Well I'll be danged.
I am the guy that had the 82 firenza 1.8L OHV 2-bbl carb with all the "bog and backfire problem". Since i was ruling out plugs since i had changed the plugs and wires for stock items the week before emissions, I naturally have no history of plug and wire problems...until now, that is.
For some reason known only unto god, lol, that #3 plug was the problem...plus, when i futzed with changing wires, i must have "got my wires crossed". lmao. Apparently my crankshaft and cam/valve timing didnt approve of my "custom firing order".
then, changing wires, I ALSO knocked the coil wire loose, but down under the intake manifold where i cant see it.
well, once i figured out all spark was gone, the coil woire got replaced. Then, when it DID fire, you can imagine having random firing order what THAT produced...finally got it all sorted out, and once i ran all the gunk from all that backfiring out of the carb and chambers, it settled right down.
Now...the penultimate test...remember, disconnecting the ESC made it run a little better. Now, I was dying at idle and running a teensy bit rough, but the bog and backfire was gone (whew!) I cleared the computer and connected the ESC back up...smooth as a babys bottom now, and the idle cleared up withing about thirty miles of "carb cleaning" running to check it out. No computer codes now. Perfect as could be.
Oh well...its not like the EGR wasn't stuck shut anyhow, it needed it anyways, i wouldnt have done it otherwise. And...now as a bonus, I never would have changed the expensive rubber carb gasket block if it hadnt of diagnosed as a manifold leak on vacuum tester. Changing the ignition module did smooth it out a tiny bit, too. Not like it was failing, but, it liked a new one.
But good god...all that hassle and time for a god-darned PLUG that failed for no good reason.
I will be on the lookout for WHY the plug failed, when the others were perfect...but likely i will never know, and will just chalk it up to a random bad plug or wire, if nothing presents itself.
ah well...live and learn. Just 'cos you change plugs and wires every year so you never have problems, does not rule it out any, hee hee. Thanks guys.
Is an '82 Olds Firenza a "Flash Ride" ?
Well at least u have learned more about running issues and how to check and or fix.I know I gave u alot of possibles as to the issue.Glad to see it was just a minor thing and not a act of congress.Rule of thumb is always check the most basic things bc more than likely that is what is causing the problem to start with!
LOL, I had a similar experience with my 71 Grand Prix... I had changed the plugs, cap, rotor , points, condenser and wires. After that, the car ran like total garbage. Somehow I'd had a brain fart and tweaked the wire for the points so that it wasn't connecting good, but still connected. After re-replacing everything and still no different, I saw a jump on the dwell meter and decided that the cam for the points must be worn and pulled it all apart again. That's when I broke the wire off completely, and wa-la. A half hour later I'm shortening the rear tire's tread life.
Sh@# happens. I wonder if that car is still on the road... Anyone know how to look that up?
John Wilken
2002 Cavalier
2.2 Vin code 4
Auto
HAha! I can remember putting in new plugs, cap, and rotor in my Escort EXP during a tune up. Ran like absolute sh1t. A lurching, popping ride to the local garage yielded 2 plugs (Champion brand--NEVER again!!!) were shot right out of the box! How I made it to the shop on only two cylinders, I'll never know.
