torque converter shudder' although it does feel more like it shudders when it acts up. It seems to be a little more rough when it hits 44mph (not sure what gear that is) but right after it changes gears it vibrates a little worse. Still the car runs better when I first turn it on in the morning, starts right up, don't notice any smells, don't notice a misfire/shudder, idle is decent, up until I get onto the road.

I have noticed that it leaks a lot of oil when i turn the car on and there is a hint of a burnt smell and oil. However, the differential is leaking but the liquid substance that is in there has the same smell and texture as the oil. I just bought some gear oil but i'm not sure if this can be used for the differential?

When i turn the car on sometimes it smells burnt but there is usually an oil spot, it drips for a few feet then water starts dripping. I have no idea what this could be.


The oil is a brownish color, the differential liquid is a little darker. My parents are getting a little pissed about the oil stains on the driveway so I have to fix this ASAP. Basically tomorrow I need to get it fixed or i'm in huge ****.

Should i just take it to a mechanic to find ALL the leaks? I don't think this is something I can do myself.


I also have a question about new heads.
Would these fit in my car? It says they were pulled off a 305 SBC.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/SBC-C...item23119b2ae6

 

Dropping my car off at AAMCO on Wednesday. I'm gonna have them check the transmission and maybe timing chain. Hopefully they can tell me what the hell is wrong with my car.

I also noticed that my car drops in performance even worse with the A/C on. I'm hoping it's just the misfire or shudder causing it to have bad performance with accelerating.

Gear shifting has always been bad but today it was different. When it would change a gear the whole car would jolt, only while i had the accelerator half way down or floored. When i was accelerating lightly i could barely notice the gear change.

 

a/c always decreases vehicle performance since its run on the same belt as the rest of the engine causing more drag but shouldnt be an outstanding drop

 

My car is in the shop again. I drove up to the college i'm going to for Orientation. SCF is about 8 to 10 miles from my house. It ran normal driving up there. On the way back it stalled, would start up again, then die about 5 seconds later or if I accelerated. I got it towed to my mechanics and they're going to do a look through of the car. So i'm without a car until Thursday. I asked them to check the wiring, brakes, fuel injectors, fuel pump, fuel pressure, heads, timing chain, TPS calibration, and I mentioned I recently did a full tune-up with no changes in how the car drives or idles and that the car either 'misfires' or has 'torque converter shudder'. I'll get a quote from them hopefully by tomorrow afternoon.

 

Wow lol this thread is pretty funny... poor lil guy.
Well! you will eventually get your car running right unless you decide to give up, and I can see since youve gone this far, I dont think you will... or well maybe because I consider going to a "mechanic" GIVING UP but no worries buddy youll get it figured out, my best recommendation is to go ahead and get the quote of what needs to be fixed or replaced, tell them to go to hell, then use google, the forums or a manual to find out how to do it yourself.

A mechanic once took 2 weeks to get my jeep to pass smog and charged me 430$.
He was a "GREAT" damn mechanic according to my friend. Do it yourself! and when you have someone help you, tell them to watch while they tell you what to do. I hate my freinds who wake up and decided one day "I think I want to learn everything there is to know about cars! " then come to me so I can "help" them do their own tune up or whatever, and I end up doing it all while their texting away or sitting there watching or laughing with their tag alongs. Dont be that guy. Do it yourself, hold the wrench with both hands and soon enough youll be able to diagnose your own issues.

Im not the greatest when it come to cars either, but its not that hard and if you really wanted to, you could do it yourself.

 

I dont know, this car sounds like a nightmare. Electrical gremlins everywhere... You could learn it and fix it with enough time and patience, but you'll need another daily driver.

 

Read some more on your issue, sounds ignition related, Have you replaced the ESC module? electronic spark control... not sure if the TPI's have them...

I would move the distributor around really slowly while its at idle to see if your timing is off some how but I doubt thats it either.

Have you looked into getting your injectors cleaned up? Id also blow through the fuel lines. And did you ever make sure you had the fuel filter pointing the correct direction?

Also, someone suggested it earlier, try pulling the wires to the plugs while its idling to see if you notice anything if you come across a bad cylinder with an issue.

