I have a 91 Camaro that has been sitting for awhile and wont start. Prior to sitting it had some general maintenance done that included a new fuel pump ect and was running fine. Today I was able to get it running for a little while as long as I sprayed carb cleaner into the throttle body but would soon die if I did not spray it regularly. While being sprayed it started right up and sounded "good".

I purchased a new fuel filter and have a siphon being shipped to me. My plan was to remove all the old gas and change the fuel filter and put a few gallons of ethanol free gas and give it a go. The car is very low and I was unable to locate the fuel filter with the tools I had available.

Any other suggestions would be appreciated. I am not a "car guy" so please explain any suggestions at a novice level.

Thanks

 

Well , the great thing here is that you know with 100% certainty why it won't run , it ain't getting fuel .

Now , the reasons for not getting fuel could include , but are not limited to ;

Fuel pump not running or if running not developing the pressure the system needs to operate .

Clogged system , anywhere from the strainer in the tank that picks up fuel for the pump to the fuel filter to the lines themselves being plugged with rust from the inside of the fuel tank (seen that at least a couple of times)

The fuel pressure regulator could be bad and not letting the proper fuel pressure develop or you could have contaminated fuel as well .

The ECM could be failing to signal the injectors to open due to bad injectors , bad ECM , bad fuses , or a failure of the VATS (Vehicle Anti Theft System) . Normally VATS will kill both the injector pulse AND the starter crank signal but lots of stuff can happen over 25 years and jumping out the VATS starter inhibit relay happens a lot when folks unknowing of how VATS operates try to troubleshoot it .

BTW , is this TPI or TBI ? (Tuned port injection or throttle body injection) I ask because the troubleshooting procedure will be slightly different for each .

 

Thanks for the info. Its a TPI 5.0. Ill write back after tinkering with it some more.

 

Disconnect the fuel lines from the TB; put them into a can or something to catch fuel, if it comes out (which it should, HARD); turn the key on; see if fuel comes out.

Yes/no: you just split the system in half, so to speak; if yes, you have a TB issue, if no, you need a pump or filter.

I'm suspecting you'll probably see fuel, and that it's a simple funked-up TB.

Change the fuel filter REGARDLESS, if you haven't already. Then renew the TB.

Go to the store, get a paper & rubber kit for the TB, tear it down, soak all the parts in lacquer thinner (NOT alcohol, NOT mineral spirits, NOT kerosene, NOT NOT NOT NOT: soak it in LACQUER THINNER) overnight, put it back together, try again.

 

Thanks well got her to start and now she roars lol. Like almost full throttle and won't come down. Thought it might just be some extra carb cleaner but did not seem to come down so turned it off. Did this a few times to no avail. The throttle body is all the way closed and opens when the peddle is pushed. Any thoughts?

Did not do much just cleaned out throttle body and removed old fuel / fuel filter.

 

I don't know if TBI uses an IAC or not , but if it does , a stuck open IAC will cause an excessively high idle , as will a vacuum leak ...

 

It has TPI

 

Yea , when I finally put my glasses on I noticed you did say TPI and not TBI .

Ok , well , I know the TPI does in fact have an IAC , so you should check that for proper functioning because that sticking open can be a cause of your very high idle . You have ruled out things like the hoses leading to the power brake and PCV valve yes ? The bottom line is that too much air is getting in somewhere , and when you find & repair that your car will idle correctly again .