LT1 Low Rpm LowsMy '93 Formula ran awesome when I did an engine swap, but then it started hesitating badly on take off. I didn't have Second gear in my 700-R4 so I thought it was just First gear going out, too. But when I swapped a TCI Street Fighter 700-R4 into her, I had the same problem. Once I got the engine up over 2,200 rpm, everything smoothed out and she ran fine.
No matter the speed I drive, if the rpm drops under 2,200, it starts jerking. I have changed everything under the sun and it still does the same thing. It got so bad that it would only crank and stay running if I gave it gas. I parked it for a few months due to the aggravation.
Today, I started the Formula and she ran like a charm. It made all the work I have done worthwhile. But my joy did not last; it did the same thing all over again. I also found some bad wires under my seat. My door leaks, so the floorboard behind my seat collects water and the wires were wet and broken. I believe the wires are for my seat controls. Could the wires lying in the water mess with my electric system enough to make it run poorly, or not run at all?Jeremey WillisSulphur, LA
Ray T. Bohacz responds:With all due respect, your letter did not clearly describe the problem you are trying to eliminate. The best I could surmise was that it is not in the transmission, since you already replaced that. Is the problem the same and you only believed it was First and Second gears failing? I can state with a level of confidence that if only the power seat wires are being subjected to the water leak, it will have no impact on the way the car runs so you need to look elsewhere.
I suggest finding a good engine/driveability shop in your area that has a chassis dyno so the problem can be duplicated with instrumentation attached to the car. Do not be alarmed if the shop finds more than one thing wrong with your car since it seems to have a number of issues.
If you choose not to visit a professional diagnostic shop, the best advice I can give you is to check all of the engine grounds. The problem occurred shortly after the swap. If an EFI system has a loose or high impedance ground, it will drive the engine management system crazy. Good luck.
Lights Out!I was born and raised on Pontiacs. I was born about the same time my dad purchased his '67 GTO convertible that he still has. He has since purchased and restored a '67 GTO hardtop, and I purchased and restored a '77 Trans Am in 1985, which I still have.
That being said, I know a lot about cars and a lot about Pontiacs. In August of 2004, I purchased my current daily driver, a '99 Pontiac Firebird V-6. I was driving about 100 miles a day round trip, so I feared the price of gasoline to feed the V-8 would have eaten me alive.
About six months ago, the hidden headlight motor on the passenger's side stopped operating. I purchased an OEM replacement and installed it. Upon installation, I noticed how corroded the five-pin connector was and I attempted to clean it. Unfortunately, because of the location of the connector and the logistics of cleaning those connectors that are surrounded by molded plastic, I was not totally successful. For about two months everything operated normally. After that, when my headlights were turned on, the headlights would flip up and turn on as usual, but then the driver's side low beam would light full strength and the other three bulbs would light at about 50 percent power, even though only the low beams were selected. At that time, I decided I needed to remove the five-pin connector and hardwire the wires all together. After finishing this operation, the headlights functioned perfectly until about a month ago.