Firebird - Pontiac - Chevrolet - Camaro :: 1991 - Overheat Occasionally?
Aug 26, 2011
I recently bought a 1991 Pontiac Firebird Formula 5.7L TPI with 124k. We was driving it home when noticed it was getting really hot (240-250). We pulled over at a gas station and gased it and let it cool off. We had been driving in the city at about 4 o clock for about 7 miles if that makes a difference. When it cooled we tried again. We got about another mile and the temperature would stay down so we pulled back over. We inspected it. The oil pressure showed really zero but we checked the dipstick and it looked okay. The engine sounded normal and the radiator is fairly new. The fan was blowing. We noticed that after it cooled off if you hit the gas the oil pressure would go up (similar to a tachometer...i thought that was weird). After if got cooled and we got on the open highway the temperature stayed normal and the car performed like it should. We think its the thermostat but are not sure.
View 6 Replies
Advertisement
1999 Camaro V6 125K miles. Occasionally overheats. No noticeable coolant leak. Was pressure tested and passed. Mechanic suggested new radiator cap. New cap installed and was fine for a while then overheated again and problem seems to have intensified. Will a compression test reveal anything regarding this problem?
View 2 Replies
I have a 92 fire bird , just got it. Ran fine, idled a little high, but after a bit, it went down. Now, when it idles, it just wants to die when I come to a stop at a red light or stop sign. It dies, unless I keep one foot on the brake and another on the gas to keep it idled up.
View 4 Replies
My 1997 Pontiac Firebird Transam Ram-Air with 169K miles is becoming hard to start. It used to start right up with the first key-switch. Now, if the gas level in the tank is below 75% it will not start on the key-switch. However, it would now normally start right up on the second key-switch. However, very recently the car is now needing the third key-switch to start with lower gas levels in the tank. I MAY be noticing a difference in starting reliability with change in temperature. Lower temperatures seem to increase the frequency of starting on the first or second key-switch. Higher temperatures seem to require the third key-switch to start.
This slow to start behavior manifests its self after the car has rested for about an hour or longer. A friend checked a fuel check-valve immediately behind the engine when the. However, he found fuel there. The local GM dealership claimed they could not find the problem and suggested a new car battery and then a tune-up for $1K. I suspect the problem is a fuel pump in the fuel-tank or associated seal degrading. What is the actual cause of the observed behavior?
View 8 Replies
I have a 1989 formula firebird 305 v8 automatic that I am having an issue with. I drove to the next town over, on my way back it stalled 7 times, started back up everytime. On the 8th time it completely died. I have power to my lights and everything still just no cranking and starting. Most the time it was stalling was when i started to slow down for a stop it would shut off. Got it pushed home. Had my battery and starter checked, battery was bad, and starter solenoid was bad. changed both and still nothing. The security light dont come on (just when you first turn the key like usual it turns on, but right back off) I have not a clue where to go from here.
View 8 Replies
I just bought a used 95 pontiac trans am. It has 121,000 miles on it, 6-speed manual, 5.7L engine, all stock. Well i bought it with oil leaks and they turned out to be worse than i thought so i had to reseal pretty much the whole front of the engine from the o-ring seal to the camshaft seal, etc. That took care of the oil leaks. Well then it started to overheat so i replaced the water pump. Problems solved. Then a spark plug came loose. No prob. Well 24 hours after getting it out of the shop from the resealing i break down.
Now they say i need a new wire harness. No prob. So now I've put $2,000 into the car (that's including new tires). SO ONCE AGAIN WITHIN 24 HOURS OF LEAVING THE SHOP i break down again. So I take it to a different shop again to get a diagnostic. They won't be able to tell me anything until monday but they put on a new air intake boot (without my permission because mine was taped to secure it better and i knew it wasn't leaking air) and it cut off on them again in the shop (so I'm not paying for the boot). When i break down it happens unexpectedly just like I've run out of gas. Well once there was almost like a split second of a lurch but other than that its always been a smooth break down. No bad sounds or anything. And the motor sounds great and the car runs really well until it just stops... Then if i let it sit for a little while it will start back up and go for a little then stop again. No one can really tell me whats wrong with it.
My fuel pump seems to be fine. alternator seems fine (my lights don't dim or anything). Distributor maybe? Or could it be the fuel filter? And isn't there something i can do about the shop? Wouldn't a prudent shop at least run the computer on the car? I don't think they did because at the shop where it is now they said that 6 codes popped up on it. So they want to erase them all and run the car and see which ones come back up. So can't i take the other shop to court for neglect in their work? I mean breaking down TWICE WITHIN 24 hours of leaving them. And then the rest of the afternoon they wouldn't even pick up the phone...
View 19 Replies
I have a 93 firebird. it has a new engine ,starter and battery. fuse under hood is good. turn switch lights work as usual .
