Well today something just about royally pissed me off, was leaving the flea market, got to the end of the driveway and blaaa, car stalled. Started it back up, pulled out quick went down the road a little did a brake test and blaa. Bump started it and drove off again. Did this to me at every light and stop. If it didnt stall, it barely idled around 5-600 rpm. Also it has always been starting really rich, large puff of smoke, and no its not oil, def. gas. And one other thing, I'm having some problems with my elec cooling fan, it wasnt kicking on til about 240-250 degrees. Even highway speeds 70-80mph it was running 220-230. Replaced fan switch and thermostat (180*), still didnt work. Unplugged fan sensor, and fan is on all the time. WTH? Fan is supposed to be on only if you ground the switch harness. Phew im done. Need any more info just ask.

Elbows in grease since 13, still covered at 17 and lovin it : )

 

woah, dude, you are having some problems! that sucks man.

something people over look is the purge canister, little black canister in front of the car, oppisite of battery, check haynes/chiltons on that

puff of smoke, so i hear, is the valve seals, they go bad and oil leaks in and burns on startup, creating smoke

i dunno about the fan stuff, gotta love gremlins huh?

 

Thats what i dont understand stuart is that its not oil burning, its plain as day that its gas. This motor doesnt burn a drop of oil and even after about 2500mi. after oil change its still nice and clear, and within safe level. AS for the fan, im too damn stubborn with electrical stuff like that to try and find the prob myself. Want me to wire an entire stero system? Ill do that in 5 mins. But engine electronics.....YUCK! As for the canister....im sick of this emissions crap, I ripped it all off my other vehicles. Im scared I'll get myself up the creek if I start rippin this cars emissions off though. So what am I supposed to look for on it? Thanks. Later. Also I dunno if i had it in there, but the richness is only on startup, and it takes alot of cranking most of the time. Ok im goin to bed. Night.

 

for the fan:

try to replace the relay

i might work

sounds like you need a whole new ECM though

 

Is it still happening? Does it only happen when the car's hot? I wonder if the EGR is acting up. Although, if you left that flea market, chances are you weren't doing 50 mph down the parking lot with low throttle (low rpms') so the EGR never would've kicked on.

I wonder if the fuel pump isn't taking a dump. Might want to throw a pressure gauge on it...

 

EEk please dont tell me the fuel pump, but i kinda have doubts about that, because whouldnt that totally defeat the rich starting? It wouldnt have enough pressure to throw so much fuel into the motor. Its only rich when its cold at start, but even when its warm it still sometimes starts hard. Confusion Confucion Confusion. Could the screwy fan circuit be a possible suspect to all this? Makin the ECM think all kinda weird things? Cuz i have the fan switch unplugged at the water neck (well, near it) and the fan is on as soon as you turn the ignition to the run position. I dunno, keep throwin me ideas. oh BTW i got the stalling nailed, all i did was disconnected the batt term to reset the computer, seemed to have work. Id also like to add, when I start it cold, I have to sit and warm it up for several minutes because the fan keeps it so cool, and that in turn is making it spit and sputter and backfire through the intake til it gets warm. Man, im like the energizer bunny with this. . . . . .

 

hmmmmmmm

ECT engine coolant temperature

could explain alot of things, if its bad


thats one of the main sensors

but i dont know if its used in open loop?????

could also explain why your fan aint comming on soon enough


as i understand it though.......open loop is supposed to be rich

a bad ECT..........leaving it in open loop even longer

thus running richer longer

and not having the fan come on


i think i am on to something here..........

 

Where is this ECT located? Im new to these modernized vehicles and these gazillion electronic thingys. Lemme guess...easy to fix but really expensive? Thanks....hopefully we can nail this damn thing.

 

Please tell me you've had a fuel pressure gauge on it........that should be step #1.

 

there are two screws on the bottom of the canister, remove them, and see how dirty th filter on the bottom is. If its dirty, replce it with a new one from a GM dealer.

Also, after the car has been running a while, touch the "Control Vac" on top of the canister (its labeled) and make sure it is cold. If it is hot, you need to replace the whole canister, cost me $120 bucks from a Chevy Dealer.

How is the Vacuum Pressure doing? That could also be your problem.

Go to a auto store and buy a Coolant Testor. Check the freezing and boiling points of you coolant . That helps out to make sure you have the right mixture.

When was the last time you checked the thermostat?

You would be surprised what a busted radiator cap would do!!!!

do a search on the board to see how to check the radiator.

 

just noticed you replaced the thermostat, ignore that.

i wouldn't think it was the fuel pump cuase you are running rich, which would stand to reason that you are getting a good flow of fuel.

 

Maybe tomorrow I'll take it to work and hook it up to the vac pump, see if I got any leaks goin on. As for the fuel pump, I dont mean to sound like an ***, but I'm ignoring that right now. Gonna try and nail the easy stuff first. I just went over everything on the coolant system: cap, mixture, new fan switch, flush and so on. I had the canister off a few weeks ago, it all looked good. Vac system check tomorrow, then we'll go on from there, I tried looking over all the lines but I cant find anything that way, so I'm gonna have to get technical. I just dont understand why my fan is kicking on without the temp switch hooked up, manual says that shouldnt happen. I kinda think this is all going opn cuz of the fan circuit crap. Wheres the relay? And how do I know if its bad? Thanks & Later!

 

the easy stuff is always the best place to start