I recently recieved a 86 firebird due to the abandonment law. (If something has been left on your property that does not belong to you.... it then becomes yours) and it hasnt been started in a few months. Today I replaced the battery and tried to fire it up but it wouldnt start, I could smell gas and thought it was flooded.
I went on like this for about an hour. But I remembered a friend telling me to try to pour some gas in the carbourator and i tried that and it fired right up......

I do not live near the car due to college so it might not get started up very often.
What I want to know is .... would this become an everyday thing
or would it only happen when i dont start it up every couple of weeks...

 

Its hard to say whether or not your situation would be an every day occurance. However, since you recieved the car for, I assume nothing, then get the carb rebuilt or replaced.

 

sounds like you got yourself a car for nothing, good job.
anyway, rebuild the carb would be a good thing. but if you disconect the battery between times you fire up then i should be fine. how long has the car been sitting? when I went over seas for 7 months all I did was disconect my battery and the car started right up. I had to do some major tune ups though (it needed it before I went over seas) and the rear tires were dry rotted an one blew on me when I was on the Hwy (not fun)
biker

 

Sounds to me like the gas in the tank is no longer flammable. A common problem with cars (and boats!!) that sit a while. The gas collects moisture, and will no longer support combustion.

Try draining the tank and putting new gas in before you mess with the carb.... you'll have to do it anyway, might as well do it before the defective gas fornicates a newly rebuilt carb, and then you'll just have to get rid of it anyway, and rebuild the carb again.

 

yeah i got it for free... its a good christmas present huh.... well it didnt have any gas in it to start but i put some fresh gas in it and it wouldnt fire, so its not bad gas.

How much does a carb. rebuild cost...
by *** its the biggest carb i have ever seen... its a V8 4barrel 305 Stock...

i am comparing it to only a few carbs i have seen ..... 2.8 v6 93 s10 hehe there is a big difference in those two

 

And snowmobiles, and snowblowers....

If you're smelling raw fuel, you might want to remove the spark plugs, crank the engine to clear out any accumulated fuel, then install new plugs. The old plugs (or ANY plug) once soaked with fuel will not produce as strong a spark since the insulator no longer insulates as it should.

If you don't know the correct plug number, get Champion RV15YC4 (regular) or RV15YC6 (higher heat range) for about a buck apiece.

 

hey man I appreciate your help alot I sure can use it...
I tried to fire it up for the first time in about 5 hours and it took 4 attempts to get it to start.... does it seem like a carb. problem


1. hasnt been started in 3 weeks....
2. started after gas was put in carb.
3. 3 hours later took 4 tries to get it firing

 

hey man I appreciate your help alot I sure can use it...
I tried to fire it up for the first time in about 5 hours and it took 4 attempts to get it to start.... does it seem like a carb. problem


1. hasnt been started in 3 weeks....
2. started after gas was put in carb.
3. 3 hours later took 4 tries to get it firing

 

a day later and the bird wont even crank .... is it a bad carb...
i can smell gas when i try to crank.....
at the beginning of my attempts to crank it it sounds like it wants to start but just gives out.... then when i press the gass to get it fired up it sounds weaker

 

Do the lights and accessories work? What happens when the headlights are on and you try to crank the engine? Do the lights dim?

 

If you continue to pour gas down the carb, re-install the air cleaner before you crank it. I've seen a few cars catch on fire when they hick-up and shoot burning gas back out the carb and all over the eng.
Definately don't look down the carb throat while someone cranks the eng for the same reason.

 

i havent tried the lights dimming check when i crank it.... but all of the lights and things work.... also the stereo fades on and off when it is cranked... this is weird

well i dont want to continue pouring gas in the carb... I would like a solution (dont take that as a pissy remark) because its dangerous as you said... but i will make sure to put the air filter back on

 

BY what you described about the cranking situation and the lights dimming, I wonder if the battery is weak. Or worse yet the wiring is messed up somewhere.

Good luck getting it figured out.

 

the battery was just purchased... i havent tested the lights dimming yet...

 

i just discovered that when i do start it (with a little gas in the carb...) that if i dont continue to push the gas for a minute it will die....
maybe a bad fuel line or filter??

 

i spoke to some guys tonight and they told me that it might be the fuel pump... they asked if it was electric... i said i didnt know.. i am sure one of you could tell me

 

Your '86 LG4 should have a mechanical fuel pump bolted to the right side of the block near the front (down low). If you suspect a fuel pump, you can test it by removing the fuel line from the carburetor, routing the line to a suitable container, then cranking the engine to see it any fuel will flow. Be very careful when removing the fuel line from the carb, since it is easy to damage both the flare nut and the threads in the carb body itself. Use a backup wrench when tightening or loosening the flare nut.

If you get fuel flow, inspect the fuel filter in the carburetor. If you don't get fuel flow, either the pump has failed or the fuel is not getting to the pump from the tank.

 

jeez,

i guess your a real mechanic in the real world,
but your an internet mechanic to us...:hail:

 

i am short on lingo but whats the LG4

 

LG4 is GM RPO code for the engine in your car. RPO is Regular Production Option.
All the engines have a different RPO designation as well as interior, suspension, etc.

Everything that is put on the car has an RPO code. You may still have a sticker in your car with all the RPO codes listed for your car. If the sticker is intact you can search the codes on the homepage and see everything your car has or had installed when it was new. The sticker is probably on the locking compartment lid in the rear of your car, you know, the glove box!

 

hehe i am sorry i am so far behind in lingo just read my signature... it applies to all cars

 

Nobody knows everything and none of us were born with the knowledge we have learned over the years. Keep asking questions and you will always keep learning. Knowledge is power, especially in the racing game.

 

racing??? i cant even get the thang to crank hehe
one day.....sigh....oneday

 

Carbs that sit a long time with fuel in them, get varnished up.
Small fuel and air passages (I.E. idle circuit) become plugged and the eng will run like crap if it runs at all.

If your fuel pump and filter checkout OK, probably ought to have the carb rebuilt which should include submersion in carb cleaner, blowing out all the passages and installing the rebuild kit.

If you plan on doing this yourself and you've never done it before, ask questions first. There's some parts that need to be removed before dipping the carb in cleaner.

One more thing; I'd do a compression check on the eng before I spent any big money on it.
Cars are usually abanboned for a reason, but who knows??, you may have just got lucky!

 

Please check this summarized thread for information and replies: https://www.thirdgen.org/techbb2/sho...hreadid=150440