View 11 Replies
I have been having some recent issues with my 92 bird lately. It started minor but now the car will not stay on. It originally started out as I would need to press the gas to get it to start and it would stay on, but now if I let my foot off the gas for anything it will just idle rough and die out. I took it into a shop and they said that I had a bad idle control valve and the pigtails need to be replaced. They also said that some wires were shorted out and they would replace those as well. They replaced the Pigtails and the idle control valve and the car started to work fine again, for about 4 days only. I drove to the store and when I came back out to start it back up it wouldn’t stay on unless I gave it gas.
I had to drive it home giving it gas and using my other foot on the brake so that it didn’t due out. I checked the job they did and doesn’t even look like they did what they said they did. I looked at the botched shrink tube job they did and it just doesn’t look that professionally done. I did call the guy and he gave me an excuse and said that they short must have traveled further and he was surprised that the car was even running when they were done. I of course just hung up the phone after hearing that. I did a little looking around the engine and I noticed that if you unplug a vacuum tube and press on the gas and hold it at 2000 rpm for a few seconds and let off the car will stay on, but the moment I plug that hose back up with my finger or plug it back in the tube slot, the car idles rough for a few moments and dies.
View 6 Replies
Wife's daily driver often stalls when coming to a stop. I changed MAP, TPS, Fuel filter; Reputable mechanic changed IAC, Plugs, Wires, Cleaned Throttle Body. We reset computer and relearned idle several times, ok for a while then starts stalling routinely again. What to do next? Owner, driver, wife is getting frustrated with the big money spent to no avail to date and I am worried it will stall at a dangerous time, when she is driving. She loves the car - has had it for 20 years and wants to keep it. I need it to be safe and reliable for her.
1992 Pontiac Firebird 3.1L, Auto, Air
View 3 Replies
I have a 2002 firebird that I had the battery replaced on yesterday also had positive terminal and wires changed because of corosion. Ran fine when I left shop. When I went to go out last night car would not start Only clicks when try to start. Dome light works, headlight works, and dash lights work.
View 3 Replies
My car is a 1985 Pontiac Firebird
So I was drive around 45mph when I noticed that the accelerator stopped responding, it didn't make any obvious noises. I hadn't run out of gas and the engine was still running. I started pulling over to the side of the road and noticed that the power steering and the power brakes were no longer working. I got it to the side of the road and shut the engine off, I waited a minute and tried to start it again, the engine turned over but wouldn't start. I tried this a few more times with the same result.
I can't afford to take it to a mechanic so I need to figure out what's wrong and try to fix it myself. The car has a slow oil leak. As recently as a few months ago I replaced the battery and had to replace the alternator, since then it has been running fine. I checked the belts and all of them are still there, a friend of mine told me to wiggle the pulleys and make sure they were all tight, I did so and found nothing wrong with them and none of the belts are loose. What could cause all of these things to go wrong at once?
View 6 Replies
My 1996 Firebird with 3800 series II V6 engine makes a ringing noise. The noise appears to come from the front of the engine (pulley area) and sounds like an old fashioned fire alarm. It usually occurs after the engine has warmed up and cannot be heard from inside while cruising.
View 4 Replies
I have an 85 Firebird V6, 2.8L, tuned port injection, we bought it new and I have changed the oil every 2000 miles, it still runs great, except… The fuel pump gave out, I replaced it with a new Bosch, in the process I tried to replace the fuel filter, the line was rusted, it broke. I had to replace about 2 ft. of metal line with nylon tube, I also had to install a fuel filter with quick disconnect fittings, the filter is not the original but some generic because the original metal threaded fittings are gone. It runs great up to about ½ throttle, if I try to accelerate more than that it loses power and almost dies. If I turn off the ignition and restart the engine it runs fine for a while, full power all the way to full throttle.
I’ve noticed that if I keep the fuel tank full the problem happens less often.My theory is that the fuel pump is aerating because of not enough restriction in the fuel filter because it isn’t designed for that car, if I keep the tank full it is harder to start the aeration and stopping the pump and restarting it stops the aeration for a while. If I could get a fuel pressure gauge and be able to see it while I’m driving that would be great, but how? Also, what does the fuel pressure regulator really do? Does the fuel pump run all the time the engine is running? It also sounded like an electrical problem but it idles well and it is very smooth up to about ½ throttle. Could I just have a bad pressure regulator or does my theory sound like it makes sense?
View 6 Replies
My 1994 TransAm has 70k miles. As I';m driving, I'll notice the tach needle drop to zero with no warning, and the car just dies. Battery is fine, gas tank is full, and it soon starts again and works normally. Friends have suggested the timing belt (or chain?) may be the issue, and one day, it won't start again, or it will break and ruin the engine. She, like me, is an antique -- is it time to take her in to the repair shop, and if so, is it costly?
View 9 Replies
I have a 91 RS 3.1 with a 5 speed that is not starting.
