Hello everyone, i just found this place and i think its great. i dunno how to post a pic so i jsut clicked on buttons and got this....



ok well its an all stock 2.8 v6, t-tops, nothing special i paid $700 canadian for it, i just got threw with replacing the motor mounts (realllllyy hard if anyones done that) i thot about painting it cuz it needs it badly..i can do that at school tho. it seems to lack power, or its normal. the rear end sometimes bounces in reverse. but let me know wat u think...if the pic dont show go HERE

 

welcome to the board! : )

hmm i wonder...it might be the website that the pic is located within, they proly don't allow outside linking. but either way i saw the pic, you have a really nice car. could use a new paint job and some hubcaps, but before you start doing that make sure that everything is ok with the engine and whatnot (i dunno that's just what i would do, but that's only because paint jobs cost alot and i would feel better knowing my car ran really really well before i depleted my account *chuckles* )
anyways, i'm assuming that your car is carbed (mainly because of the year). does it just lack power when you start it? or when your driving around in it? your "lack of power" could just be the fact that it's carbed. maybe you should get a tune up or ya know a check up on your car. it could be your battery. maybe it's because it's a v6 (jk). and about your rear end bouncing, i'm not sure. if i gave you any bad info i'm sorry.

good luck with your car though!

 

Welcome to the site.

IMO that car looks like it just needs a major cleaning job.

I would do a search on this board for TOMP "tune up" and start thier.

Bouncing back, replace the shocks, very easy and can be fairly cheap depending on what you desire.

Again welcome to the board, were friendly around here provided you dont try to BS us and tell us you got something you don't have (IE Turbo)

 

Welcome

 

Your car just needs a little paint, I would get the same color. Also some American racing chrome 5 point star rims. I love those rims with that color.

Remember to use the search button and enjoy yourself.

 

Welcome to the board! From the looks of the car, I bet you everything is original on it.... shocks/struts from 1983, brake hoses from 1983, spark plug wires from 1983, suspension bushings, springs, brake fluid, distributor cap/rotor, etc. I hope other people in here (besides me) have at least replaced their brake hoses once by now. Brake hoses deteriorate and crack apart as they get older.

But anyway, I agree with Dale about shocks. If they're old, replace them, end of story. (And I also agree with the "we're friendly unless you BS us about parts that don't exist" statement, too! )

Looks like you've got a fun project car there!! Best part is that if you do all the work yourself, you can get it in great shape for a lot less money. First thing you should do is call Summit Racing at 800-230-3030 or go to their website at http://www.summitracing.com and request a free catalog. I cleaned my room and can't find any of mine - oops. But I think they sold KYB shocks for the rear for $20/each and front struts (more technology than a shock) for $60/each. You can install them yourself BUT you'll need to get to an alignment shop QUICK to have the front re-aligned; struts in our car are the same as upper control arms in a car which uses front shocks. So that means our alignment can change if the struts change. On a 93-2002 Camaro/Firebird, they have front shocks, with upper control arms, so if they just change the shock, they don't need to get an alignment. (We just have lower control arms).

So run thru the tuneup and you'll have a motor that runs good again, and I'd bet that anything you find wrong with your car, all of us here will know how to fix it. Keep us posted!! Here's the tuneup post:

-----------------------------------------------------------
Tom P's Major Tuneup Info: 3rd gen (82-92) F-body series

Here's the Major Tuneup stuff- this covers alot more than a garage would do for you, and it'll wind up to be cheaper (or at least the same price)! First, buy a Haynes 82-92 Firebird (or 82-92 Camaro) manual.. they're about $15 from any auto parts store. I like them alot better than the Chilton's manuals (which aren't what they used to be 25 years ago). And of course, the ultimate manual is the GM Service Manual, available from http://www.helminc.com - I paid about $60 for mine back in 1994.

Replace: Distributor cap/rotor, spark plug wires (use aftermarket), spark plugs, air filter (use K&N replacements), PCV valve, fuel filter, engine oil/filter, auto trans fluid/filter (or manual trans gear lube), and rear axle gear lube (use limited slip additive if required). Check and reset the timing to stock specs (in Haynes manual). Check and reset the TV cable if you have an automagic (in Haynes manual). Do a lube job and get an alignment done- the car will go faster "easier" if the front wheels are straight. Buy a can of "Intake and Throttle Body Cleaner for Fuel Injected Engines" by Gumout (yellow or gray can, with a red cap), and follow the can's instructions to clean out your intake. DO NOT USE CARB/CHOKE CLEANER- this removes the protective coating fuel injected engines have. Put a bottle of injector cleaner or my "red magic" (STP Gas Treatment) into a full tank of good gas.

It's also a good idea to replace your coolant, check your brake fluid level and p/s fluid level, check the belts, and check your brakes while you're at it.

