thecause17

I got the SE running a few days ago, and since, I've noticed some issues that I was to address, just to find out what I should do about them.

First, the car smoked a lot at first, but I knew it was due to the oil and atf that was in the motor while it sat. It stopped smoking completely yesterday.....

But today, it was smoking again, not very much, but it was continuous. I thought all the oil had burned out of it? Why would it be smoking now? This engine has approx. 15k miles on it....

Also, I've noticed oil pressure fluctations. Now I know it's going to need to have some oil added. The engine and oil cooler were completely empty, and I added 5 quarts, which is 1 short of the total capacity. Would being 1 qyart low cause the pressure to fluctuate? If not what could be causing this....

Also, what is the best way to fill the cooling system, when it's been completely empty. I know there's air in all the hoses and such, and I was adding coolant while it was idling, and it kept taking it, but it seemed like it still doesn't have coolant in the hoses, at least not much anyway. How can I bleed this air out of it?
Otherwise, the engine runs very smooth, although I haven't not revved it much at all, due to these issues. I haven't even let it get up to normal operating temp, because I don't want to take a chance of overheating it.

All help's appreciated. Thanks.

poweRX-7

well, check the oil on the dipstick, and add oil according to that. it is not good to run it low on oil, but i don't think it would smoke if you were about a quart low... but i am not for sure.
as for the coolant issue, when i filled mine, i started it up, and turned the heater on high to get it running through everything. let it go for a little bit and then add more as needed. i think that you can also just start your car when it is cold without the coolant cap on, and just add a little bit as it goes down.
as for the not letting it warm up part, i am a little lost... why would you think that it will overheat if you let it warm up all the way? there shouldn't be a problem. i would atleast let it get warmed up... and if it starts to get hot, then shut it down. it is very bad to turn the engine off before it is fully warmed up... especially in the SE. FLOODING!
just my .02
jeff

diabolical1

iTrader: (3)

when you're sure there's enough oil in it, if the pressure still fluctuates, then check the connection for the gauge (also remember that if the idle is not remotely smooth you'll get some fluctuations as well)

you'll need to let it warm up in order to fill it to capacity otherwise you'll be a little low when the thermostat opens. just use your head ... let it idle, keep an eye on the temperature and keep putting in your coolant/water mix.

as for the smoke ... it can be residue. that stuff does not go away TOO easily. if it still smokes after a day or two of driving (and TAKE IT EASY) then you can be concerned, but i wouldn't sweat it now.

MarkPerez

You are going to HAVE to let it reach some sort of temp.
if you are going to drive it. you won't hurt the car !
make sure , by the dip stick, enough oil is in the engine.
not the oil presure guage. fill the cooling system up.
put the rad. cap on tight, start the engine, let it run,
sit in the car and watch and wait untill you see the temp guage reach 1/8 of the guage. pop off rad. cap and if you need to add fluid,,do it. fill it up and replace the cap.
the air in the engine will disappear as the presure in the system builds,,,no worries it's normal. only 15K miles ? why was it parked, and i understand your concerns, but you've gotta do this, it's the only way to know. IMO.

thecause17

Ok, I added oil to make sure there was enough and after adding it, I checked and there was....

The oil pressure guage reads right above the 60 mark upon start up, but as the car warms up it drops lower and lower, until it reads nothing at all.....this bothers the hell out of me. Where is the connection for the sensor.

It didn't smoke thismorning either....

This oil pressure thing bothers me though, I really don't want to hurt this motor, it seems to be running great.

diabolical1

iTrader: (3)

the pressure gauge connection sounds loose or filthy. the sender unit for the gauge is on the rear intermediate housing (right below the oil filter) ... just look for a "used-to-be-shiny-rusty-****-colored" round thing with a blade-type wire connector on it.

take the wire off it, clean the connector and the wire, put it back on (sometimes they snap, sometimes they don't - but just make sure it's secure)

MarkPerez

OK. but just don't keep adding oil,,, check the dip stick !
look under the car for oil leaking, just to make sure the oil stays in the engine. could be the oil presure sender is bad too. but spin the engine up to 4000 rpm's what does the oil presure guage say ?? does it go up with rpm's ??? if so thats normal. you need to road test (drive) the car around the block. temp reach's 3/4's hot
then stop the car and engine and let us know.

thecause17

Ok, I had it out today, depsite no registration, just arond teh block a few times. The oil pressure is still reading funny.. Once again, when I start it up, it shows proper pressure, but as it warms up, it reads lower and lower until it gets to 0, and it doesn't move at all, even with revs. I was playing with the sensor connection thismorning, and it didn't effect things. I think I was looking at the correct one, just as it was described above. I got shocked on the bastard too.

