1990 Firebird - The Devil designed this Engine!
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- Опубліковано 27 сер 2024
- Winston's Firebird Formula is posing more and more of a challenge. The engine is a nightmare to work on! Who designed this?
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*Every Part/Tool/Product used to fix this car*
Motor Medic Motor Flush
amzn.to/3drCwyv
Mobil 1 5W-30 Synthetic Oil
amzn.to/2BssZZN
E3.42 Spark Plugs x8
amzn.to/2AzsYCG
50/50 Coolant
amzn.to/2Mm6Nm6
Oil Catch Can
amzn.to/2Mm6Nm6
Shop Vac
amzn.to/2Mm6Nm6
Fail Safe Thermostat
amzn.to/2Xpp2xq
Crud Cutter (degreaser)
amzn.to/2FRyXCi
WD-40
amzn.to/2U3lGON
Dewalt collapsable table
amzn.to/2ToVE9a
*Cameras/Mics*
Sony a73
amzn.to/37YMTXk
Sony Handycam
amzn.to/35OgHV2
Go Pro
amzn.to/38hAldV
Zoom H1 Handy Recorder
amzn.to/30iKtjG
Rode Smart Lav+
amzn.to/36UKdKe
DJI Mavic Air (our daily drone cheaper)
amzn.to/2RnRdc5
DJI Mavic 2 (Drone) the nice expensive one
amzn.to/2tXY57W
Manfrotto Befree Tripod
amzn.to/38aXvTa
Sony 24-70 f/4 lens for a73
amzn.to/2sxfST6
Disclaimer:
Due to factors beyond the control of Worthless Whips, we cannot guarantee against improper use or unauthorized modifications of this information. Worthless Whips assumes no liability for property damage or injury incurred as a result of any of the information contained in this video. Use this information at your own risk. Worthless Whips recommends safe practices when working on vehicles and or with tools seen or implied in this video. Due to factors beyond the control of Worthless Whips, no information contained in this video shall create any expressed or implied warranty or guarantee of any particular result. Any injury, damage, or loss that may result from improper use of these tools, equipment, or from the information contained in this video is the sole responsibility of the user and not Worthless Whips.
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Cool how you remembered to wipe oil on the oil filter gasket - learned that from my mechanic's class in '75 and still a good habit!
Yes I definitely think the devil was employed in that company lol
The devil also worked on the Ford 390. Whatever engineer thought it would be a good idea to flange the intake so the pushrods go through it had to be a Satan worshiper.
There's a way to take a box end wrench, heat it, bend it just right, and make it for taking the distributors out without taking all the other stuff off. I have such a wrench, without it, distributor swap is a major pain for sure.
Welp, maybe you should invest in a, distributor wrench, it's two L shape ,when connected looks like a z . About $10 most parts . P.s. G. M. Is famous for special tools ..
Hope the girls are doing good,
"I ran motor flush through the engine...the oil seems thin."
😂😭😂😭
Yeaaahhh I'm glad I am not the only one. I've used it (hesitantly) on cars that sat in fields for years, and already beat up with oil like tar. But it's not something I would use for a halfway ok engine.
F'real
I'm a retired GM Mechanic who built engines 8 hrs a day and there are so many thing wrong here I could cry,
Ive met with pro stock race crews running 100,000 dollar engines, Those spark plugs are a rolling joke, Please dont use motor flush unless you like trashing the bearings, Replace that short oil filter with an ACDeleco PF1218 it's longer and has an internal check valve to prevent drain back, The longer filter sits flush with the oil pan and exhaust but not lower, as long as its not hanging lower then the oil pan you dont have to worry if its going to get torn off, This is the size filter that was used on all 350's years back.(I was able to spend time with the mechanics for pro stock, I got to drink beer and talk about why they ran an AC Delco plug in a dragster advertising for a "Splitfire" type of plug, There answers was given sheepishly)
You got it!! I use only use AC Delco parts in my GM's..
I like and appreciate comments from retired mechanics.
I've owned multiple near 300,000 mile GM's, I've never used Engine flush, fuel or oil additives.
That stuff is a gimmick!!
