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My '89 Reatta is still running rough!


fun car guy

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Relieved to know that Ronnie, the last thing I would want is to offend people on the site like yourself who've been so helpful.  Although he was helpful, Marck is in the business of selling parts, not giving free advice.

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3 hours ago, fun car guy said:

Although he was helpful, Marck is in the business of selling parts, not giving free advice.

This website isn't in the business of giving free advice either but people here are willing to help our fellow Reatta owners when we can. The difference between me and Marck is he is making money off Reatta owners and I'm not.

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Understood and agreed!  I hope to make a contribution myself soon.

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1 hour ago, fun car guy said:

Understood and agreed!  I hope to make a contribution myself soon.

When it is fixed and happy we will all have new knowledge😎

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On 5/26/2021 at 12:12 PM, 2seater said:

When it is fixed and happy we will all have new knowledge😎

When it's fixed and I can finally take it out on the road I'll be much happier.  Just saw a utube video where two mechanics tested the coils on a series three 3600 V-6 by disconnecting the wires at the coils and, while one cranked the engine over the other watched to see if they all threw sparks.   If one or more didn't, they would switch them around to see if it was the coil or the actuator under them.  Seemed like a simple and direct way to diagnose.

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I would be curious to see this video. The method described doesn’t sound like a good idea but perhaps I imagine it differently than as it was done.

 

Has this car not been driven around to get it up to temperature and the ECM given a chance to learn the proper adjustments?

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On 5/26/2021 at 9:19 AM, Padgett said:

Just a note but bad gas usually smells bad.

stuck my nose into the filler pipe, nothing bad, just smells like gasoline but I will drain the tank and put a few gallons of fresh gas in. 

The test I saw looked pretty safe but sure put on a show.  They didn't let the engine crank very long, just long enough to check for weak or missing sparks on any coil. I'm still focusing on the coils myself and will look into the spark testers mentioned, I was suspecting clogged injectors but since the ECM said there was a problem with the electrics in engine management, I'm more focused on the coils.

  Yes, although I can't take it on the road yet, I have let it idle until warm and it seems to settle down eventually but runs badly when I accelerate.

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13 hours ago, 2seater said:

I would be curious to see this video. The method described doesn’t sound like a good idea but perhaps I imagine it differently than as it was done.

 

Has this car not been driven around to get it up to temperature and the ECM given a chance to learn the proper adjustments?

 

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Thanks. I have seen these guys before on a related problem but on the Magnavox style. Different methods used. I can see this working on the Delco style as long as it is just momentary but the Magnavox has paired outputs on opposite sides so some form of jumper would be needed.

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BTW the diagnostics allows isolating individual cyl to see if one makes no difference. My GM cars of the period are nice that way.

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Okay, so as I think I mentioned previously, I accessed the ECM and only got two new codes, EO44 for lean exhaust and EO47 for A/C clutch and cruise.  Still, it starts quickly, doesn't stall but shakes, runs rough especially when cold.  I've explored the possibility of a bad injector but found that they had all been replaced just three years ago.  Thought maybe it's the air flow sensor but that seems to be ok.  Checked for a vacuum leak as best I can finding nothing so it seems my last resort is a broken engine mount.  Would like to change the fuel filter of course in case it isn't getting enough fuel. Any other ideas, guys?  I'm about to give up and have it towed to my mechanic.

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I asked the question before but no direct answer: has the car been driven some distance under various loads to allow it to learn, come up to full temperature and essentially shake itself out?

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Not while in my ownership.  In fact, the car was previously owned by an elderly woman.  Sad fact, it sat outside in her driveway for two years before I bought it running very poorly and with extremely weak brakes so it would have been very dangerous to try driving it.  I've only just let it idle for a few times letting it warm up and hoping it would smooth out but with no luck.  Once warm, it idles fine but as soon as I give it a little gas it begins to shudder until i hit 6000 RPM.  I've only pulled forward out of the garage and backed it in again.  I live on a gravel access road, do you think it would be a good idea to take it out, just take it slowly?

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BTW: is there a reason you don't want to use the diagnostics to isolate cyls ?

"the diagnostics allows isolating individual cyl to see if one makes no difference."

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4 hours ago, fun car guy said:

I'm about to give up and have it towed to my mechanic.

I believe that is way overdue. You don't seem to be making much progress.  Sometimes you have to know your limits. I've been a mechanic and machinist all my life and there are things I can't fix on my car. The automatic transmission is a good example. I know I can't fix it so I don't feel bad when I have to turn it over to someone else. I just bite the bullet and get it over with.

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1 hour ago, fun car guy said:

Not while in my ownership.  In fact, the car was previously owned by an elderly woman.  Sad fact, it sat outside in her driveway for two years before I bought it running very poorly and with extremely weak brakes so it would have been very dangerous to try driving it.  I've only just let it idle for a few times letting it warm up and hoping it would smooth out but with no luck.  Once warm, it idles fine but as soon as I give it a little gas it begins to shudder until i hit 6000 RPM.  I've only pulled forward out of the garage and backed it in again.  I live on a gravel access road, do you think it would be a good idea to take it out, just take it slowly?

If the engine cannot take any sort of load above idle or in gear, probably best to leave it off the road until more confidence. It has been proven they can idle on as few as two cylinders, which are evenly spaced on a single coil, but won't take any sort of load. Other suggestions maybe aren't understood or acted upon? Maybe time for a mechanic as you said.

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7 hours ago, 2seater said:

If the engine cannot take any sort of load above idle or in gear, probably best to leave it off the road until more confidence. It has been proven they can idle on as few as two cylinders, which are evenly spaced on a single coil, but won't take any sort of load. Other suggestions maybe aren't understood or acted upon? Maybe time for a mechanic as you said.

Thanks, as much as it frustrates me,  I think I will have it towed it to my mechanic even though, at $100.00/hr, the idea makes me cringe at the cost.  I'll let you know how it goes.

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8 hours ago, Ronnie said:

I believe that is way overdue. You don't seem to be making much progress.  Sometimes you have to know your limits. I've been a mechanic and machinist all my life and there are things I can't fix on my car. The automatic transmission is a good example. I know I can't fix it so I don't feel bad when I have to turn it over to someone else. I just bite the bullet and get it over with.

Thanks Ronnie,  I've been thinking on this for some time while being distracted my minor things on the car but I believe it's time to bite the bullet and take it to a pro.  I'll be reporting on his findings.

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In discussing my car's rough running engine and watching utube videos, it seems that even though they're great engines they tend to use coilsV6 engines often have bad coils.  I'm thinking that since they're not expensive, I might as well replace mine and see if it makes a difference before handing it to a mechanic.

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