[Syty] Broke & Stumped!

Lewis Straughn lewisstraughn at netscape.com
Wed Jan 4 11:14:27 CST 2006


Dennis,

I had the same problem with the screws in the distributor cap and that 
will cause the problem you are having. I know it is hard to get to that 
screw, but what I had to do was just get one screw started a couple of 
turns and then get the other one going and then be sure I had the cap 
pushed down to the bottom and seated in position and then tighten each 
screw a little at the time until I had them both tight. I don't know why 
it is so hard to get the cap in position, but it is and when you get it 
you will know it. I had to walk away a couple of times because it was a 
job for Houdini.

Hope that helps,
Lewis Straughn

DOlivares wrote:

> Yep, had /all/ those bases covered before admitting to being STUMPED!
>  
> FPR is brand-new; Conrad Cap and Rotor are brand-new, although /only 
> one bolt can be secured/ to the Distributor-- bizarre manufacturing 
> flaw... anyone else ever see this?  I just bought another one 
> yesterday, but that /won't/ fix this problem....
>  
> I've taken enough engines through hot pressure-washes to recognize and 
> know how to defeat water in the Distributor as well:  a screwdriver 
> and a spray-can of ether!
>  
> Keep trying,
>  
> D.O.
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>  
> ----- Original Message -----
> *From:* Ted Metzing <mailto:theodore.metzing at verizon.net>
> *To:* DOlivares <mailto:seravilo at netzero.net>
> *Sent:* Monday, January 02, 2006 9:54 PM
> *Subject:* Re: [Syty] Broke & Stumped!
>
> Hey Dennis, I'm not all that great at diagnosing problems but when you 
> said that you replaced the fuel pump to the Walbro, did you re-adjust 
> the FPR? Maybe too much gas for a cold engine to burn off until warm? 
> Or what about a crack in the distributor cap, letting moisture build 
> up inside it from the previously warm motor (when off) then when cold 
> the moisture is preventing the spark from arcing? Had a problem like 
> that on my Harley with the coil-pack, wouldn't start until all 
> moisture evaporated (warm day or a hot motor). These are just guesses, 
> again not qualified as a problem solver. Good luck.
>
> Ted Metzing
> 93 TY #0190
> 06 Trailblazer SS
>
>
> DOlivares wrote:
>
>> Thanks... so far, and happy New Year... /et pax hominibus boni 
>> voluntatis!/
>> [You know who you are.]
>>  
>> Unfortunately, I have /tried/ all those diagnostic trees-- even a 
>> couple of bushes for good measure!  This episode has been going on 
>> for nearly a month.  As I said, I'm running out of hardware to 
>> swap-out.  The only things I haven't diddled with is the *EST Module* 
>> in the Distributor and of course the *ECM/chip*. 
>>  
>> The reason I haven't fooled with those things is that the misbehavior 
>> complained of is SO PREDICTABLE and only afflicts COLD-START-UP 
>> conditions, except when it's really cold outside in which case I will 
>> get precisely ONE chug-a-lug spasm about 5 minutes into the run-up to 
>> full operating temperature... just after everything had been going 
>> just fine.  That's the worst of it... as far as I can tell without a 
>> scantool... seat-of-the-pants power and smoothness is better than 
>> ever, otherwise.  This is no "intermittent."  This is pure 
>> predictability!  And my experience with bad chips and modules is that 
>> they either fail outright or exhibit sporadic, random upsets... 
>> before failing outright.  That's not what's occurring.  Even so, I 
>> might drop in my spare EST (Holley Annihilator) just for laughs....
>>  
>> Keep thinking... what /else/ could it be???  What's the connection to 
>> cold/cool ambient temperature?
>>  
>> D.O.
>> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> *From:* Jim Sloan <mailto:leroy at sunflower.com>
>> *To:* 'DOlivares' <mailto:seravilo at netzero.net> ; syty at syty.org 
>> <mailto:syty at syty.org>
>> *Sent:* Monday, January 02, 2006 8:11 AM
>> *Subject:* RE: [Syty] Broke & Stumped!
>>
>> Happy New Year Dennis!
>>  
>> I've had hardware problems with several of the 10-1 adapters.  You 
>> could swap back to the stock memcal (and map sensor) to rule that 
>> out, if your build isn't too radical.
>>  
>> I usually keep at least one spare ecm for a substitution test, and 
>> have seen quite a few fail in weird ways.  Let me know if you need one.
>>  
>> Sometimes it helps to go back to the basics, and follow the 
>> diagnostics in the service manual http://syty.org/old/d&e-code44.html 
>> <http://syty.org/old/d&e-code44.html> .
>>  
>> Just a few ideas, if you haven't already tried them.
>>  
>> Jim 
>>
>>     ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>     *From:* syty-bounces at syty.org [mailto:syty-bounces at syty.org] *On
>>     Behalf Of *DOlivares
>>     *Sent:* Sunday, January 01, 2006 7:36 PM
