possible carbuerator problems with car?

[MaxDSP]

If the car starts then dies in like 2 seconds, does this signal a possible problem with the carb? The car is an '88 Pontiac. My dad did get the car started by putting some starting fluid into the carb, starting the car, pressing the accelerator slightly until the car caught on. After he did this, I remembered a joke and the punchline was "Just crap in the carbeurator" "OK, how often?". Could it be that the carb keeps collecting dust every once in a while?

 

[Ronstang]

Sounds more like a fuel pump problem. It could even be an incredibly clogged fuel filter. Take the fuel line loose from the carb and add a section of hose so you can catch gas in a can or jar. Disconect the coil, not the spark plug like wire but the little wire connector that supplies the 12V signal to the coil. Have someone crank the engine. If you do not get a good flow of gasoline then you have a fuel delivery problem and not a carb problem.

 

[woodie1]

Agree - it is a fuel delivery problem.

Fuel pump or filter or out of gas.

 

[MaxDSP]

But if it is a fuel delivery problem, then why did the car start after spraying starting fluid? So we are on the same page, the carb is a round, black thing with wingnuts right? What my dad did was, he took the top off the carb, pulled the plug out inside the carb (dont know what its called) and sprayed it with starting fluid.

 

[daveman]

I use to have a problem with an 85 S-10 that was fuel injected. I would have to spray starter fluid in it everytime I cranked it. The problem was the haul switch. I had to have that replaced a couple times. My stepdad has the truck now with no problems.

 

[Cyberian]

<< But if it is a fuel delivery problem, then why did the car start after spraying starting fluid? So we are on the same page, the carb is a round, black thing with wingnuts right? What my dad did was, he took the top off the carb, pulled the plug out inside the carb (dont know what its called) and sprayed it with starting fluid. >>



The round black thing is more than likely the air filter housing, which mounts on top of the carburetor. The plug is probably the air filter itself.
Starting fluid is similar to gasoline and the car can start with it, but it won't run for long.

 

[Thegonagle]

Are you sure it's a carb and not throttle body fuel injection? What kind of 88 pontiac is it? Which engine?

 

[Soybomb]

Yeah I'm curious what pontiac from 1988 is carbuerated, I thought most were fuel injected by then.

 

[HowardStern]

I doubt you have a real carbeurator. I doubt that there is any American made carbeurated car built after maybe 1986. Now if you had a Jap car that year then probably yes. I agree with Garfang above who thinks you might have a really cheap fuel injection system (still much better than a carbeurator) that looks a lot like a carbeurator but could best be described (vaguely) as like a single fuel injector mounted on top of an intake manifold. I an not sure if anyone uses this system any more either. Now to your problem, I agree with Ronstang and woodie1 above that it's a fuel delivery problem. It could be dirt but I'd replace the fuel filter and run lots if fuel system cleaner (and you should be doing this on a regular basis to prevent crap buildup) and hope it works.

 

[MaxDSP]

Its an 88 pontiac sunbird. Now that you mention it, it may not be carbareuted after all. Don't I feel like a jackass :disgust:. I checked it and it's fuel-injected and yes, the round black thing is the air filter.

 

[Thegonagle]

Ah, the Sunbird. You have the 2.0L (or was it 1.8L?) SOHC 8 valve engine that was only used by Pontiac. Did your dad get it running with the starting fluid, or did it die almost immediately after?

You should be able to see the injector (located right above the throttle plate) squirting a small ?fan? of fuel while you?re starting it. If you see nice even pulses of fuel, you can eliminate fuel pump/filter problems for now, and troubleshoot elsewhere. If not, you need to find out where the problem lies. It could be the injector, the pump, the filter, the ECU, the wiring, or some other crap I'm not thinking about right now.