hey all,
OK I got my firebird drove from Indy,IN to Atlanta,GA
the next day tried to get an emission inspection, it did not pass.
the problem was the erg valve was blocked from getting vacuum.
unblocked this, and now when it is cold it has a hard time idling (about 500 rpm). before it was idling about 800 to 900 rpms. no check engine light, I know their is a vacuum problem now because losing the power assist on the breaks, but not finding any leaks on the lines to the erg valve, when testing the valve with a hand held vacuum tester the valve opens as it should and dose not show any signs of leaking. before unclogging the erg valve vacuum line, the car ran fine just would not pass emissions. any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

 

Is the control solenoid working? Sounds like it's stuck open.

 

Or a gasket leak between the two ports, leaking exhaust gas into the intake port. Is the valve seating ok?

 

ok just got through looking at it and right now its running about 700 rpm at idle the engine is warmed up, the egr valve is getting full vacuum
so that means the solenoid is not working, right?


the gasket looks fine since the car runs great with the egr valve vacuum line disconected.

 

If the diaphragm is recieving vaccuum at idle the control solenoid isn't working. That will hold the egr open and it will struggle to idle particularly when it's cold. If you place your finger under the diaphragm and push it open you'll notice the engine struggle or stall. Also check that the passages are clean and not holding the valve open.

 

OK thanks for the help, I got a Haynes manual (I know their is problems with it) I when through the test for the solenoid and it failed miserably should have a new one tomorrow will try that and let you how it does.

 

well engine runs great when around the block and lost the brakes, found the problem now wondering if I'm going to be able to fix or should I find some one else to make new steel brake lines.........

 

It's easy to do if you have a brake line flaring kit... Tubing bender isn't quite required, either. You can get a flaring kit and 25' of armored brake line for less than the single front-to-rear brake line will cost you from a place such as YearOne.

I did a complete front-to-rear brake line job, including the lines between the master and the proportioning valve, on a Plymouth (all 4 corners each have their own line and one side of the system required special adaptors) for about $80. Not including brake fluid, which I needed a lot of, and the pass rear wheel cylinder. However, when I get around to replacing the lines on the Bird, I'm getting prefab stainless steel lines .

 

Hey all, well the orgnial problem is back the egr valve is getting full vaccum at idle (the controle valve is brand new so I dont think that is the issue), and i got a new one the cooling fan will sometimes run (found the issue but thats another story), when I was going throught the cooling fan I found a wire spliced in at the relay for the cooling fan. the wire is going to the PCM (dark green with white stripe) when i toke this wire lose the car ran until the a/c clutch pulled in, the cooling fan started, then the check engine light came on, engine stalled/shut down, a/c clutch disagaged cooling fan turned off, check engine light whent out, and the engine came back to normal idle. with out the a/c running the cooling fan never came on. the only thing else I have of note is the owners manual said the fuse #2 was for the PCM and the fuel pump but I do not have this fuse in (I was looking at this to make sure I did not blow something). any ideas where to start with this one?

 

oh, I'm replacing the EGR valve this weekend do to a leak on the exhust side. and it is not currently conected.

 

Ok guys got the new egr valve in, only running marginally better, but it's trying to idle I even have gone in a put uncured rubber around the fitting on the vacuum system. Now it's cold idle is about 800 rpm with a dip to 500, any help would be appreatiated

 

It's not the EGR valve that's causing your issues, it's either the vacuum connection to the solenoid or the solenoid itself. The vacuum line running from the throttle body should go into the lower port of the solenoid and the upper line into a T for the sensor (the 4-wire box that connects to the solenoid) and then into the valve.

 

I know the EGR valve is not the problem it was replaced due to an exaust leak from the valve stem, looked like the side of the engine was smoking when the EGR valve was open.

as far as the vaccum lines I think that is the problem but it will have to wait until tomarrow, I'll let you know. oh I whent and looked at the 2.8L 89 RS Supercharger Q's pic's of his 2.8L and my vaccum lines don't look like his.