The problem started with the key not engaging the starter at all, a friend who is much better at electrical and we found the security relay switch behind the kick panel is not engaging on it's own. we manually engaged the switch and now the key will spin the starter but the engine is not firing up only spinning.
does the security relay switch control anything other than the starter engaging.
There is gas in the car. using a screwdriver and spark plug wire we have verified that we are getting spark.
View 4 Replies
Basically it dies when thrown into drive. Idle is great, the reverse is great, neutral is great, drive is crappy.
If I let it sit for an hour or so, it will stay in drive without stalling, not for long though.
My MAP sensor connector is messed up I already know that but could it be causing my issue?
Also, I put antifreeze into my engine coolant reserve about 2 weeks ago, yesterday I checked it and it was just about empty. Any reason for that? I haven't noticed any leaks either.
View 3 Replies
The car is a 91 Chevy Camaro RS , 3.1 V6 and a 5 speed. Mileage is approx 400K + , the odometer has never worked since purchase and showed 239K when I purchased it approx 8 years ago.
The battery croaked due to being low on water and at the same time a stalling problem began so I wonder if the battery going bad may have contributed to the stalling issue.
The battery has been replaced with a new one but the stalling issue has not been resolved by replacing the battery.
At start up the car will idle correctly, occasionally when starting the rpm's will shoot up then slowly slow to correct idle
speed and usually continue to run.
When driving car seems fine but when the clutch is pushed in when coming to a stop at a sign, light, etc the engine rpm's begin to slow from traveling r's down to what would be normal idle speed, this is when it stalls.
If I left foot the brake and keep r's up with my right foot I can prevent the car from stalling. If I (using my foot on the gas) allow the r's to slowly come down to sitting idle speed it usually will not stall.
The cat converter was removed from the car several years back so it's not a clogged exhaust problem.
View 3 Replies
I recently purchased for my son a 1986 camaro 2.8 MFI v6 the car had been sitting for over a year in the previous owner's back yard because it would not start.I have had a mechanic do the following: heads redone, replace the distributor, replace the timing chain and gears, new wires, and emptied the fuel tank and replaced the fuel filter.
I picked up the car and it ran for about two week no problem. Then it started diying occasionally when you let of the gas to come to a stop, so he replaced the fuel relay switch thinking that it may be going bad. The next day he had been driving it about 15 miles when it just died and would not restart. We shot a little starting fluid to see if we could get it to start and get it back home. it fired up and ran all the way home and died when turning into the driveway. and would not start again.
We replace the fuel regulator the car started right up and he took it for a test drive. The car ran about 4 miles, long enough to warm up and died again and would start. and again we were about to get it started with starting fluid to get it back home. pulled in the driveway and it dies. again it would not start, let it sit all night and the next morning still would not start finally got it to start with a squirt of starting fluid and moved it into the garage. shut if off and then tried to start it and it worked 5 times in a row.
View 4 Replies
I have a 2000 Chevy Camaro. Two years ago my catalytic converter went out and I had it replaced. 20,000 miles later my mechanic says that I need to replace it again. Is this accurate? I thought the life of a Catalytic Converter was much longer.
View 2 Replies
A year ago my 1998 chevy camaro 6 cyl eng. randomly did not start. Then came back to it 15 min later and it started right up and did not give me another problem.3 months ago it did the same thing, but then would go a week at least with no more trouble sometimes longer sometimes more frequent.
within this past month it has become very frequent and I have had to push start it with the clutch a few times to get to work. It starts right up when I pop the clutch every time. Now the car will not start with the key no matter what.
Some more details on what it does now - When I first get in it after it has sat a little while you can hear the starter solenoid click the first three times or so when I turn the key. After that you do not hear the solenoid click anymore, but the relay up under the hood clicks every time with the key. (for kicks I even swapped the starter relay and the ignition relay with no change)
The battery is fairly new, but I load checked it anyway and it is perfect, plus I tried another good battery and jumper cables from a battery in a running car so that's not the problem. I have cleaned all corrosion off terminals and the ground to the engine and to the car.
I checked the resistance of the little piece on each of two ignition keys and they check fine.
I have checked the clutch switch down by the pedal multiple ways. checked resistance of the switch, voltage when the key is on and jumpering the plug with a paper clip.
when I push start the car and have it running I can turn the key with the clutch out nothing happens, but if I push the clutch in the starter will engage (grind) every time (I didnt do this a lot). this tells me that the clutch switch is working and the started is working right?
I did switch the starter out with another used unit and it did the same thing.
I unhooked the alternator on the off chance a short in that was drawing too much juice and not giving enough to the starter (I know I am really reaching here).
View 4 Replies
2000 Camaro, v6 auto, 103000 miles, 2 years ago car started making a roaring noise in the rear. the faster i go the louder it gets. if i let off the gas it almost goes away. at high speed over 90 the rear vibrates. noticed today that if i push on rear fender there is a clunking noise coming from rear wheel. checked lug nuts and they are tight. Is it unsafe to drive?
View 4 Replies
