Hello everyone. Proud new owner of an 87 SE with a 2.8L and a 5 speed as of today. Childhood dream to own a Fiero fulfilled. She's in lock up until we thaw here in Minnesota, but I'm already planning ahead.
First issue. Rear exhaust manifold leak, that's easily fixed.
Second issue. But the former owner also said it's flooding, and he had to use the 'Flood Clear' function on the engine occasionally to start it.
The car has 132K miles on it. There is not enough paperwork left on the vehicle to determine if that is the same mileage as the motor.
Third issue...the exhaust really smells strongly of unburned gasoline...the engine does not smoke. I'm wondering if this is related to the flooding.
I have 20 years experience doing work on my own cars, but this is my first Fiero. I'd already planned to replace the injectors, I'm already determining what's involved in that kind of work, but can anyone else point me in the general direction of what's causing that smell? Open to all suggestions, and please bear with me as I'm new here.
-Telo
[This message has been edited by Telo (edited 01-30-2014).]
All your issues may be connected. If you fix exhaust leaks, the 02 sensor will probably get a different reading and send a message to the computer to run leaner. On the other hand the 02 sensor may be bad and making the problem all by itself.......
You also could have a leaky injector......but I would get the exhaust right first.
I would also look at replacing the coolant temperature sensor. Located in the lower intake, passenger side, just above the top of the timing chain cover. Positioned horizontally and pointing at the passenger side wheel well. It sends information that the ECM uses to control air/fuel ratio. The norm for this sensor is to go to the rich side when it fails.
I figured out how to pull the codes this morning, reading a 14 and a 33, the former of which lines up with the second suggestion for sure. But the exhaust leak will be repaired for sure regardless.
We'll see how this turns out.
[This message has been edited by Telo (edited 01-30-2014).]
Slight posibility you have a small hole in your fuel pressure regulater (diafram). It most likely has security screws. I agree with the other recomendations first. Be aware injectors are Expensive.
Hmm... I've never heard of this before. What is the Flood Clear function?
The previous owner told me he used it to clear out a flooding after researching it, but he didn't cite his source. I looked it up, I found this source:
"Most FI engines have a "Clear Flood Mode". On the Fiero 2.8L it operates like this. When the accelerator is pressed down all the way, the ECM pulses the injectors at an air/fuel ratio of 20:1. The ECM holds this injector rate as long as the throttle stays wide open, and engine rpm is lower than 400. If the throttle position becomes less than 80%, The ECM returns to the "starting" mode."
After reading it, without letting him know I'd read it, I asked him what Flood Clear mode was. He said it almost exactly like the source above. Said sometimes after sitting 20 minutes the engine will turn over but won't start, and if he did the step listed above the engine would start. Now, if any of this information is hogwash, please let me know. I asked him how he knew it was flooding in the first place, was there a strong gasoline smell? He didn't say one way or the other, just that the engine would turn over but not start, and that flooring it while turning it over as described above would eventually start it. As the vehicle is in a non-heated garage, the amount of work and experimentation I can do it right now is limited. One thing I'm sure of is I'll eventually uncover what's actually wrong with it.
I smell no fresh gasoline anytime I've started it... but as stated above, I smell a lot of unburned gasoline in the exhaust.
[This message has been edited by Telo (edited 01-31-2014).]
Slight posibility you have a small hole in your fuel pressure regulater (diafram). It most likely has security screws. I agree with the other recomendations first. Be aware injectors are Expensive.
Will look into that. And yes, I've looked on ebay, cheapest set of 6 is $200. Places like Auto Zone, 78 bucks each.
If this is going to cost over $500 in repairs, then I would highly recomend an engine swap (Camaro or other). Ive got 5 injectors from an 1986 2.8 v6 if interested. Working perfectly fine when pulled.
[This message has been edited by James Bond 007 (edited 01-31-2014).]
Forgot to mention, it doesn't idle at all when the engine is extremely cold, you have to hold the accelerator. May be unrelated, then again, may be directly related to a bad coolant temperature sensor. In fact I'm guessing the sensor itself or something directly related to it is the problem. Got it really good and warmed up today, engine pulled same codes as before, 14 and 33.
As for an engine swap, I don't know if my garage is tall enough to jack the car up off the cradle. But thanks for the offer, I will keep it in mind and let you know. Work won't start in earnest until it gets above 40 outside.
WHen you previously checked the codes, they remained unless you disconnected power to the ECM, so you may be seeing the same code. Easy way is to disconnect the little round WeatherPak connector coming off the C500 near the battery. Single Wire, round plastic, looks like an old glass fuse holder. Easier than disconnecting the battery. Leave it off for about a minute. When you restart the car, it may not run well because the computer will have to learn all over again. Take it for a drive, getting it up to highway speeds for a little while. With that it'll have adjusted for all the sensor information.
Check your codes again to see if they have re-set.
I would also look at replacing the coolant temperature sensor. Located in the lower intake, passenger side, just above the top of the timing chain cover. Positioned horizontally and pointing at the passenger side wheel well. It sends information that the ECM uses to control air/fuel ratio. The norm for this sensor is to go to the rich side when it fails.
Bit cold this morning so I'm staying in... can the coolant temperature sensor be removed without removing anything else? I haven't had the chance to look yet.
Nothing difficult has to be removed. Unplug the harness and 2 vacuum lines from the EGR solenoid and remove the bolt that holds it to its mount. That gives you good visibility and working room. If you're going to replace it, have it on hand before starting. Know what size deepwell socket you need. Also have a decent crescent or pipe wrench to separate the reducer just in case the reducer comes out with the sensor. Have some pipe dope on hand, too for smearing on the threads when reinstalling. You may lose a little coolant, but it will be very minimal if you don't open up the thermostat housing.
The cold start problem I outlined above apparently ceased on its own. This was a quick fire up, completely cold in 2 degrees. Foot was NOT on the throttle at all when I turned the key. It's started up this reliably the last 3 times I've started it cold.
Bought a copy of the 1987 Factory Manual from an ebay seller today (not the 'preliminary' one, the full manual). Just gotta wait for the thaw and tackle that exhaust/sensor problem. Note that the dang temperature gauge is out/pegged. All other dash gauges work. Again, wondering if it's connected to a bad coolant temperature sensor.
[This message has been edited by Telo (edited 02-05-2014).]
The gauge has it's own sensor, independent of the coolant temperature sensor. It's located on the left end of the head near the # 5 exhaust and below the ignition v\coil. 2 green wires going into the terminal. The head is round and has a split down the side of the plastic.
Your statement above that you started it with your foot off the accelerator brings a question. Do you depress the accelerator when you start it? Fuel injection cars don't require that you depress the accelerator. The ECM assumes the function of enriching the air/fuel mixture at startup.
Your statement above that you started it with your foot off the accelerator brings a question. Do you depress the accelerator when you start it? Fuel injection cars don't require that you depress the accelerator. The ECM assumes the function of enriching the air/fuel mixture at startup.
No, I don't depress the accelerator when I start it. Back when I first got the car home, I DID have to depress it once...I had to gun it like a cold, non fuel injected motor with a carburetor without a working choke. It was as if the idle valve wasn't working at all. Eventually the engine warmed up and the symptom stopped. I posted here that it wasn't cold starting, but it never did it again after that.
The last three times it hasn't done it. It has started fine without having to depress the accelerator, just like in the most recent video.
