Hi Im new, i recently came across a 88 firebird with a 2.8. The engine was running great this last week but now i cant even get it to fire. It turns over just fine. Its getting gas just no spark i guess. im buying the car for 400 and its in good condition with a body kit and new paint.

 

Welcome to TGO . If it was running and you are sure you are getting fuel then you may have a bad coil or ignition module . First thing to do is make sure you are getting fuel if so check for spark . If you are getting spark and no fuel then you have a problem with the injectors not fireing . If you are getting fuel and no spark you have a problem with the coil , module , or the pickup coil .

 

The owners son said that the random green switch on the dash of the car makes it run like its out of gas if you turn it off. could this be a sensor cause i flicked the switch but there is still no response from the engine.

 

I don't know of a green switch in these cars so they must have spliced one in and its causeing you problems .

 

Green switch on the dash? I have never heard of that. Sounds to me like somebody tried to wire in a kill switch as an anti-theft measure. It is possible that this is wired into the ignition system somehow and that one or more of these connections have come loose. If you see alot of crimp connectors in the wiring, that is a telltale sign that you are in for many days full of migranes to make it right.

 

Sounds to me like 2 things:

1. That switch kills the fuel pump.
2. The ignition module in the distributor has perished. Common problem. Either that or there is a bad wire between the coil and the distributor.

 

well i found out that the plugs were majorly fouled out. Like jet black and really wet almost like oil. I got the car started up and it runs fine. When im going down the road after a minute the car overheats. The water pump is pushing water in the rad like it should so im thinking that the thermostat is blocked

 

is the air dam in place and does the electric fan turn on?

 

there is no air dam and ill look at the fan today, if i remember correctly it does turn on.

 

Having no air dam on the road means your car is probably going to take about 5 min before it overheats. And probably a month or 2 before the main bearings go out. If the cam doesn't seize first. Go to a junkyard and find one. Most of them only have 6 bolts, others (on Birds and T/A's) have more.

:edit: The full purpose of the air dam is to keep the car's body and motion from sucking the air right out from in front of the radiator, since most of us don't have a useable front grille.

 

Thank you, I'll go get a air dam right away. The fan does work i noticed it today. I drove it to my dads house and it didnt overheat so maybe the thermostat was blocked.

Anyways the plugs still get fouled out from time to time. I drove it to my dads house and it was fine. but when i got there and turned the car off it would not crank. Once i took the plugs back out to clean them they were coated in oil on the threads and the electrode was black.

 

Your engine is running rich, seems to be kind of common at the moment. I would test the coolant temp sensor and the coolant mixture. Also, oil on the plug threads only means you have a valve cover oil leak, as that's the only way oil gets on there. Oil can't go through the plug to get on the outside of the head from within the cylinder.