 

My mechanic called me about 30 minutes after i dropped the car off and he said it started right up and they took it for a little test drive. It ran how it normally runs. Could it be that the cheap Airtex fuel pump overheated? He also found that there are a lot of wires that are unplugged, the MAP sensor is taped (my doing), and just a few things that could be the cause of my issue. He said he'd re-wire everything for 20 bucks and get a new MAP sensor pigtail connector.

I told him to check a lot of the things you guys mentioned. Hopefully he can figure out whats going on with my car.

I don't plan on giving up on my car and giving it to my mechanic doesn't mean I am. I don't have time to work on it anymore, i've been job searching for a few weeks now and still haven't found one.

How much do those ESC modules usually cost? I'll double check to see if the TPI's have them. And I finally found my oxygen sensor while I was stranded for 2 hours. I had nothing better to do except look for things around the engine, lucky I had my Haynes manual with me!

I just don't understand how the tune-up did absolutely nothing to make it run/idle differently. It even leaks more oil than usual.

When i have enough saved i'll consider an engine rebuild and a deep injector cleaning or just new injectors.

 

TPI's '86+ have an ESC module/knock sensor. I wouldn't worry about that or much else until you get your wiring mess under control. I had rats chewing on mine and I had a hell of a time getting my Camaro to behave itself.

As for your oil leaks, you mentioned at the time fo your tune up, you got an LOF. I would check to make sure the drain plug and filter are tight. Also be sure that your filter 1. has a gasket, and 2. isn't compromised or leaking from somewhere. It is not uncommon for SBCs to hemmorage oil from multiple spots, however it's not usually a sudden onset. If the oil change didn't go wrong, the mechanic will probably find oil leaks at the rear main seal, you said you had the tranny rebuilt so if it's leaking SHAME ON THEM for not replacing it while they were down there. He will also probably find leaks from the valve covers, any of the intake gaskets, timing cover, oil pan..etc. I wouldn't stress the leaks as long as you top off your fluids. If your parents are pissed about their driveway, get a little pee-pee pan for your Camaro when it comes back. Your diff fluid should be a yellow-clear color, not black, I would change it with the fluid you have. The rear diff should take about 3 pints of GL-5/80w-90(buy 2 quarts of gear oil) and if you have posi, get the LSD additive. Since it may be leaking from the gasket, you may just want to take the pumpkin cover apart and replace the gasket while you're doing the fluid exchange. It may be leaking from the axle shaft or pinion seal and that is not an easy fix.

 

My mechanic said that the person that did the tune-up made everything worse. The spark plugs were easy to take out, all you had to do was wiggle them a little and they fell out, the wires were not making solid contact with the distributor cap, wires were placed incorrectly around the engine, wires going to the wrong spark plugs.

 

That would definitely cause your misfiring problem lol...

 

my car wont even try to turn over if the plugs arent in the correct order

 

I don't see how having a cold engine in open-loop or going under 44mph would alleviate symptoms of a botched tune up. If whoever did your tune up couldnt even put spark plugs in right, they probably messed up your oil change too. I would defintely check out where those leakies are coming from before it costs you an engine. And re-gap your plugs!!!

 

Wow, who the hell did your tune up?! I learned my lesson a little while ago on doing my own **** after my truck started skipping and backfiring after putting a performance coil on so i decided to do my own tune up and found that the ex that did my tune up years before cracked the last spark plug when he put it in and the performance coil made it very very noticible. So if I can do a tune up i'm sure you can too haha and i'd def check your filter and drain plug if everything else was loose and you're noticing oil leaks. Hopefully the new legitimate tune up solves your problems =)

 

I'm surprised the car even ran! My mechanic said since I kept trying to start the engine when it had died i flooded it. So right now it runs, but they're getting new plugs and wires and rerouting the wires so they're not touching the engine like they are now. One of the wires was touching the oxygen sensor, possibly messing up the oxygen sensor reading causing it to run rich.

 

wherever you went for that tuneup never let anyone go there again, look into doing it yourself next time, or ask your mechanic if you can help and learn

 

Guess thats what happens when you let the 'professionals' take care of the job, hope your new mechanic is better and you get it running right.

