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The EGR valve was replaced new in 2001 (last smog test before 2009). I have no gas leaks & the choke opens fully. Im not a mechanic & i dont know any that would check my car out for free. Maybe someone on city-data that lives nearby could checkout my car ? Fighter1 is very familiar with my area & he knows his stuff.
The EGR valve was replaced new in 2001 (last smog test before 2009). I have no gas leaks & the choke opens fully. Im not a mechanic & i dont know any that would check my car out for free. Maybe someone on city-data that lives nearby could checkout my car ? Fighter1 is very familiar with my area & he knows his stuff.
Not sure why you expect someone to check your car out for free but good luck with that. Maybe a neighbor or a family member can help.
Between this post and your other one, you've been given lots of good advice on what to look for.
Last edited by Gimme3steps; 09-23-2009 at 02:32 PM..
You need to check all your vacuum diaphragms for leaks and proper operation... carb diaphragms, spark advance diaphragm, egr diaphragm... etc. Your carb, though electronically assisted, could also be in need of tuning. Rarely does a Quadrajet or any other carb actually fail... but rather they get out of tune.
Not sure why you expect someone to check your car out for free but good luck with that. Maybe a neighbor or a family member can help.
Between this post and your other one, you've been given lots of good advice on what to look for.
Its not always about money. I have done things for free for strangers, neighbors & family plenty of times. My cousin is a mechanic (35 yrs). Ill ask him.
By all means get your cousin to tutor you on how to troubleshoot this, if you are going to be an "old car" guy, you will need to learn how to cure this sort of thing.
When I was 16, I knew far less than you do already. And I'm still learning.
Good luck.
Can you tell if the car is running rich or lean at least? The sound of the engine is completely different, a lean stumble has a higher-pitched tone, rich "roll" has a more thudding tone.
Something that Quadrajet carbs are notorious for is for the casting plugs at the bottom of the float bowl to start leaking. It's just possible that the smog check dislodged them.
Keep in mind that this is just one of thousands of possibilities.
Does this car have a Check Engine Light? If so, is it on or off?
I *think* this car does have a simple trouble code system. See if you can't figure out how to retreive the codes.
I do feel for you, I remember when I was a starving student, short on both money and experience. We all go through this phase, except for daddy's spoiled little scions, who are spared this charachter building experience and generally crash and burn later in life, at whatever point they outrun their rich but misguided parent's purse strings...
Anyway. Accept the challenges, so that you can feel the exhileration of victory!
Last edited by M3 Mitch; 09-23-2009 at 07:56 PM..
Reason: CEL, Q-Jet lore
Unless i win the lottery, inherit money or marry a rich woman ill always be a old car guy. The car does have a check engine light & it comes on when its suppose to. My cousin is gonna checkout my car incl why my front end shakes if i go 50 mph or more this sat. Yesterday i drove 31 miles round trip & burned up 4 gals of gas. I was floored & upset. I paid $3.05 gal & the gas companies & opec love gas guzzlers like mine. My cousin says its most likely in the computerized carb. He will test everything. Ill owe him a dinner & thats ok. I just dont want to drive the car till i get it all checked out. I have a 40 mile roundtrip job next week so i gotta get this fixed plus it feels like the front end & tires are gonna fall off. Ill never let a car of mine sit for such a long time ever again. What a costly mistake. BTW...i bought my first car at age 17 (7 yr old car for $700.00) with my own money & without my parents help. LOTS of kids today have everything handed to them without earning it.
Before you start your car again, check the oil. Using 4 gallons of gas in 31 miles, that fuel had to go somewhere and most likely a lot of it went into the crankcase. If the oil is overfull or smells like gas, don't start it until you change your oil and filter. And check (or change) it again once you get it fixed.
This won't fix your problem but it may keep you from having a bigger problem.
Before you start your car again, check the oil. Using 4 gallons of gas in 31 miles, that fuel had to go somewhere and most likely a lot of it went into the crankcase. If the oil is overfull or smells like gas, don't start it until you change your oil and filter. And check (or change) it again once you get it fixed.
This won't fix your problem but it may keep you from having a bigger problem.
Good point - though wouldn't that indicate one cylinder simply not firing at all? And wouldn't that make the car run rough at all times?
8 mpg is really bad mileage for that car. It has to be something fairly obvious. I've already thrown out my opinions (1. Stuck choke, 2. EGR Valve). I'm looking forward to hearing what Eagle7 finds to be the actual problem.
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