Well, I threw the battery on the charger for a little bit, and tossed it back under the hood, checked all the fluids and looked for drips on my cardboard under the drivetrain. All looked good, so I unplugged the coil and fuel injector fuses, and cranked it over until I got good pressure on the gauge.

After re-enabling the injectors and coil, I barely touched the starter, and she came to life instantly! Always a good sign, I think! (Does anyone know exactly where the fuel pump relay is, anyway? I would think that unplugging that is easier that the route that I currently take to prime the oil...)

It threw a fair amount of smoke until it got warmed up and I drove it slowly around the block once, and then the exhaust cleared up.

Anybody recommend using the "Max life" high mileage motor oils on cars that have less than 60k, but are 18 years old? Last year I only drove it some 700 miles, so it will be a while before the motor breaks in... At this point, I fear that age will kill it before I wear it out... Is this bad practice? Should I drive it more often in the summer?

Anyway, here's to the next driving season! Cheers!

 

F/P relay is on the firewall, on the driver's side, near the cowl lip. It's on a bracket with a couple other relays.

If you store it for a long time again, I think it's a 10mm socket that fits the oil pump's hex drive. Might want to spin that with a power drill before cranking the starter; that way you can get the oil up there before the crank ever moves- but I think ya knew that.

The fuel pump relay is only used to start the car. Once oil pressure builds up, the "oil pressure safety switch" kicks in, and turns the fuel pump on. You can actually operate your car with the fuel pump relay unplugged; it'll just be a long crank time until the motor starts. So if you unplugged the relay and cranked the car, the fuel pump would kick in anyway.

 

Welcome back! Alwas good to here from a fellow Firebird & GrandPrix owner :rockon:

I was using Maxlifein the Blazer, 95 & almost 99k, but will be using Valvoline Durablend from now on. The GPGT seems to like it, & I'm gonna run it in thebird when on the road. onl costs slightly more than max life, and now I can do oil changes on all 3 vehicles using the same type filter & same type oil

 

Thanks! Yeah, the 'Bird hibernates in the winter... Usually I go out and start it up once a week, or every other weekend, depending on what else is going on. This fall we moved to our new house, and I hastily backed the car into the garage, and piled stuff all around it...

Next year, I'll drive it in nose first, so I can vent the exhaust right out the overhead door...

Tom, is there a fuse I can't find that I can pull to disable the pump? I have TONS of Grand Prix wiring and schematic diagrams, and most of it memorized, but I don't have really anything good for the Firebird... Any recommendations? I have the Alldata CD and Chiltons for it, but that's about it...

I'm really hoping the weather this summer permits more driving! Last summer, almost all of my weekends were rained out, and I won't drive her to work. Too many idiots come in and out of the gravel lot, so I fear for the paint...