Hi guys, first post here so "hello!". I'm in the UK and as you could imagine there aren't many Firebirds over here.....might see one every six-months but they are really rare!

Anyway - here's my problem: used the car on Saturday and it was running sweet then came to use it yesterday and as I reversed up the drive slowly it choked and died. Tried to restart it, and tried, and tried....... basically it would "catch" if the throttle was full and then die off again as soon as I released the key. Weird - I've been scratching my head on that one. Any ideas or clues??!!

Thanks a lot for any help or cluse you can offer!!

 

Welcome to TGO. Where in the UK are you? There are quite a few members over there. As for your issue, many of us know it well. First, get a manual (I've got a Chilton) and basic test equipment and read up on the engine management stuff. Then start some diagnostics. For me the issue was injectors and fuel pressure regulator diaphragm. If yours are original there's a good chance both will need replacement. It's a mild pain to change both but if you do then you know you are starting from a good base.

 

Hi base91 - I'm in Solihull which is just south of the Second City, Birmingham. Solihull is probably best known as the home of Land Rover.

Anyway, thanks for your help - I'll get a Chilton (the Haynes is pretty useless!) and an OBD1 reader - there is someone on ebay selling a disc and connection so you can use a Laptop to "read" the codes. I'll get one and give it a try! Thanks for your help - I'll no douby have fun trying to fix whatever it brings up!

 

If your check engine light isn't on , there are likely no codes to be read . Also , An OBD1 reader is not needed anyway , do a search here for the word Paperclip and you will discover the easy way to read any codes (when and if the check engine light has come on)

Since your engine is outright dead , it ought to be a really obvious problem of either spark or fuel delivery . Yea , of course there IS a tiny chance of real uglies , things like a jumped timing chain , but most likely you've lost either spark or fuel . Have ya checked for a nice fat blue spark from the distributor ? Also , fuel rail pressure could be very telling as well . Can ya hear the fuel pump prime when you turn the key from off to on ?

 

Hi, thanks for your reply init4fun, that paperclip scam bodge sounds great - will save some £££ in buying the diagnostic tool!
I've checked spark with some glass plugs and they were all good so must be fuel I guess?! Thing is I sprayed some Easy Start in through the Throttle Body (with it open) and still no dice. All fuses are OK so I'm a bit confused to say the least!!

Oh well, it's all fun!!

 

Yea , the paperclip trick is great , , But , I don't think it's gonna be much help to ya this time . Given the way it was running fine and then just abruptly quit , I'd have to assume a sudden massive failure in one of the three vital areas .

You engine needs three basic things to run .

1 Properly atomized fuel in the cyl at the right time

2 A proper spark at the right time to light it off

And the dreaded #3 , Sufficent compression and engine "breathing" to allow the squeezing of the fuel for ignition and the free flow of air through the intake and exhaust to provide fresh air to burn the fuel in and to exit the nasty burnt air after the fuel has burnt in it .

If ya have all of those three , it'll run . Go missing any one of the three , and it won't . Far most likey is usually ignition failure , and an observed seeming good spark in free air may not be enough to light the fire in the environment of compression that exists in the cyl ! Then of course , our cars seem to be plagued with fuel pumps that last 3 to 5 years of daily use at best , and this is a common failure system as well . When you first turn the key from off to run , even before ya get to the position where it cranks the engine , the fuel pump is supposed to run for 4 or 5 seconds to prime the fuelrail . Are you hearing that prime ? Cause if not , then that is a symptom of fuel system failure , be it the relay , fuse , wiring , or fuelpump itself . How were you spraying the starting fluid into it ? did ya have the air intakes disconnected and spray it and try to start without connecting back together the ducts ? it takes quite a bit of starting fluid to get our cars to fire with it cause by the time ya spray it , then reconnect the ducts , a bit has evaporated before ya ever get to the key ! Lastly , the only mechanical thing that'll uaually cause such sudden failure could be a slipped (defective from wear) timing chain . Does the engine sound as it normally does when ya try to crank it to start ? While everyone knows that slow cranking speed is usually starter or battery , few seem to know that excessivly FAST cranking can be from the loss of compression due to a slipped chain . presumably it shouldn't be an exhaust blockage like a clogged catalytic converter cause that usually comes on over time and not all of a sudden .

After all that , I hope I've given ya some ideas of things to check