PhillLsx Ga. Fuel additives and motor flush are absolutely not gimmicks but you need to know exactly what they are doing,
When I disassemble any older/abused engine I find pockets of deposits that contribute to keeping any oil dirty,
Of corse I scrub all of this out when servicing the motor, Motor flush breaks up these deposits quickly sending all the loose dirt into your oil, And its chunky and gritty and nasty, If the dirt in the oil slows filtration, any excess oil is bypasses directly to your bearings,(filters are designed to allow dirty oil to flow rather than no oil at all) is not good that's why we recommend you just start changing your oil every 1000 miles or so,
To safely carry the deposits away,
Now lets talk about fuel additives(sometimes can be used to pass an emissions test on a finicky converters)
Fuel additives can be hydroscopic allowing them to absorb excess water and contamination and carry it out of the tank.
Do you know why old truckers get that rig to pass a million miles???? Oil additives, specifically Lucas HD oil stabilizer and I use it in every older and old style engine i own. I was an ASE master tech with Chevrolet citified training.
jason9022 Interesting, well I guess you would know best as only one of us has been building motors for a lifetime......
You're not an old man Winston, just a little bit 'not quite as young as you were'. There's decades ahead to come. :-)
He hasn't broken the 40 barrier yet, has he?
@munchkin42 - Its that asian mentality. Women over 30 are old women so he is an old man compared to the girls that were throwing themselves at him. I used to go to asia and that was the case back then too. Now Im much older than Winston. Im not a really old man but not in my prime like him.
You, my friend, have more patience than I could EVER muster. I would take ONE look under the hood of a California compliant engine, close the hood and run for the hills. Keep doing what your dreams command and thanks for the great videos.
totally agree - patience galore
California emissions standards don't make emissions controls any more complex than they need to be. Polluting emissions are the result of sub-optimal combustion, and sub-optimal combustion is undesirable from any perspective. Even if all you care about is getting the most horsepower out of the fuel you're paying for, you still want optimal combustion. The only thing California emissions standards are responsible for is pushing engine manufacturers to optimize their combustion engines sooner than they would've done otherwise.
Greg McKinley yeah, my heart goes out to them putting up with California’s regulations on cars and guns.
Shawn Elliott lol, nah. Tell that to anyone with a Diesel engine. First thing you want to do is delete the EGR.
@@seanwieland9763: Only if you don't know how EGR works and can't be bothered to maintain your engine properly.
Take the front tire off and cover. Once is lifted you can the spark plugs straight through.
What CC said. I pulled mine from underneath
Not with that retarded McPherson strut design you cant.
He'll learn...lol
@@johnroberts4571 .....🤣👹
@CC Ryder . jajajajajajjaaaa .. yes but don't be mad and be so rude man ..
but you right .. in some oil change is the opportunity .. cheers
I don’t even care about cars but watching this feels like it’s your calling Winston... you know, being a dad, California, repairing retro cars... Watching these videos is a joy, it’s super interesting and I’ve actually learned some things about repairing cars that otherwise I’d never look up myself. I hope you, Cmilk and your families are enjoying yourselves!
Honestly guys, this content is amazing. I have been watching your main channels for a couple of years, but I have to say this channel is really awesome and I find these automotive videos super entertaining and interesting. Its great that you can take a break from this china drama and focus on something that isnt all politics.
Main channels?
Okay but my dude has no damn idea wtf he is doing. He needs to be honest and make that clear so people don't think they should do things the way he does. This is a pathetic excuse for an automotive channel if I'm honest.
This is like a cool cloth for a fevered brow with all this turmoil going on. Love your vids boys. Stay safe and stay awesome.
I once swapped an engine from an Iroc Z to a regular Camaro. Hated every bit of it. Never did an engine swap again.
Two seconds in and I was like "I know that voice!".
For the distributor bolt, there is a wrench you can buy at most auto parts stores called a distributor wrench. Its sort of like a big C shaped wrench, required on most GM and Mopar engines that put the distributor in the back.
I was just going to say the same thing.
Crow's foot and flex-head ratchet is an alternate approach.
Yeah. All LA and Magnum 3.9, 5.2 and 5.9s have it in the back. The B/ RB engines 383, 400 and 440 all have them up front. I have a wrench as I have quite a few small block Mopar stuff
Love or hate Snap on tools, they’ve got a good one.
