Hey i need some advice cause i'm out of ideas. for a while my car has been running rough and feels very sluggish. with bald tires i can barley chirp second and i can't even squeel them from a stop. also i have a g-tech and i'm consistantly pulling 15.7 times. i may go to the track tomorrow to get a more accurate number. but i've done a compression check, which was pretty consistant at 160-165psi, i checked the cats and gutted them and they were fine, i changed the egr valve cause thats the code i had, and i also changed the oil and checked the plugs and they were fine also. here are some things that may help determine the problem.


-Car runs and idles very rough and sputters slightly

-coolant bubbles

-smoke comes out the exhaust when i start it for the first time everyday

-temps are high at times just over 220

-sometimes engine smokes from driver side ehxaust manifold


I'm just lost as to what the problem is and i wanna get this thing running right what steps can i take?

 

Sounds like you're about to lose a head gasket, My 85 did the same thing. Started with a little overheat, then the smoke (steam), then no start.

 

These cars should ber able to sit all day at 220deg. Second fan doesnt even come on until about 234deg F when the AC is not on.
(most of the country has had record heat the past few weeks)

Try doing all your basics first:

Ohm the injectors if stock they should be close to 17ohm.

Is the timing set correctly?
(can cause sluggishness, running hot, etc)

Proper plugs installed and gapped correctly?

A decent set of wires and a good(brass) cap and rotor?

What type of smoke comes out the exhaust? Condesnation will be there everytime the car has sat for any period of time and cools off.

U say the engine smokes from the driver side exhaust manifold. Where is the smoke coming from and what does it look/smell like?
Is it something leaking on the manifold or otherwise.

Coolant will tend to have bubbles in it, obvioulsy not crazy style like gurgling and popping though. They make litmus paper to test for hydrocarbons in the coolant now as well as u can do a pressure test on the cooling system.

Also a leakdown test would indicate a leaking head gasket, but you should do this on a warm engine(not easy cause our cars are a pia to touch when hot/warm)

i think of more i post, but check all the basics first

later
Jeremy

 

thanks guys. it probably is a head gasket. i think i'm gonna check the timing today.. what should it be set at?

 

Factory is 6 degrees, but I would take a timing light to it, and set it at whatever degree makes your car run the best.

 

ok well heres what i have done latley. i have checked the plugs and sparkplugs and i have good spark. i also checked the injectors and two were bad so i replaced them. i checked the timing and is set at 8-9 degress which is factory specs. i also earlier had a code 32, which is an egr code so i replaced the egr valve. since i've done all this the car now runs much better yet i think it feels slugish. i also did a compression test earlier on and it was good and consistant. i guess the next thing i'm gonna check is the fuel filter, but other than that its running decent now it just feels pretty slow. i have a g-tech pro and while running on 6 cylinders, do to the two bad injectors, i was consistantly running 15.7 with a passenger. today i did more runs and am still running 15.7's with the same passenger. any ideas what is killing my power fellas?