 

Another reason some people have told you to, LEARN AND DO IT YOURSELF. That way you have your own quality control instead of trusting someone else to do it right. Basic tune up stuff is very very easy. Afraid of mixing up the wires? Do them one by one. Afraid of over tightening a spark plug? The box they come in probably has instructions on how far to tighten them, they do on my NGK boxes anyway. Seriously, you really need to just jump in and start doing the simple stuff yourself.

 

i think you couldve bought a nice set of tools, learned all this yourself, and still come out with much less, socket, screwdrivers, pliers, hammers, pickle fork, torque wrench, wrenches, wire cutters, and a few other odds and ends will get you by almost anywhere, i keep that plus some in my truck and camaro at all times, plus i have more tools in my garage. so get it fixed this time, understand how it runs in proper functioning order then the next time 3000 miles comes around and all your other tune ups are to be done, do it yourself. itll save you money and possibly time. and if you screw up then you will know because the car will run worse than before, instead of better, and i hate to sound repetitive, but get a hayes or chiltons manual, and before bed start reading that thing. youll know your car better than any mechanic in no time, and you can fix just about anything on it with your newly acquired wits!

 

WTF? Again, stuff in this thread doesn't add up. Earlier on this page you said "it ran fine on the way to school". Suddenly you drop it of at your "mechanic" and he tells you "there are wires going to the wrong plugs". Dude, if you had an incorrect firing order your motor wouldn't "run normal" much less idle or even stay running without violently shaking the whole car. You would notice that right away, not at "44 mph".

Sounds to me like your getting your chain yanked AGAIN by someone who doesn't know what they're doing. But I guess go ahead and buy another new set of plugs and wires and spend your money on that plus shop labor (for that VERY SIMPLE procedure) instead of trying things you have yet to address, but have been suggested multiple times over this thread, such as fuel injectors or other electrical components.

 

Lemme rephrase that, it was the wrong wire going to the correct plug. The wire lengths for a few of them had a lot of slack. Wires were intertwined with other hoses and a few were touching the steering column. When you pushed down on the wires that were connected to the distributor, they'd pop back up a little, barely making contact. I'm gonna check the oil filter to make sure they at least did that right. My mechanic showed me a few of my sparkplugs, the metal pillar was bent and had burn marks all around the screw treads.

 

Was going to stay quiet, but' I'm tired of seeing this guy getting dogged for no reason. He is confused. I guess those of you find it ness. to raz him were born with all the automotive knowledge and never had to ask and learn anything. If you can't help keep your trap shut. Now to his car.(I feel better now).
Go ahead and replace the oil filter. They may have gotten it to tight and now the gasket is trash. Also make sure that the old filter gasket did not stick to the block.
Pull the drain plug and put on a new copper gasket there.
Unfortunately any manufacture of plug wires makes them long for routing. Chevy wires are the worst. Hopefully they will trim the wires and make them fit correctly.
be careful on how often you use fuel additive. They can and do build up on the o2 sensor. Not so bad on later model heated sensors, but the older style one wire sensors don't get it burnt off as well.
As for the white smoke and compression issue.
White SMOKE (not steam) on start up alone is valve guides.
White SMOKE (not steam) on acceleration, deceleration, cruising or idle is most likely rings which in your case goes with the low compression. 125 is low. Should be appx. 150 with less than 10 percent variance between cyls.
STEAM (should be accompanied with a sweet smell) is coolant and could be head gasket, intake gasket, or a crack somewhere.
Some vehicles actually produce steam until the exhaust gets hot enough to get the moisture dried up which is normal.
They are right and Airtex pumps are trash. Get a good one with a new sock and go ahead and replace the fuel filter just to play it safe.
Go and find a GM Service manual for your car. They are a little high, but it will be well worth it to you.
http://www.auto-repair-manuals.com/C...Softcover.html
Don't give up on the car what ever you do. It will be worth it in the end and you will learn a lot from this little adventure.
Good luck and keep us posted.

 

STOP! HOLD IT!

