i dont really know fuel injection but i think i have one or more clogged fuel injectors. just got a 1989 trans am gta with a 350 tpi, not my first third gen but my first tpi. it ran fine when i got it then it started dieing at idle then it got worse and would lose power and sputter for a while then die but start after sitting for a while then it would start for just a few seconds then run really rough and stall now it wont start at all. i replaced the ignition module and fuel filter but it didnt fix anything. it i think i have a clogged injector/s (gas changed to e10 not to long ago) does this sound right?????

also my oil pressure is dropping a lot (almost to 0) at idle but is okay when its not idling. (this happened before it stopped running) whats wrong???? any info would be greatly appreciated.

 

Fuel pump probably died. Check your fuel pressure at the schrader valve on the fuel rail, its on the passenger side. Should be at least 36 psi. If you don't have a guage to test it. Go buy one from the local autozone or auto parts store. They are about 40 bucks.

 

i dont think its the fuel pump i can still hear it charge for a second before i try to start it.

 

The pressure could be to low start and run the car. Just check the pressure. We can't fix your car if you don't do the proper diagnosics and report back.

This such a typical post. Car wont run, tell me why, but I don't want to buy test equipment or do any diagnosics. Just tell me what's wrong. Do us all a favor and go post on another site.

 

y you gotta be such a ****ing ****? im willing to do the diagnostics if i know what im looking for this is my first fuel injected car and im on a budget and this site is supposed to have people with the same cars and similar problems. i dont mind being wrong but in my experience if the fuel pump sounds good it usually is good, and i dont have the money to go and test every possible thing if someone else has had the same problem and can lead me in the right direction.

 

easy there tiger. I'm sure he didn't mean to tick you off. I understand your on a budget, a lot of us are with this economy. how do you know that it's a fuel problem? have you done a spark test? that can be done with a screwdriver easily enough. because i thought I had a fuel problem till I did a spark test and then went from there to pull the dizzy where I found my problem. another way to find if you're having a fuel problem is to spray some starter fluid into the throttle body. if it starts then yes it's your fuel pump. if not then you have a spark problem. I hope that helps you and trust me i'm the same boat on a budget. I just learned to make good use of what tools I do have. hope that helps.

 

ive only spark tested 1 plug is and it sparked just fine. should i check all 8?? when i can get it to start it runs super rough and for only 15-30 seconds. all my carb buddies and me think its injectors. but ill try to use starting fluid and see what happens.
if theres any more info i can give to you to help me let me know.

 

Test all 8 just to be on the safe side. while not as common i've seen cases where one might spark fine but one or more of the others won't. While it's not as likely you certainly don't want to leave any stones unturned. If the starting fluid works then yes it's your fuel pump. One more thing, before it started acting up was it doing giving any signs that the fuel pump might be going? like cutting out on you at times and the firing right back up? that happened with my truck before its pump went out. just something else to think about. when something goes wrong with a car you want to try to think back as far as you can because it may have been trying to tell you something but you didn't notice it. And usually your injectors aren't gonna clog all at once like that. they're more likely to leak then they are to clog. now to diagnose a leak you will have to have a pressure gauge. I'm in the opposite position as you I know fuel injection like the back of my hand but i'm having to learn carburetors again for my 79 Z28. But I do think if it's not a spark issue it's a fuel pump issue. That's just my gut feeling. i've never seen that many injectors clog at once. not a single time and i've worked on fuel injected cars since i was 16. hope this helps you. And since nobody has mentioned the oil pressure I will. Check your oil pump very closely. you DO NOT want that to go out on you. your engine will be finished in a heartbeat as you probably know. I would get an aftermarket gauge to monitor the oil pressure though. stock one is not reliable at all. mine won't even work. neither will my temp gauge. hope i helped

 

it did do exactly what you said. it also would occasionally just run like it wasnt getting enough gas but i can still here it charge up when the key is on position 2-3 seconds and it stops just like always. thanx i hope that its just the fuel pump.
ps: is okay/normal for my oil pressure to drop almost to 0 at idle or should i ask this in another section?

 

most likely the fuel problem is just the pump. that happens. and no it's not normal for the pressure to drop to 0. usually 7-10 is the lowest it'll go when it's been running a while. But on a cold start my 87 still sits at 20 PSI when it starts up and it has 115k miles on it. Again i'm not measuring this on the stock gauge in the dash this is on an aftermarket gauge that sits above my radio.

 

damn i cant find them around 40 bucks. wish i could tho!

ive been having fuel pump problems.
one of the most common problems is fuel pump. cut a trap door instead of dropping the tank. swap the pump and go from there. if its not it you know you have a new pump

 

 

you could have easily avoided replacing all that ignition stuff if you had done a simple spark test. remove the number one plug wire and stick a screwdriver in there and put it NEAR a ground. not on. Then crank the motor. if there's sparks arcing you're good if not then you're not. that could have saved you a lot of money and told you to focus on the fuel system. and yes there are cases where it may be the injectors but BY FAR the most common thing to happen is the fuel pump to go out. much more common than injectors. and if you had checked your fuel pressure you wouldn't have even had to spend the money on a fuel pump. that is why we stress proper diagnostics. because there are plenty of us (myself included) that don't have money to continually throw at everything we "think" it might be (or take it to a shop for that matter). we have to be right the first time which is why on my personal vehicle i'm very methodical in my diagnostic methods and pick the brains of everyone i can before I start replacing parts.

 

my car did that exact thing when i change the hypertech chip. weird