>>     *To:* syty at syty.org
>>     *Subject:* [Syty] Broke & Stumped!
>>     *Importance:* High
>>
>>     Who watches The Watcher? 
>>      
>>     Who advises The Guru?
>>      
>>     Who assists The Good Samaritan?
>>      
>>     I think we're about to find out pretty soon-- at least until I
>>     can get my Lapdog running again (and one of the diagnostic
>>     programs to troubleshoot my li'l pony):
>>      
>>     Meanwhile, I NEED HELP!  With my laptop in pieces all over the
>>     bench, I can't run DIACOM or DATALINK to give me clues about the
>>     usual suspects:
>>      
>>     Clean-livin' doesn't always pay off if my holidaze so far are any
>>     indication.  I spent Christmas Eve on a carlift taking apart my
>>     right-front axle-- again!-- after being assured by our local
>>     "Gear-Guru" (who fully rebuilt that differential less than 6
>>     months before I started hearing that same CLUNKING on left turns
>>     again) that all I needed was a new cir-clip (GM #14041989) to
>>     keep the axle from popping-out of the side-gear in the
>>     differential.  HAH!  More bad advice and I ended up taking a cab
>>     home....  More about that Horror Show in a later mailing.
>>      
>>     Meanwhile, we got our first technical freeze down here in what
>>     was becoming /tropical/ San Antone on Nov. 17th and our first
>>     hard-freeze, appropriately, on Dec. 7th, and somewhere in between
>>     those times ol' Syclone #773 began *throwing fits during start-up
>>     and for the first 5 or 6 minutes until the water jacket hits and
>>     stays at 180°* or so.  I'm stumped for the first time in a decade
>>     or more!  Here's what happens:
>>      
>>     Since the /new/ Walbro fuel-pump went in a few months ago,
>>     cranking times are way down... engine catches pretty quick, but
>>     now it won't stay lit and "choke" with the /new/ IAC, which went
>>     in along with a /new/ TPS and remote-adjustable FPR about a month
>>     before the new Walbro.  Now, I have to feather the pedal once the
>>     ignition gets going and hold the throttle open a bit while the
>>     IAC hunts for about a dozen cycles making the tach swing about
>>     1200 rpm back and forth until we hit the "sweet spot" and the
>>     engine takes off smoothly and the IAC-hunting stops, at least for
>>     a while.  Now, it's safe to put her in gear and drive away as
>>     long as I keep a little positive bias in the pedal for the next
>>     few minutes every time I have to slow down to an idle or coast
>>     speed. 
>>      
>>     THIS PROBLEM IS WICKEDLY WORSE ON COLD DAYS, where ambient air is
>>     in the 40s or below, which thankfully is rare.  (Ain't this
>>     global-warming great!)  However, on a couple of occasions when I
>>     did have to drive in the 30s-- and even /after/ reaching
>>     full-warm-up temperature-- the engine starts cutting out
>>     seriously as the SES light comes on!  Now, we're talking some
>>     MAJOR pumping of the pedal to keep things lit and if I can get on
>>     a clear piece of road and cruise a spell at 35 mph or better the
>>     problem goes away /completely/, until I shutdown and the engine
>>     gets cold again.  I barely even recognize that SES light...
>>     hardly ever see it.  Driving on warmer days never sees a
>>     recurrence of that mid-period cutting-out, and idle is smooth as
>>     is the rest of drivability.  Warm start-ups see a few moments of
>>     that IAC-hunting, but the rpm-sweeps are only on the order of
>>     500rpm and the whole anomaly goes away in about 30 seconds.  I've
>>     NEVER encountered anything like this in my many years of
>>     wrenching!  Now, it's time for some wretching!!  All that ever
>>     gets logged in the way of a trouble-code is *44*... not too helpful!
>>      
>>     Naturally, I replaced the O2 sensor-- no improvement at all! 
>>     Everything described above instinctually told me this was a weird
>>     thermal transient in the injector-drive circuits or else the MAT,
>>     CTS or MAP I replaced (for the hell of it) 3 years ago needed to
>>     be switched again.  So I /did/... one at a time to see if I could
>>     fault-locate the culprit that way.  No dice!  I'm running out of
>>     hardware to replace!  I've even tried setting that 10-to-1 Chip
>>     to different settings, but the same nasty behavior persists-- the
>>     engine's as well as my own!
>>      
>>     *WHO CAN TELL ME WHAT MY PROBLEM(S) IS?*  Be nice, now....
>>      
>>     Dennis O.
>>      
>>
>>------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
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>>Syty at syty.org
>>http://lists.syty.org/mailman/listinfo/syty
>>  
>>
>
>------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
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