You are reminding me of myself when I first bought my Camaro. I did not know a damn thing about cars, and I put too much faith into other people instead of taking the time to learn things myself and it screwed me more than once. My Camaro (Which I still have to this day), ended up costing me thousands of dollars because I relied on other people to do my work and also because I didn't take the time to digest details.

READ > PAY ATTENTION > REMEMBER! These will go far. But above all, GROW A SET! I'm not trying to sound insulting, because I used to be the same way. I was afraid to do the littlest of work to my car. The first real down and dirty job I ever did I will never forget. Fuel filter. Spent an hour underneath the car on my back in the rain being covered in fuel replacing a part that probably didn't need to be replaced in the name of routine maintenance. You have to get your hands dirty. Above all though, PAY ATTENTION TO DETAILS! Go ahead and ask me how it feels to roast your transmission by not following this simple rule.

As for routine maintenance, here is what you need to do. Only after all these things are taken care of can you move onto the possibility of a bigger problem.

1) Thoroughly douche the fuel system and rotating assembly. As others have said, run some seafoam through a vac line then another can into the gas tank. I have personally never indulged into the AutoRX route on a high mileage motor, but if other experienced members on here are recommending it, do a little googling and go for it! Also, replace your fuel filter if you haven't already done so, as well as clean/replace (Whichever is applicable) your air filters.

2) Do a full tune-up to the ignition system. You will be surprised by how inexpensive ignition components such as wires and coil will cause the car to run like trash. Replace the coil, cap and rotor. I believe a stock-ish kit should cost around $50 for these parts. Easily accessible at the top of the engine. Then, replace the wires. An Accel wire kit costs just under $50 at Advance Auto. Best of all, you can cut the wires to the exact length you want them at yourself before crimping on the ends. After this, replace the plugs. Don't buy into gimmick plugs. One plug cannot fire the spark into the combustion chamber any better than another or create a "bigger" spark. It's a plug. It sparks, and the spark ignites the air/fuel mixture which causes a chain reaction within the cylinder until all the mixture has been burnt; not rocket science. Yes, platinum plugs will last longer, but once you learn how to do them yourself you won't have any problem replacing copper plugs a bit more often. And very important, SELECT THE CORRECT HEAT RANGE! Too cold of a plug will cause it to foul and result in misfiring. Too hot of a plug will cause detonation/pre-ignition and result in engine damage. Be sure to gap it properly also. For most cases, a standard .035 gap will do.

3) Now, we're moving onto the third stage in getting your car into proper tune. Engine diagnostics. A bit intimidating at first but I assure you this is EASY! The FIRST thing you want to do is scan for any codes. This sound like a crock of bull (I thought someone was joking when I first heard this), but you can check engine codes with something as simple as a paperclip. Bend the paperclip into a U shape, and insert it into the OBD aka ALDL port shorting pins A&B. Put the key in the ignition and turn it to on but do not start the engine. The ECM will flash any stored codes through the check engine light. If you get any, report back here what they are.

Make sure all sensors are operating properly and within spec. One sensor I would replace especially on a high mileage motor just for the hell of it is the O2 sensor. $20 at your local auto parts store. Piece of cake to replace especially on stock exhaust manifolds. My car has headers and this was still a walk in the park. Next, move onto the coolant temperature sensor which is in the front of the intake manifold, as well as the often overlooked IAT or Incoming air temperature sensor. This sensor is a bit tricky to access as it requires removing the plenum to get to, but as I stated, grow a set and read/pay attention to details. The plenum is not all that difficult to remove. Equally as important is to make sure the TPS or throttle position sensor which is located at the left side of your throttlebody is reading accurately and do a servicing to your IAC or Idle air-control valve which is located on the underside of the throttlebody. There are articles in the TGO tech articles section that explain how to do all of this.

Even better yet, do what I did. Gain access to a cheap laptop and make yourself an ALDL interface cable so you can interface directly with the ECM and use the program WinALDL to watch all sensor readings and ECM info on your computer screen.

It would also GREATLY benefit you to spend some cash on a GM service manual or in the least a haynes repair manual. The latter can be purchased from your local auto parts store.



Good luck and I am here to help!