Call Summit Racing at 800-230-3030 for a free catalog, then you can pick and choose a spark plug wire set and get your K&N air filter(s). (You can also find this stuff through their website, at http://www.summitracing.com , but it's not as thorough as the catalog.) When you leaf thru the catalog, you WON'T SEE any parts listed for a 2.8l v6 - you need to call them and ask them for part #'s/availablility. (Same goes with exhaust, etc.) If you're like me, and can't want to wait for the catalog in the mail, call them and order one anyway! Then, go to their website, at http://www.summitracing.com , look up their ignition wires, decide on a brand, and give them a call for a part # and price.

But definately do a tuneup first... you'll see the best improvment from the "fun" parts when your car is in good running condition.

-Tom P (Hot rodded 1986 Firebird 2.8l)

 

cool your car look just like how mine use to but i had 2 diffrent coloured door and fender. good luck. Oh and i hope your goal aint power.

 

Hey there, thx for the input, yeah it does need a really good cleaning. i can paint it at school for like $300 so im not worried about that and rims ill worry about later. but it does shake quite a bit and i dont know why, but it shakes alot wen its idling. it does need new shocks all around i just gotta fin money for them. needs a door handle, i went to get one expecting it to be no more than $20 but it came out to just over $50. any hoo thanks for teh help so far, and ill start doing the stuff i havent done in the tune up soon. im also not a bs type of person, my car is completely stock.

PS whats the compression suposed to be at? mine are between 130 and 170.

 

i would highly doing the tune-up.. ull notice alot more power from the car.. when u do this i would also strongly advice rebuilding ur carb..

something i mkinda curious to find out, i know all us carbed 3rd gen f-bodies are computer controlled.. ive heard that some canadian ones were not..

1: the first digit of ur vin (if its a "1" it was build for sale in the us, if it has a "2" it was build for sale in canada)
2: does ur car have a "check engine" light and does it come on momenterly when u start the car? (if it does it has an ecm or computer)

 

I cant check teh vin number cuz my cars at school right now but if i remeber correctly i think its a 1..but i could be wrong. i also cant remember if it has the check engine light im predy sure it doesbut i cant remeber. i dont have my lisense so i dont drive it to often and i havent rememberd what lights i have on my dash.

one last thing, iv used the search but its too confusing, how do i fix my ebrake??? i pull it and can hear a clicky noise under the car. how do i tighten it or make it work? thx

 

I belive you still have cable controlled ebrake. Some where under the car you will have a cable, then splits into a "Y" under it. At that "Y" should be a bolt on the end of the cable. Get some vise grips, hold the cable and start tightening the nut. Might want to make sure its not in need of just some rear pads.

 

Well, first, click on <a href="search.php?s="><img src="images/top_search.gif" alt="Search" border="0"></a> , then type in what you want to find in the "search by keyword" box. Leave the "search by user name" blank. Then make sure you choose the right forum or you'll get a million messages. Like, if I was going to search for "injectors", I'd want to choose the V6 forum instead of "search all open forums" because otherwise I'm going to get a million messages about v8 injectors and TPI injectors and TBI systems. Then you click "perform search". If you get a million records, click the "back" key in your browser, and add a word to narrow it down; for instance, you might want to change your search to "injectors clean" instead of "injectors".

Give that adjustment screw that Dale mentioned a good shot of Liquid Wrench for a few days before playing with it. Make sure none drips in your eyes; that adjuster is in a bad spot. You might also have to rebuild your rear drum brakes; they might not be auto-adjusting. They adjust when you hit the brakes while you're driving in reverse (like backing into a parking spot or your driveway). A full rebuild of them, photograph by photograph, is in the $12 Haynes manual I mentioned above.

The clicking noise under the car might also mean that the cables have slipped out of their guides; the guides and cables are very obvious once you get under the center of the car.

 

ill try tightening that Y thing in a wile the rear drums look newer so i dont think taht would be it. also thx for the searching teckniques(sp??). ill also let u all know if my tune up fixes some of the problems

 

Ever pop the drum off and check out the springs/shoes in the back? (Just don't press the brake pedal with the drum off!! Those springs will launch the brake stuff off the wheel- and you might catch a spring in the eye!) My auto adjusting lever on the driver's side wheel was bent; the brakes wern't autoadjusting b/c the lever never touched the adjustment disc. The Haynes book shows a photo-by-photo replacement of the rear drum shoes. To do a full rebuild of the brakes, you'd also have to replace the wheel cylinders, which gets into brake bleeding- which probably isn't necessary just to get the e-brake working.

 

dont watch what people say about the why your car look mine u 2 look just like your but worse now check it out.

 

i dont really understand wat u were trying to say...

 

I think he was trying to say:


--Don't care what people say about the way your car looks.
--
--Your car looks like mine used to, just like yours, but worse. Now, check it out (after I fixed it)!

Did I guess right? Icebird, were you falling asleep or something?

 

ok i understand that now