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<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4>Who watches The
Watcher? </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4>Who advises The
Guru?</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4>Who assists The Good
Samaritan?</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4>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)</FONT><FONT
face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4>:</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4>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:</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4>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.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4>Meanwhile, we got our
first technical freeze down here in what was becoming <EM>tropical</EM> San
Antone on Nov. 17th and our first hard-freeze, appropriately, on Dec. 7th, and
somewhere in between those times ol' Syclone #773 began <STRONG>throwing fits
during start-up and for the first 5 or 6 minutes until the water jacket hits and
stays at 180°</STRONG> or so. I'm stumped for the first time in a decade
or more! Here's what happens:</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4>Since the <EM>new</EM>
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
<EM>new</EM> IAC, which went in along with a <EM>new</EM> 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. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4>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
<EM>after</EM> 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 <EM>completely</EM>,
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 <STRONG><FONT
color=#ff0000>44</FONT></STRONG>... not too helpful!</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4>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 <EM>did</EM>... 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!</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4><STRONG>WHO CAN TELL ME
WHAT MY PROBLEM(S) IS?</STRONG> Be nice, now....</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Palatino Linotype" color=#000080 size=4>Dennis O.</FONT></DIV>
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