 

As of now i'm getting new plugs, wires, and wires re-routed. If it gets rid of my misfire issue, we will move on to the engine itself hopefully increasing compression and getting new gaskets, then brakes, then oil issue, sensors, etc etc. I'll get the fuel pressure, fuel pump, oil filter, and internal engine components looked at. I'm sure quite a few things in the engine are on their last legs by now and after sitting for 4 years.

 

Just by this statement I can tell you have alot to learn. Being a kid strapped for cash in college, you can't just have the internal engine components "Looked at".

This requires tearing apart the engine, and no I am not talking removing a valve cover and checking the rocker arms for sludge. I am talking pulling the heads, oil pan and removing all the internal components for inspection. You will easily pay over $1000 to just have all these components "Looked at". You have no idea the work involved with these cars to get just the oil pan off.

As has been said before, a fuel pump either works, or it doesn't. There is nothing to look at. Your engine runs and fires, correct? If so, your fuel pump is good.

Oil filters cost around $12 - $15 for the premium brands. You don't look at them, you just replace them.

As for your compression, a blown head gasket can cause a loss in compression. If you have white smoke coming out of the exhaust, I would get this looked at. Replace that if so and then re-run the compression test. Sadly, if it is your piston rings causing a loss in compression, there is nothing to fix. It's rebuild time.

And don't get it looked at, do it yourself! Let me ask you, you are competent enough to remove a valvestem cap from one of your tires, correct? Then you will have no problem checking your fuel pressure after obtaining the proper gauge. The valve is on the passenger side fuel rail and is of the same type used on your tires.

 

I find it funny how redundant these suggestions are getting, but then again I guess no one wants to take the time and read through the full four pages of this thread. And I think all it's doing is confusing you. So for your own benefit, and for all others that want to chime in on this while only reading a fraction of your posts, post a list of all the basic tune up stuff you've replaced already.

In a nut shell, your problem is that your car inconsistently sputters/misfires when nearing highway speeds. Right?

I had this problem in the past, but lucky for me, it was a clogged fuel filter. Since you say the problem is isn't constant its most likely not mechanical. Sound to me like it's fuel delivery related. Sence you've replaced your fuel filter, and pump, the other piece in a TPI delivery system would be fuel injectors. What's holding you back from trying to replace those?
Money?
-Stop paying a mechanic! (now I sound redundant, but it hasn't sunk in yet)
-you posted ur dad would buy you new interior. Why not a new set of injectors?

 

Tune-up rundown:
Oil, oil filter, fuel pump (3 times), air filter cleaning, engine treatment, SeaFoam in vacuum lines, spark plugs/wires (already being replaced), distributor, cap, rotor, ignition coil, MAP sensor, TPS, fuel injector cleaner, tranny rebuild about a 3 years ago, tranny and engine flush about a year and a half ago, throttle body cleaning, and a few little things my dad did when we got the car running 2 years ago.

The main reason I don't work on the car myself is because the car isn't in my name so if i mess something up my dad won't be very happy and i'll be out of transportation for work, so he says just to let my mechanic do it. And I do trust my mechanic.

I can afford injectors myself. I need to get new plugs and wires and possibly an O2 sensor before I do anything else to the car. For all i know it could be the spark plugs causing my issue. I can get a set of 8 injectors for roughly 400.

I don't think every fuel pump I get is supposed to make a high pitched whine that can be heard from a block away, right? It drives me insane. Thats one of the reasons why I change it out so often yet its the same thing every damn time.

My mechanic did some timing and said that it was at about 10 degrees. And that the sparkplugs were missing quite a lot because they were barely in there. He also said something about -2 degrees, not really sure what he meant and i regret not asking.

If a fuel line cleaning is cheap i'll just go ahead and do it after the tune-up. I'm sure it's been years since it's been done.

Yes, the car misfires when nearing highway speeds. When it shifts into gear at 45 it starts to 'misfire' and backfires at the lowest of 59.

