1988 Pontiac Firebird Barely runs, smokes, odd problems

Tiny
TRISTANB
  • MEMBER
  • 1988 PONTIAC FIREBIRD
Engine Performance problem
1988 Pontiac Firebird V8 Two Wheel Drive Automatic

when starting i usually have to turn the car over for a good 5 seconds or so and usually with the pedal to the floor to get it to start and when it does fire up i have to feather the gas for about another 10 seconds till it reaches normal idle. occasionally it surges 3-500 rpm when at a light or in park. the idle is not high and it emits quite a bit of blue smoke. I have tried several adjustment on the timing but have had not much change.

I have changed out the plugs and wires, not much of an improvement. In addition to this the rear pipes, or runners, on the driver side coming from the plenum to the intake manifold are cold while its running... like refrigerator cold... to the point that they condensate.


http://www.2carpros.com/forum/automotive_pictures/344319_tpi_manifold_2.jpg



I replaced the IAC, this produced a little less smoke. we pulled the plenum and replaecd the gasket between the throttle body and the plenum, it had some cracks/ holes. We also cleaned the throttle body out. rechecked the timing and rechecked the TPS, all good. It starts but tries to die if ANY gas is applied. Still smokes badly. From there we went to injectors and unplugged them on at a time to see if it made any difference (exhaust smoke still smells of unburnt gas). Some made a noticeable difference and some yielded odd results; example: When number 8 was unplugged, the car produced ALOT more smoke, lightly colored.

EDIT: new symptom, intake- full of gas, throttle body full of gas, plenums so full of gas it poured all over the top of the engine upon removal
Friday, June 12th, 2009 AT 8:58 AM

3 Replies

Tiny
DOCFIXIT
  • MECHANIC
  • 18,828 POSTS
Hi
Diaghram in fuel pressure regulator is ruptured and fuel is being sucked into intake via vacuum line.
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Saturday, June 13th, 2009 AT 11:33 AM
Tiny
TRISTANB
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Thanks! That's exactly what we found this morning!
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Saturday, June 13th, 2009 AT 8:33 PM
Tiny
DOCFIXIT
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Great hope it runs good for you.
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Monday, June 15th, 2009 AT 2:38 PM

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