What's a distributor? Just kidding I'm 58 yo
You brought me back to the 85 Camaro I bought brand new. Changed oil every 3k, put 6 exhaust systems on it. The rest of the parts replaced were counted on my hands. Beat it every day of it's life 8 -)
Thanks Winston for some good armchair repair watching ... so much in such a little space ... I like old style analog engines for working on ... those prior to "smog control mania" ... but I also like to breath clean air ... damned if you do, damned if you don't.
Yes! This vehicle! What a bute!!! Man, it's awesome seeing someone take gentle care of such an incredible relic (well relic in our time). Muscle cars are more my shtick, love the look and sound of older engines, it was never about the power for me but the feel of it. Going for a long drive, being entranced by the highway roads, it's like your in the engine block itself! You can imagine the rocker arms, the valves moving, the belts and crank turning! God what a feeling to sit back and appreciate human design!
It's not the engine but how it is put into the car... The looks like the Chevy 350 which is pretty standard but compared to an older firebird, this has a smaller engine bay. So that sucker was literally shoehorned in!
Great work you're doing!
Now you know how surgeons feel. There is always stuff in the way when you want to replace a part.
I love Pontiacs! They are very underated cars, but anyone who ever owned one knows why they are great cars.
My dream car is a supercharged gto.
Red Cloud give mine is a WS6 Trans Am
@@PatricioGarcia1973 wanna get a 67 four speed GTO like my dad and a 69 or 70-73 Firebird. Currently got an '89 base fire chicken
Original owner of a 1989 formula 350...could not agree more!
LS4 Grand Prix here. Love it.
Love my 68" Goat!
Greetings from Ventura CA. When things get safer, we should have a Worthless Whips meetup.
What are you driving
@Automobile Addict That won't save you from Korone TheVarus unfortunately.
It was the Motor Medic engine flush that made the oil very thin. It's made from diesel fuel , kerosene , naptha and other solvents.
bingo
Straight kerosene works well for cheaper.
You’re an old man? Ha ha ha, brother you’re not old til you’re cold =)
Thanks guys. Your videos give me hope. I've been living in China for 4 years already and as you may understand it's hard for me to consider my life out of China and start a new chapter.
Glad to see that you did it.
GM had an issue with even their factory security systems stranding you, i had a 2000 Malibu that would randomly think i was trying to steal it and would make me wait 15min before i would be able to try to start my car again. One time it did it to me 4x in a row and i just had to sit there for an hour.
😣
That's amazing. Not in a good way! I stopped buying any American cars after my parents' experience with a Plymouth and a Dodge Caravan.
@@genli5603 Had a Plymouth Caravan that almost killed us. Brakes
I had once a rental Renault here in Europe years ago, brand new, and the anti-theft system locked us out several times, I had to return it to the rental company and got a different car, so it's not only US built cars...
@@doejohn8674 Why would you rent a Renault? If you're gonna rent a car, rent one that's interesting and unusual...
That job looked challenging, but Simon has the right stuff to do it. I enjoyed it.
Please keep these coming . In the crazy world we are in right now it’s great to have a little bit of down time into normalcy watching your channels. I couldn’t be asked to ever miss a video. Not today. 👍👍
"Worse engine to remove the spark plugs..." you say?
SUBARU: Hold my beer
Ha ha, 4th gen F-body says hold my keg...
some mini vans are a huge PITA as well, add a 1/2 hour for every additional plug.
That title goes to the Ford triton v8s
V6 Ford AEROSTAR vans. My buddy had to make a special tool just to remove one plug in the back of the motor.
Or the passenger side rear spark plug on a 86 Fox body V6 Mustang.
You guys are the best! My main passions are pos old cars(my current daily driver and first car is a 1986 Mercedes 300e), international relations, hospitality, and historical architecture. For years I’ve loved watching all of your channels. This video makes me more concerned about buying a 1974-1981 Pontiac Firebird Formula like I want and makes me rather buy a Toyota pickup or AE86.
Dude, the 2nd gen Firebird/Camaro (1970-1981) are nothing like this to work on...I say go buy it 👍
I've owned about 21 3rd gens. I own 2 of these now. My 88 is a Formula. A tip for doing spark plugs on the PS, especially the rear plugs, is to first go from underneath, put the spark plug socket over the plug, and put a long extension wrench over the end of the socket. You literally have to go a slight tiny 1/4 of an inch at a time. Lots of patience!!
I totally applaud you for getting a car you have wanted for a long time, then going thru it to make it right and yours. Great job sir.