And I am somewhat strapped for cash cause of college but I have yet to see anything for graduation or my birthday from my parents so i assume my dad is doing something about my car. Hopefully he'll take a little more interest and help me with the car because the day my dad and I went to pick up the car he told me we'd fix it up, now it's come to the point where it really needs to be fixed up and right now i'm kinda left on my own with the cost for repairs and it doesn't help that I can't find a job.

Right now I have $800 dollars waiting to be spent on my car and i'm not really sure what needs to be replaced till we get the tune-up finished. THEN i'll see what to replace next. If I find my dads old recites I'll post what was done and when.

Besides my mechanic there is only one guy I know of that knows stuff about these cars and he's usually not at work at the local Advance Auto. Other than that i rely on you guys or my Haynes manual. My car if fairly rare down here where I live. If I happen to see one it's in even worse condition then mine is in.

 

Wow, flame bait much? After reading through the first page and halfway through the second, I had no interest in reading through 2 and a half more pages of redundancy, so I just skipped straight to the end of page 4 to see if his problem was resolved. It wasn't, so I added my two cents. You have no room to alienate anyone on this thread however, since you were one of the ones ridiculing the OP for his lack of knowledge. Cars are scary and intimidating when you don't know what makes them tick, and It's a long scary road learning about stuff, mostly from fear that you'll do something wrong and trash the car, especially if It's your only ride. This is the reason why people turn to mechanics and unfortunately, most cannot be trusted. And the ones who can, you are still throwing away hundreds of thousands of dollars over time in labor costs when most jobs can be done easy right outside of your house.

As for the sputtering at highway speeds, right off the bat I wouldn't quite see how this would add up to the fuel filter. A clogged fuel filter would be a factor of engine speed, not vehicle speed. So this sputtering problem would occur at ALL speeds once the engine was at or above the right RPM for the lack of fuel from a clogged filter to become apparent. Unless of course, the TCC locking up is playing a role in this. OP, try using the shifter to hold the car in each gear, steadily increasing speed then letting off the throttle to see how it responds. Do this in each gear. Also, look up how to manually lock the TCC via the ALDL port. You can lock the TCC in every gear except first. You said that it feels "shuddery" when this happens. This could be normal. If you've ever driven a manual transmission car, you will know that suddenly laying your foot into the gas will JERK the car (aka jackrabbit). This is because unlike a torque converter, the clutch physically locks the engine to the trans and the engine cannot slip against the transmission. When the TCC on an automatic transmission locks, it physically locks the pump and the turbine inside the torque converter together so it behaves like a clutch instead of a torque converter. My car actually jerks like this noticeably if you do anything other than ease into the gas once the TCC locks in second gear. This is normal.

Also, this is just a shot in the dark, but I see you have an 86 TPI. Have you tried changing the MAF sensor? For over a year I simply could not figure out what the problem with my engine was. It ran HORRIBLY at times. When the car was cold, it had a very unstable idle, would sometimes stall and sputtered when you gave it some gas. Once it warmed up, It would drive fine but would randomly just start running like crap. Misfiring, lack of power and sometimes would stall out at stoplights. Whenever this occurred, the check engine light would always come on reporting code 44 (O2 sensor lean), but I had already replaced the O2 sensor and examined the integrity of the harness (And repaired it once I discovered it had gotten roasted by one of the headers) but the problem still continued. Using WinALDL I saw my BLMs were off the charts. On a hunch, I purchased a reman MAF sensor from autozone for $120. After I installed it, all these problems went away and haven't come back since. After doing some more research I found out the MAF is used in conjunction with the O2 sensor. The MAF sensor reports how much air is entering the engine and the O2 examines the oxygen content in that amount of reported air and compares it to the oxygen content in the outside atmosphere. The IAT is also used in conjunction with the MAF, as the platinum wire inside the MAF must be heated to a precise temperature above the incoming air. The ECM then examines how much current it is required to keep the MAF at this sustained temperature and that is how it calculates how much air is entering the engine. That is why I said replace your IAT just for the hell of it, It only costs $15 brand new from tpi_parts on ebay.

Another little test you can do is tap on the MAF with the engine idling and see if you can note a change in RPM, but this is not a surefire way of testing for a bad MAF.

Also, as 84transam dude said, for S&Gs pull the ignition module out of the distributor and take it to advance auto or autozone to be tested.