 

well made the changes to the vacuum line and it idles great after reteaching it.

so does any one have any idea about the cooling fan stuff I posted ealier, and the missing fuse?

 

hey guys i bought my firebird a while back its a 2.8 v6 fuel injected, its recent after getting a tune up, liquid changes, and water pumps replaced, after starting the engine itll stall out or run around 400-1000 sometimes it'll sstart at 1000 and burst to 1800 and than go down and fluctuate its all just recently(few days) started to show no rpms when i press on the gas pedal, ill turn it on and press the gas pedal and it'll go from like 900 rpms to nothing and sound like it wants to stall out, the engine light does turn on havent checked the codes, but i gave the car to my mechanic to check out the engine light and look at it but i called him and he says its running fine now i thought maybe clogged catalytic converter or maybe a leak in a hose or maybe mass airflow or something(im somewhat new to cars) but he checked those and nothing i was also gunna check the fuel filter to see if its maybe clogged. any ideas on what might be the issue mines a 1986 model as well

 

http://s988.photobucket.com/albums/a...r.jpg&newest=1

FYI, that is what your vacuum diagram should look like. May be covered in crap, but I'm sure it's there, stuck to the bottom side of the hood in the front driver's side corner. Unless the car has been repainted and it's been painted over .

As for the fans and the rest, you'd need a pic of the fan relay assembly. Other than that, look here: http://92b4crs.tripod.com/86wiring/dia-pics/31-0.jpg

 

thanks for the images, the piece on top of the radiator was replaced before I got the car and it dose not have anything on it and the diagram I got off line is not the same as what I'm running, I have to double check but I think my hanes book also has a different diagram for the cooling fan electrical. did you get that from the gm manual (thats around $100)?

 

The emissions hose routing sticker isn't on the radiator support... It's on the bottom of the hood.

And yes, those images in the second link were taken from the 86 Camaro FSM. Haynes is SO wrong that it isn't funny, which is why I don't use it any more. For instance, there was no knock sensor used on the 2.8, but Haynes says there was...

 

lol i knew Haynes was wrong on some things but did not know it was that far off, oh well looks like I'll get the best one.

 

hey got a question about the manuals, I found one on helminc.com for 75.00, and I want to make sure I'm getting the right one ( I tought it was more like 100) the book number is S8610F. Is this one the right one?

 

That's how much mine would have cost if I hadn't gotten it on eBay for less than half that. Try there as well. With all of the dealer closings lately, shops and techs are looking to unload their inventories, and things can be had cheap. Just keep in mind they won't be brand spanking new and may have some damage.

 

ok, I was just wanting to check the number before hunting to make sure I get the right one

 

hey all,
I toke my car out for a small drive today. I drove about 70 miles then parked it for two hours and then drove home on the way home I noticed the temp started climbing and settled at 220 after about 40 miles. on the way up it stayed at the normal range. now I had a/c just as cool as it should be, the car you could tell it was hot. the outside temp was mid to upper 80's. the fan was running. any ideas where to start looking for this?

 

Remove one of the 2 sensors next to the thermostat housing, where the upper radiator hose connects. BE CAREFUL AS THE CONNECTOR PROBABLY WANTS TO BREAK. The coolant level in the hole the sensor comes out of should just about be to where it wants to come out the hole. If not, get a funnel and put some coolant in there as there is an air bubble sitting under the thermostat.

It's either that, or you need a new coolant temperature sensor...

 

oh ok thats sould better then what I was thinking, thank I'll post something tonarrow on it.

 

If it's a big red book with "FIREBIRD" across it, yeah, right one. No other manual for '86 would cost $75.

 

coolant lvl was all most out of the hole but the sensor and plug has been broken (before I got to it )

oh dose any one have a rear hatch motor wiring schematic, to night the hatch won't go down. I don't have the print for this one.

 

hey all, found the problem with my rear hatch latch, now that I got it closed. dose any one know of any one who sells parts for it or am I just going to buy the whole assembly. the plastic gear that drives the latch up and down broke in half, motor still runs.