Anyways, I hit another issue. The car felt extremely strong. I got on it a few times, but never got the revs up. When I did finally decide to hit it pretty hard, the car responded very well, then fell flat on it's face at 4000rpms, and starting bucking. I got it home, revved it and it cut out at the same rpms, tried it again, and it carried to 5500 before doing it again, and the last time I revved, it went clear to redline. I'm thinking the injectors are gummed up from old gas, and aren't spraying well enough to keep up with the air coming in, and it's cutting out. What do you guys think? I'm pobably gonna get some injectore cleaner and run it through and see what that does. The power is there though, I can tell this engine is very healthy, just needs some bugs worked out. The only thing I'm worried about is this oil pressure problem. Anyone got any pics of exactly where this is, so I can be sure of what I'm looking at?

Rxmfn7

iTrader: (4)

^ Yea the car felt stong, but cut out at 4k, and just bucked, almost like hitting a rev limiter. I agree on the injectors being clogged, I mean it has been sitting for 4+ years without running.. Anyone else have any thoughts on this? Also, he got shocked when messing with the plug for the oil pressure sending unit. SHould this have any considerable voltage and current going through it to actually shock someone?

thecause17

Anyone?


Anyways, I put some injector cleaner in it today, along with more fresh gas, took it out, and it was doing the same thing, but by the time I got back to the house, it seemed to idle better than before. Yesterday, it was idling pretty low(600ish), and wanted to shut off if I pushed the clutch in while coming to a stop. Today it did it one time, but that was when I first took it out, I don't expect injector cleaner to work that fast....so it's understandable. It was idling at a rock solid 900rpms thismorning. I'm gonna take it out one more time before work today and see how it does again.

Anyone have any ideas on the oil pressure....it's my only real concern right now, I think I can take care of the rest.

dole2000

I would get and aftermarket oil pressure gauge. I once thought I had a problem with a Maxima I have. After much searching I replace the unit and that was the end of the low pressure problem.

diabolical1

iTrader: (3)

the car was sitting, so the first question i have is: did you give it a full tuneup (particularly the fuel filter and ignition components)?

i'm thinking your 5th and 6th ports are not opening, but the engine is still being fueled as if they were.
other ideas:
- check and re-check your timing
- you may want to check your ignition system if you're losing spark somewhere


if you were trying to clean the connection with the engine running ... my guess is that it is possible to be shocked by it ... not from voltage, but from the alternator's current - but try to get confirmation from a more relaible source, i'm old and physics was quite a few years ago

Rxmfn7

iTrader: (4)

Well the distributor and plug wires, as well as fuel filter are still the ones that have been sitting in the car for years. Spark plugs themselves are new. Yes he does plan on changing all of those things, but we just wanted to make sure the car started and ran fine before he spent any more money. I see no reason why the aux ports wouldnt be opening, we installed a set of pineapple racing sleeves in there, and the actuators and rods move freely by hand. Even if the ports werent opening, it would still rev past 4k, just have a severe lack of power. But I do agree that a full tune-up, (esp. fuel filter) should be the next thing in our troubleshooting process.

thecause17

I'm almost positive it's fuel related.....It will rev freely to redline with no load on the car....in neutral, it behaves normally. The more increase of a load, say, a hill, the lower the rpm it will rev too, the more of a load, the more gas it needs, which I'm convinced it's not getting.

The 6 ports are not an issue, like rxmfn7 said, I've made sure they not stuck, and besides, the car has cut out on occasion at as low at 2000rpms. In fact, I can make it cut out just by giving it too much gas at any speed or rpm...so the ports aren't relevant.

diabolical1

iTrader: (3)

well now that the car is starting fine, i would think it's okay to get the stuff so that you'll get it closer to running fine ... true?

anyway, if i may, i'd suggest getting the injectors professionally cleaned/rebuilt. however, if that proves to be too expensive you can try to secure some used ones ... i'm just not too sold on the idea of relying on the injector cleaners to do the job. they seem to be a good idea for preventative maintenance, but i wouldn't put much faith in them for repair (or reversing the effects of time/neglect).

good luck and keep at it ... i'm sure you're pretty close.

thecause17

Well, this problem is only showing after after the engine gets fairly warm. I noticed today when I first started it, it reved freely to redline, and when I took it out, it drove fine, but as it got warmer it started to cut out more, when I got back to the house, and stopped, it would only rev to about 4000rpms and it would die.

I noticed that I can hear the fuel pump rather loud, which I don't have a problem with, it's an inline pump, but it sounds rather low pitched, as if it's not pumping very fast. Could this be the problem? And if so, why is it only doing it after it warms up?

85gsl2ndtimearound

sounds like a fule filter!!!

thecause17

And why would the filter only do this after it warms up? I'm going to replace the filter anyway, but I don't see this being the problem

FWIW, we jumped the fuel pump today, and it was pumping faster and was higher pitched when we jumped it, than it was when the car was running.