Good luck!

 

I got my car back and we found that one of my injectors doesn't work at all. I'm runnin on 7 cylinders right now. The car idles a lot better because of the correct tune-up. Still misfiring, probably because of the injector?

I'm going to attempt to replace all 8 injectors myself so if anyone has a video or a step by step procedure on how to do this i would be truly grateful. He said the hoses are probably gonna break when I replace them, so if you could recommend everything i'm gonna need to do this little project(injectors, hoses, rings, etc etc.), i would appreciate it. He said I have to take the top part of the engine off, thats why he recommends I do it myself and not let the shop do it because it will cost me another 500 just for labor. I'm a little intimidated about what he said with taking the engine apart so thats why I would like a step by step procedure if their are any out there.

He also said the smoke when I start the car is from oil dripping past the valve guides and going all the way down to the spark plugs. Thats what he's most worried about.

Brake are bad, already knew that.

He calibrated the TPS, did timing, checked the MAP sensor, and checked the O2. He recommends replacing the O2 just for the hell of it.

He saved me the old sparkplugs and wires. Every single spark plug except 2 had burn marks and carbon build up. He said the metal slabs where the plugs go were bent so thats why they were barely in there. He re-straightened them before putting the new ones in. Some of the wires has burn marks and one was torn because of the steering column.

EDIT: I checked my Haynes manual about Fuel Injector Replacement and I can't seem to find it. It only tells me how to check them.

 

I think I would start with the injector he thinks is bad. Replace that one and see if it makes any difference. Don't see much need to replace all of them if only 1 is bad. There are good write ups here on how the check your injectors, you only need a cheap volt-ohm meter. Do a search and read up on the procedure.

 

They are all sorta bad but one doesn't work at all. I might as well replace all of them.

 

for first time taking something apart, take pictures of what your steps were so if something looks wrong you can tell. also keep some carboard around so that you can push your screw through it in the order of their removal and such, just keeps things organzed for the first time. also take apart one a time!!!!!!!1

 

One little tip for putting new injectors in... get yourself a small tub of vaseline and smear some on the o-rings of the new injectors. That'll make them slip in easy and not damage them causing leaks. No need to goop them up, just a really light film will do.

 

https://www.thirdgen.org/injectorswap

 

It says page not found

 

Changing injectors on your TPI motor is not a difficult project, just a bit time consuming.

Make sure you have the following before you start:

• A gasket set for the upper runner to plenum, lower runner to manifold, and throttle body to plenum
• Injectors . make sure that what you have is the correct part number.
• A wide range of hand tools to include a Torx socket size T-40 and a torque wrench.
• Disassembly with air tools saves work and time.
• Thread sealant . liquid type . for the intake manifold bolts.
• These instructions!
• Suggest you not drive the vehicle for a few hours prior to beginning this project, in order to allow the relatively high fuel pressure (43.5psi or higher) to bleed down.

Directions:

1. [*]
2. [*]
3. [*]
4. [*]
5. [*]
6. [*]
7. [*]
8. [*]
9. [*]
10. [*]
11. [*]
12. [*]
13. [*]
14. [*]
15. [*]

Overall this project took me about 6 hours total, taking my time and having a couple of minor interruptions (hey, food is a good thing!).

 

Update on the car: Still haven't gotten all the fuel injectors, trying not to pay $500 for a set of 8. I do have a few questions i've been trying to figure out these past few days.

Could injectors cause the car electronics to not run so good? I've noticed lately my car has been vibrating a lot, enough so that I hear the trunk vibrating (i know it's the trunk because the latch is broken and it's loose). I really hope new injectors will fix my vibration issues and my misfiring. I'll have to find a way to fix the electrical as well. What other issues could a non working fuel injector cause?

 

depending on how bad the misfire the engine could shake a little, and could cause things to rattle, i know that my car shakes even though it runs good, so i dont worry about it, you may want to fix your trunk if it releases while driving it wont be fun if it gets torn off

 

I tied the trunk to the trunk latch, it still locks but barely. I can still use the key to unlock the trunk. I think something in the trunk latch exploded, theirs a weird yellowish goo around it.

