[Shotimes] Sick SHO (long)

Fri, 5 Mar 2004 14:35:22 -0800 (PST)

Hey, welcome to the list. It's definetly
a....interesting place. 

"I pressed a tool into the check valve on the fuel
rail and fuel sprayed out, so it has fuel pressure."

IIRC, (correct me if I'm wrong people) the fuel should
come streaming out, not spraying. Your 542 code did go
away, but it could possibly come back. Bad fuel pumps
can do strange things. Two years ago mine crapped out
twice in the same day, then went on to work for about
a month then finally died. So keep an eye on that.
When you say you have to crank 30-60 seconds, did you
hear the fuel pump whir before you turned it over? 

I don't know too much about the rest of the problems,
but I'm sure other people up here do. Good luck, have
fun, and keep that SHO on the road!

Shylo McKinsey

'91 White MTx
--- Jonas Diener <jdiener@rosettastone.com> wrote:
> Hi guys,
> 
> I'm new to SHOtimes, having just bought a SHO on
> Monday.  Sorry for the long post, but I wanted to
> give the complete picture.
> 
> It's a red '92 MTX with a myriad of problems, but
> the price was right.
> 
> Right now I'm trying to figure out why the engine is
> feeling sick.
> 
> The sickness manifests itself in several different
> ways.
> 
> The first I noticed is that sometimes it is real
> hard to start, and will only eventually start firing
> after cranking for 30-60 seconds and giving it lots
> of gas.  Other times it will fire right up.
> 
> Trying to diagnose it I pulled one of the plug wires
> and stuck a metal tool into it, and could see a
> spark leap from the tool to the intake as I cranked
> it, so I know it's making a spark.
> 
> 
> 
> I even pulled one of the plugs out and stuck a paper
> towel in the plug well.  It got fuel sprayed onto it
> when I cranked, so the injectors are firing.
> 
> The second manifestation (or maybe a different
> problem) is a stumbling problem when I step into the
> gas too much (anywhere past 1/4 throttle).  It's
> especially bad at low RPMs.  It runs smooth if I
> stay light on the gas, but when I step on it more it
> stumbles and then feels like it's not firing on all
> cylinders.
> 
> It seems to be worse in colder weather.
> 
> My first thought was of a clogged fuel filter, so I
> changed that and it didn't make much of a difference
> if any.  I checked the air filter too and blew it
> out with compressed air.  It was somewhat dirty but
> not bad.
> 
> Unfortunately the fuel pressure gauge I have has a
> larger thread size than the check valve, so I can't
> check the fuel pressure.  Anyone know where I might
> find an adapter?  (The gauge fits perfectly on my
> '87 5.0).
> 
> These two symptoms together sound exactly like a bad
> CID sensor as described here...
> 
> http://www.shoshop.com/guidelog/v6/p021.htm
> 
> ...with one exception.  They say that a continuous
> failure code will be stored in the EEC memory if the
> CID goes bad.  When I check the continuous codes I
> don't get a CID-related code.
> 
> Running the test sequence, the KOEO test reports 111
> (everything OK), and I get one continuous code: 542
> Fuel pump secondary circuit failure.  Anyone know
> what this means?  After clearing the continuous
> codes and driving home the 542 didn't show up again.
> 
> When I run the KOER test, the engine always stalls
> about 3 seconds before giving me the goose flash.  I
> went ahead and hit the brakes and WOT even though
> the engine was stalled, and got these codes:
> 
> 129 Insufficient mass air flow (MAF) change during
> dynamic response test.
> 225 Knock sensor (KS) not sensed during dynamic
> response test.
> 521 PSPS circuit did not change states.
> 
> I understand I got the 521 because I didn't turn the
> steering wheel during the goose procedure (hard to
> do without the engine running).  Could the other two
> codes be legitimate, or did I just get them because
> the engine stalled during the test due to some other
> problem?
> 
> Other symptoms include a not-so-smooth idle and a
> pop-pop sound sometimes when I let off the gas at
> high RPMs.  Also the tach doesn't work (bad sensor,
> possibly related?)
> 
> Next I plan to pull off the Y-pipe and check the
> condition of the cats.  Perhaps they are messed up
> and constricting the exhaust flow.
> 
> I suppose I could have a bad MAF sensor, bad HEGO
> sensor(s), or maybe a TPS (it does seem related to
> certain throttle positions).  I don't really want to
> spend money replacing them if I'm not sure they are
> bad.
> 
> I also noticed that the front plug wells were quite
> full of oil (indicating a need for new plug well
> seals).  I cleaned them out, but I imagine the rears
> are in the same state.  Could this be causing my
> problem?  Doesn't make sense to me since it's fine
> at part-throttle, but it's another variable.
> 
> Whew, that was a long message.  Anyway, if y'all
> have any hints, advice, or insights, I'd love to
> hear 'em.
> 
> Peace.
> -- 
> 
> the truth may be out there
> but lies are in your head
> _______________________________________________
> Shotimes mailing list
> Shotimes@autox.team.net
> http://www.team.net/mailman/listinfo/shotimes

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