Chasing electrical problems

T

tford

Registered Member
Joined
Nov 17, 2004
I have a problem with my car running too rich. It could be one problem or a few problems. Do you guys start by replacing as many (easily replaceable) things as you can and hope one of them fixed it? My concern is if I just replace one thing at a time and check to see if it fixed it and it does not, the new part I replaced could get ruined. Plus wasting time and risking engine damage chasing the problem one new part at a time.

My next question is what is the deal with the redesigned LT1 maf sensor that is all plastic and cheap looking? I'm finding out the older style that has a metal housing is getting pricey and harder to find. Is one better than the other?

Since I know someone is going to mention it, after I replace a couple questionable sensors, if it's still rich, I will use the powerlogger next round to try to figure it out. Thanks
 
tford said:
I have a problem with my car running too rich. It could be one problem or a few problems. Do you guys start by replacing as many (easily replaceable) things as you can and hope one of them fixed it? My concern is if I just replace one thing at a time and check to see if it fixed it and it does not, the new part I replaced could get ruined. Plus wasting time and risking engine damage chasing the problem one new part at a time.

My next question is what is the deal with the redesigned LT1 maf sensor that is all plastic and cheap looking? I'm finding out the older style that has a metal housing is getting pricey and harder to find. Is one better than the other?

Since I know someone is going to mention it, after I replace a couple questionable sensors, if it's still rich, I will use the powerlogger next round to try to figure it out. Thanks
Click to expand...
You need to check for vacuum leaks first. Those plastic reman LT1 MAFS are all garbage in my opinion. I tried a few in my camaro. Go with the oem LT1 or LS1 mafs or buy 2 or 3 plastic crappy ones for the same price.
 
I did replace some of the vacuum lines recently but haven't tried to start it since then. Any good method of testing for vacuum leaks? Don't people spray carb cleaner or something and see it the rpms jump? Thanks for the reply. Tim
 
tford said:
I did replace some of the vacuum lines recently but haven't tried to start it since then. Any good method of testing for vacuum leaks? Don't people spray carb cleaner or something and see it the rpms jump? Thanks for the reply. Tim
Click to expand...
There are a few methods, but I use smoke cause I'm lazy. Some people swear by soapy water in a spray bottle. Get the vacuum diagram and go from there. I had a new vac leak every month when I first got the car. Also, look at the driver side header, they tend to crack and will cause lean condition that will cause you ecu to add fuel and run pig rich. There are slot of possibilities, but once you start to rule them out you'll gain intimate knowledge of your engine.

I'll also run a shop vac to my tailpipe and push air that way to rule out cross over pipe, Turbo and header leaks. That works good for me.
 
Mine was running rich and I could not find a vacuum leak and it turned out that the new NOS coil was weak and it was not firing well.
 
You should really invest in a scanmaster that can tell you what you need to know about what is going wrong (ie: o2 sensor), and a pillar mounted boost gauge that shows both vacuum and boost. If you have a vacuum leak, looking at the gauge will verify that. The car should idle between 16 to 19 inches of vacuum on cars with no leaks. If you do have one, your gauge will read closer to 0.
 
TurboBuRick said:
How are you determining its rich?
Click to expand...
Wideband gauge said "rich" and black smoke.
I was wondering if my new coil is junk too. How did you determine it was the coil? I might throw my old one back on just to see what happens.
Thanks guys. I appreciate all of the info and tips. For the first 20 years of owning this thing, I never had anything act up until now.
 
tford said:
Wideband gauge said "rich" and black smoke.
I was wondering if my new coil is junk too. How did you determine it was the coil? I might throw my old one back on just to see what happens.
Thanks guys. I appreciate all of the info and tips. For the first 20 years of owning this thing, I never had anything act up until now.
Click to expand...
You need a Translator and a LT1 or LS1 MAF sensor.
 
I haven't had time to check the numbers. I'll get back to you in a couple days.
 
I don’t get why ppl start just guessing at issues and throwing parts at issues with these cars . You shouldn’t buy anymore performamce parts or MAF translators till you buy a scanmaster or a powerlogger . That’s is the first thing I would tell anyone to get for there turbo buick. You are flying blind right now . With the scanmaster you would be able to see what your MAF readings are along with abunch of other important stuff . What chip do you have ? Is the chip current to your setup ? Don’t want to come off mean bud just I’ve seen so many posts that ppl our just throwing parts at a issue and don’t have any data to post . With no data there will be just a bunch of ppl guessing right along with you .
 
I NEVER just replace parts to find a problem. The one exception was when my original, then second, 3rd and 4th MAF's went and each time they did it was sudden and without warning and the car would hardly run as I drove to the parts store. That was before MAF Translators and when factory replacements were as rare as hen's teeth. Since i put in a translator and LTI MAF sensor (metal) I have only had the bucking jerking smoking barely running symptom of a bad MAF Sensor once and the problem was traced to the plug and play harness on the sensor not making good contact.

The only other electrical parts I've had fail are relays, 2 of them. I have traced what seems like hundreds of electrical problems to bad connectors. Probably more like 20. The connectors might look ok but after 30 years they are corroded. You might not be able to see it but they are. I scuff and bend the pins until the contact is tight and solid. I can't help but think that lots of good components have been thrown out because it was replaced with a new one and it fixed the problem when it was the connector on the new item was new and fit tighter to start with

First I'd check everything, vacuum and exhaust. Then I'd make sure all the adjustments are correct and make sure every connector under the hood is up to snuff.


How do you know it's rich? Scanmaster numbers?
tford said:
I have a problem with my car running too rich. It could be one problem or a few problems. Do you guys start by replacing as many (easily replaceable) things as you can and hope one of them fixed it? My concern is if I just replace one thing at a time and check to see if it fixed it and it does not, the new part I replaced could get ruined. Plus wasting time and risking engine damage chasing the problem one new part at a time.

My next question is what is the deal with the redesigned LT1 maf sensor that is all plastic and cheap looking? I'm finding out the older style that has a metal housing is getting pricey and harder to find. Is one better than the other?

Since I know someone is going to mention it, after I replace a couple questionable sensors, if it's still rich, I will use the powerlogger next round to try to figure it out. Thanks
Click to expand...
 
I have a scanmaster, wideband, and powerlogger. The powerlogger is very new to me and I'm still learning how to use it. I'm going to give this thing a try this weekend. I'll keep everyone posted. Before I start playing with it, does anyone know how to get the tt 6.1 chip into closed loop idle? It wasn't in the directions. Thanks
 
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