 

The manufacturer of the fuel injectors i'm buying from asked what the number on my current fuel injectors are. I looked but couldn't find a number, so he asked for the 8th number or letter on the VIN. Is there a number on the fuel injectors? They are factory original.

 

8th vin will tell you engine so maybe he was trying to look it up on there, and there should be an id code on the injectors, just have to look slowly and precisely because its probably pretty tiny

 

Get a manual and learn the stuff yourself.Saves money,tons actually and you'll have the benefit and self pride of doing it yourself.I don't dislike auto shops but why pay someone when you can do it yourself? Makes sense to me.A tune up is simple,once you learn you'll find out how bad you've been raped in parts and labor costs.

 

That letter/number on the vin designates which engine option your car has. 350 TPI/ 305 TPI, 305 TBI, 2.8, etc all got different letters.

 

For the '91 305 TPI block, the engine (8th digit) code is F and I believe they have 19# injectors. He may have been asking for the code on the rail itself.

I wonder how your mechanic knows that the injector isn't working. Did he put a stethoscope up to the injectors and didn't hear clicking from one of them? Maybe he's a little hard of hearing from all those air tools. Maybe he actually took off the two upper plenums and checked for resistance at each of the injectors, but that's a lot of work!

Before you blindly replace them, test fuel pressure first! Make sure that lousy pump of yours isn't causing all of these problems. Since you bought the Airtex brand, I might consider replacing it with a different brand if you don't get good pressure. Check fuel pressure by connecting the gauge to the left bank of the fuel rail. You should have 34-47 psi. If it's good, tear down to fuel rail and check resistance on each of the injectors. A good injector should read 11-14 ohms. Then since you're already down there, you can decide which ones actually need replacing, and which ones only need o-rings and such.

 

Just wondering, have you adjusted your rocker arms? Or were they ever touched before... I would double check them.

 

Actually I take that back. I know that backfiring could be caused by rocker arms being too tight but then again I dont think this would be the root problem so go ahead and finish up with the injectors and fuel tune up before you do think about looking into that.

Be sure to check your fuel pressure like mentioned above.

 

I haven't noticed backfiring since I got the new tune-up but I will have the rocker arms checked after the injectors.

Could a battery with a low charge cause the car to not start so well? Or is it one of those deals where it's charged or its not charged? I've noticed recently that the car starts worse and worse and the electrical components don't seem to have enough power. Like when I try to lock the car, only the driver side locks, Either I have to keep hitting the lock button until the pass. side locks or manually lock it.

Also, once I forgot to turn my A/C off before I turned the car off, the A/C wasn't on while the car was off but it was switched to the on position, I came back about 10 minutes later and the car didn't start. It didn't even crank. So I walked to the closest grocery store just to kill time thinking it would start back up with time. It did start back up after 10 more minutes, though it was a rough start. From then on starting has been kinda bad. Even when it's cold. My friend has a battery charger, should I give it a try?

 

A/C is run off the engine and leaving the switch on the on position while the engine is off will do no nothing. If it were my car I would have your battery and charging system tested at an auto parts store. This is FREE. They will probably find that your battery will at least need a recharge and your alternator may be bad. If your alernator is bad replace it yourself, it's probably one of the easiest things to do on F-bodys. While you're there, BUY A FUEL PRESSURE GAUGE! Since your fuel pump is a vriable that has had different effects on your car, it would make since that it could be interfering again. If you have poor engine performance only after the car warms up, incorrect valve lash is probably not the cause. If it was too loose, you would hear some noise, too tight and it will pop out the exhaust all the time, not just in closed loop.

Before you buy injectors or have someone mess with your valves, do yourself a favor and check your fuel pressure, it's fast, easy, and the gauge is a very valuable tool to own.

Also, see that your battery cables are tightly fastened, positive connection at the alternator is tight (red wire held on by a nut at the back of the alternator), and that your grounds are good.

 

alternator is basically screw up free, take it off put new on on, plug in the connectors that only go in one way, battery could be a good source of trouble also so like IROCyou86 said go to the parts store and its free to get them tested