My Dad said I was conceived in one of those cars.......best ride he ever had!
The back seat is a nightmare and will leave you bruised. Luckily the front seats lean all the way back.
Do you still have the new car smell?
That's a sweet & rare one with the 5 speed, most of those were automatics. I've always wanted a GTA, but the Formula was much lighter which equals quicker. Old Car Memories Channel did a great informative video on that generation, worth a look at.
They made a special wrench that was about a foot long and bent in a C shape that was used to get to the dist. bolt. There were several of them for different models.
Happy to see you doing what you love to do Winston.
Dude I love the content on this channel. I know it’s not easy to produce but I wish you’d upload more.
Don't worry mate, once a week for sure!
If there is a good reason for an LS-Swap, this era of F-body is it.
Yeah, that TBI 305 isn't much fun is it? I had an '88 Formula 350 once that looked just like this, same color, same wheels and everything. TPI 5.7. Only difference is the decals said "Formula 350" instead of just "Formula". Kinda tourquey, with the rarer Australian rear axle, but still not LS level of power for sure
@@ryansellers2581 nah, the 350 Tuned Port Injection with that Australian 9 bolt rear was the best you could get in that era.
@@ryansellers2581 You can thank the old "Can't out perform the Corvette." rule from that era. The 6spd out of the Vette would of course bolt right up....but no, you can't have it in your F-Body.
@@thegrandinquisitor8239 Hell of a lot of truth in your comment . Chevy was testing a new Corvette & Pontiac showed up at the proving grounds with a Turbo Fiero on the same day . The Turbo Fiero idea was "AXED" that day . It is difficult to find good information about the event . I was told about it at GM training in Clarence NY .
@@privatedata665 Yeah. Us GM enthusiasts know that the GNX ruffled quite a few feathers at Chevy.
FYI, I own a 1998 powerboat that uses a GM TBI 5.7L marine engine (TBI unit similar to yours) . About 2 years ago it began to lean surge when running at cruising speed. I removed the injectors and sent them off for professional cleaning and flow rate checking. They found that the injector flow rate was low by 10 - 20%. After cleaning, both injectors operated at 100% of rated flow, and the lean surge disappeared. Well worth the $$.
A pro mechanic friend of mine has an older brother who is an automotive design engineer and they used to get in horrible arguments, LOL. The mechanic brother swore that the engineers never designed cars for easy maintenance or repair --- instead, designs were often about saving costs. Hang in there!!! Great video.
Winston, good read on the plugs. Injectors have a locating pin on the bottom that should have placed 1 forward and 1 rearward instead of sideways. Vacuum leak of course can cause lean issue however, bad EGR most common in the day " not fully closing, etc.". Fuel systems deteriorate with time. Fuel pressure and flow should be looked at. I would throw a new pump in it just because.... filter etc. of course. Thank you for sharing your passion. Winston, what are some of your other Dream cars ? I'm not a Patreon member but I may have something I can Donate sitting around. Family has been in the automotive business since 1947 and its pretty cheap for me to ship a car to California. Old school trick is to add 1 quart trans fluid to your oil change. Very high detergent in trans fluid does an amazing job. Thats if I would want to. I am hesitant in doing so. Doing a flush can also cause old seals to leak. Bad flashback from the older diesel Mercedes that used no detergent oil. Flush 1 of those and you have leaks I cannot describe. Many a customers children and grandchildren have made such fatal errors.
Probably reseal those with atp 205
In my own experience, fuel pressure issues in TBI systems are fairly obvious on startup. If fuel pressure is even slightly off would take longer than usual to start up. It’s also been my experience that nearly every TBI replacement fuel pump is an absolute piece of shit, I’d trust a stocker WAY more than any replacement...
Nothing wrong with going synthetic. Frequent oil changes are what gives an engine long life.
new cars have a 10,000 mile oil change intervals, Crazy right
raymond80hr don't listen to that do it every 3000 miles. If you run that 10,000 mile routine pull the dipstick and look at color of oil at 5000 miles, it will already be as dark as it can get. You can't tell me that oil is still good or optimal.
