I have an '87 Firebird,2.8L MPFI engine that ran out of gas and then sat for about amonth to a month and a half with-out being started.WhereI live ,(northern New Brunswick-Canada),it got pretty cold around that time.The temperature dropped to "-10" to "-15" , that's *C not *F.
I was lucky that I put gas line anti-freeze in it before it ran out of gas.Once the tank was filled ,I tried to start it but it wouldn't quite catch.It tried to start but couldn't.
The battery is in perfect shape,new plugs;the car was running fine before it ran out of gas.
I removed the plugs and theywere all soaking wet with fuel.I cleaned them up,put them back in,tried to start it again but it wouldn't quite catch again.So after removing the plugs about 5 times (each time the plugs were wet),The batteryran out of juice.When it comes to the 2.8L MPFI engine,when the engine floods, what is the correct way to re-start it?

Any help will be appreciated!

 

I just got mine which is a 2.8...it ran out of gas n sat for 3 years...i changed the plugs....new oil/gas...(other fluids were still good surprisingly) and it started right up

 

To clear a flooded EFI engine hold the gas pedal to the floor while cranking. The ECM will go into a clear flood mode and injector little to no fuel.

Once the battery is charged I'd a least put a fresh set of plugs in for the next restart attempt.

RBob.

 

Oh yea??? I did not konw that. My car seam a bit floody yesterday. Ran around like a chicken with my head cut off getting crap done before the snow hit. [its here] and I did lots of very quick short stops. Each time it took 2-3 cranks to get the car to fire. never did that before but acted a bit rich.

 

That is damn right Rob, push the pedal down to the floor while cranking the car is the best option to get rid of fuel flood. What I can tell you is this:
-Put new and better sparkplugs, (bosch platinum for example, they are already gapped for your car)
-Put new sparkplug wireset, I got AC Delco from Ebay for cheap price.
-New Distributor Rotor, check it up for some rust and clean it up if it is in good conditions.
-Verify the distributor cap, it should be ok, if you see that it looks bad, change it, it only costs few bucks. Autozone. $ 4.
-Change the motor oil, it is going to give you a better starting engine.
-And the MOST important thing ( at least for me) use good gasoline, I do not mind to pay 0.03 cents more for a better gasoline....I do not have a headache every time I want to start my car in the morning. So, do not hesitate to pour better gasoline in your car's fuel tank.
Also, pour a injector cleaner in the gas tank, like Lucas (the best for me).

This is what I can tell you, last monday, here in NJ was the coldest day we had so far, my car started right away, even my manager did not believe that I was able to start my car and drive to my job.
Good Luck, Happy holidays.