hey guys

i am planning on buying a 01 cavalier 2200 5-spd and i noticed a few problems with and wondering if someone would know or would know about it

#1 problem is the gear shift is a little stiff .. now the car wasn't moving in quite a while cause the back wheel was locked on and i had to use a sledge hammer to run itself free. i dunno if it was cause the car wasn't running in quite a long time or whatever.

#2 problem is when i started the car it ran fine but its spuddery and hesitating .. you can hear it coming out of the exhaust .. i dunno if i changed the plugs and wires and fuel filter if that would make a difference or whatnot??

can someone please help asap.

thanks

chris

why was the car sitting ? head gasket?



my kill list:a geo metro and a mac semi wow did i kill that thing

the owner and his wife baught 2 new cars and the dude .. well he works out on a big boat so he use to use the cav to get back and forth in

ya that is what i was thinking .. or a coil is dead.

You can check to see if it is a fuel or spark issue by use of starting fluid. Spray a bit into air cleaner and if car idles fine you know you have a fuel issue. If no change, then most likely a ignition issue.

A fuel issue can later be expedited by checking fuel pressure and volume. Should have beyond 40 psi fuel pressure and at minimum a pint of fuel within 15 seconds. Good pressure = good pump. Bad volume = bad filter. Remember, GM recommends that fuel filter be changed every 10,000 miles.

An ignition issue can be more complicated. Check plugs for fouling (oil, carbon, very black, or white), proper gap (0.040 inches), and damage. If ok then move on to the wires. Make sure no corrosion at the the terminals. Check for spark using a spark tester and make sure there is spark and it is a white or bluish color. Check for resistance (should be at least 10,000 ohms). If ok then move on to coil packs. This is where testing gets quite tricky.

Cut a length of vacuum line about 2 inches long. Place vac line on coil terminal and then connect plug wire to vac line and plug. Get a test light and connect ground the neg battery terminal. with engine running touch test light to vac line. Intensity of light corresponds with coil function. No light = no function.

You can go even further by testing the ignition module, but since the car is running, I would assume that the module is functioning.

You could check your crankshaft position sensor and make sure it is working properly. Since this is a magnetic control device and it deals with a connection with a moving part, sometimes the magnet breaks. This causes a weak magnetic field and a weak voltage reading to ignition module resulting in a weak spark. This is located on right side of engine and a purple wire and yellow wire coming off of it.

Remember to always start at easy stuff first and go from there. Good luck