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I have a 84 chevy cavalier. Engine missing throughout the driving speed range. Gets worse when engine is hot. tried everything. would appreciate any help.
Easiest thing to do is replace the plugs, wires, and the cap and rotor. Easy things to do and solves most misfires. Or you can buy a 75 cents spark plug gapper and check the gaps to see if they are too big or too small.
Depending on the overall condition of the car it may be quite possible to get it to run fine, if you are in non-rusting country there is no reason to buy newer unless you want to. Girly men can't fix older cars but we'll ignore them...
First things first, proper tuneup, I particularly like NGK brand sparkplugs but if you have trouble finding these AC's are fine. Start the engine from cold at night and raise the hood. If you see corona discharge around the spark plug wires, you need new ones, look hard at the cap & rotor as well. It might be worthwhile to check the intensity of the spark, if the HEI distributor is working right you should have a damn good big fat blue-white spark. This is actually one of the best OEM ignitions and if it's right it will take care of business.
With ignition taken care of do change the fuel filter. Is this carburated or injected?
Look for vacuum leaks. You may need new or reconditioned injectors depending on mileage. How's the O2 sensor? If it has a carb, is the computer control to the mixture working?
You can get a factory shop manual from Faxon or similar vendors, become an expert on the car yourself, few pros will take any time with it.
My daily is an 82 Scirocco, I know it forwards and backwards, have done a lot to rebuild it myself, it's a satisfying feeling to have revived an old car like this and have a good yet cheap ride.
"Accept the challenges so you can feel the exhileration of victory" - G. S. Patton.
I agree. Ignition tune-up first, then check fuel filter & O2 sensor. A decade or so ago, I had an 85 Olds Firenza - same basic car as yours, and the O2 went bad at barely 60k. I think that was the worst car I've ever owned. The only good thing is, parts are fairly cheap for your car, and easy to come by.
Changing one part after another until you either do, or don't, stumble on the cause, is not the proper way to proceed with a diagnosis. It is the proper way to spend a lot of money and time on replacing parts that probably don't need to be replaced. If you don't have the skill and proper equipment to diagnose the problem, it will be much cheaper and faster to take it to a tech, who can tell you the problem in short order, and make the correct repair.
If it's a second car, and you just want to learn, go for it, but don't become a parts changer, that gets you nowhere..! You might get lucky the first try, but most likely not. I have seen many cases where people spend a lot of time and money, only to end up taking it to a qualified shop, because their guess' weren't even in the ball park of the real problem.. The people giving you suggestions are well intended, but they are just ideas, not necessarily solutions. No one can tell you for sure what the problem is without leaning over the fender of your car..! How much time and money are you willing to spend on guessing your way through the problem.
It depends on your ultimate goal. Do you want to learn tune-up and diagnostics, or are you just interested in making it to work tomorrow in a dependable car...?
If you want to learn tune-up and basic auto repair, take a class at the local college, and learn the correct way to proceed.
Changing one part after another until you either do, or don't, stumble on the cause, is not the proper way to proceed with a diagnosis. It is the proper way to spend a lot of money and time on replacing parts that probably don't need to be replaced. If you don't have the skill and proper equipment to diagnose the problem, it will be much cheaper and faster to take it to a tech, who can tell you the problem in short order, and make the correct repair.
If it's a second car, and you just want to learn, go for it, but don't become a parts changer, that gets you nowhere..! You might get lucky the first try, but most likely not. I have seen many cases where people spend a lot of time and money, only to end up taking it to a qualified shop, because their guess' weren't even in the ball park of the real problem.. The people giving you suggestions are well intended, but they are just ideas, not necessarily solutions. No one can tell you for sure what the problem is without leaning over the fender of your car..! How much time and money are you willing to spend on guessing your way through the problem.
It depends on your ultimate goal. Do you want to learn tune-up and diagnostics, or are you just interested in making it to work tomorrow in a dependable car...?
If you want to learn tune-up and basic auto repair, take a class at the local college, and learn the correct way to proceed.
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