I'm a journeyman parts tech. I was told by the Quaker State Rep as well as the Motul motorcycle oil rep " oil doesn't " wear out", it gets dirty. Flush the old oil. If synthetic works go ahead but with old US made V8s my choice is semi synthetic oil. If you have a old V8 or any other engine with a flat tappet cam, use a bit of oil with ZDDP ( zinc). It'll keep you from wiping the cam lobes
@Frank White you know that Pennzoil is owned by QS? Anyways, the bad old oil stocks are ( or from what I've heard) gone. The basic bean stock stuff is I guess ok in a Cavalier or Neon but I wouldn't run it in anything else. Synthetic oil or even the blends are good and because the boys are just running small block Chevs, a semi.synthetic is good enough. And semi synthetic oil is refined to the point where it would have been considered motorsport oil 20 years ago. I've run Motul exclusively in all my Ducati motorcycles. I only have a 796 now but I prefer what the World Superbike guys are using for a high stress piece like a motorcycle engine
@@spankthemonkey3437 if your oil is black after 5000 miles you got problems. The oil of today is so far more advanced than 50 to 60 years ago. There is ZERO reason for your oil to be black after 5000 miles unless you are talking about a diesel. Black oil was a result of lead in REGULAR gas and zinc burn in older pre-SN rated oils. Unleaded fuels today are much cleaner and more refined today. Synthetic oil by the way has a higher flash point, so in essence, it doesnt burn.
Can’t believe how long it took me to find out you had another channel doing car stuff. Good stuff.
I’m so glad to see you guys carving out a niche for yourselves here in the US. Car guy daycare: sleeping baby cradled in a bucket seat. I love it! Of course, I grew up with parents who had a 71 Corvette with side pipes as the family car so I’m a little warped. In the pre-seatbelt/child seat days between the ages of 3 - 10, I rode many a mile perched on or just behind the center console between the front seats. My older sister would sit in front of my mom in the passenger’s seat. Utter madness.
Engine flush contains solvents. It's predominately kerosene, and as such naturally thins engine oil which aids cleaning. This is why they advise that you only use it at idle speed, because the cushioning effect of the oil between moving parts such as the conrods and crank is reduced.
Personally I have used a car with engine flush added for 1 week without ill effect.
I drove from Montreal, Quebec to Lake George, N.Y. with engine flush added to the engine.... you’re talking 180-190 miles (300 klms) and 3 hours travel. That I’m sure, I’ve done it literally 100 times over 50 years. Drove there, parked up a dead end street, got out my 10W40 oil (for the summer heat, 10W30 in the winter), and changed it right there. Never had a problem and the crap that came out...sheeesh!
My mother had a 94 red trans am when I was a young man, maybe 23? She loved that car and it was beautiful.
F bodies are fun cars but many are very under powered . I was a Pontiac tech for many years and all of these things you did in this video are easy to do "if you do these things every day " You did well with these maintenance /repair items .
fwiw: the full synthetic should be more resistant to leaking, as it has less viscosity change over temperature.
Full syn oil laeks after running in an older enhine is a well known issue, having to do with its abilty to weep past dried out seals and gaskets. Sometimes, it can be solved with "seal sweller", an additive.
@@machinist7230 That depends. If the car has been sitting a long time, sure. If it's been in semi operating condition, you shouldn't have any issues with a high grade synthetic. We're talking about a car designed in the late 80s, not the mid 70s.
Used full synthetic in my new T/A, I figured if I blow the engine that it won't be because of cheap oil.
i ran Mobil 1 synthetic in my 130,000 mile civic. the good news is it never rusted again because the entire engine by and bottom of the car was constantly coated in oil. Every seal and gasket in that entire engine leaked oil. supposedly the enhanced additive package in synthetic oil removes the build up around the seals and causes them to leak. I won't make that mistake again. certainly made my filters last longer though. just keep adding oil.
synthetic oils have a more uniform molecule size which makes them more stable at high temps. Machinist 72 is absolutely correct, the leaking problem is due to old seals and resealing the engine will generally solve these problems. modern fuels also cause problems with older seals but that is another matter.
No idea why they offered the TBI engine in these 3rd gens when they already had the TPI
Cost... But the throttle body was efficient and worked well. Was not as prone to dirt and BS as the multiports
TBI was in 3rd generation F Cars in 1982 when TPI was not.
GM added TBI to meet EPA and emissions. TBI was in pre 1982 earlier GM higher end cars. GM introduces newer technology into higher end GM cars. Some 1980 1/2 Cadillac's or maybe Oldsmobiles have TBI engines. By 1982 TBI was in many different GM engines and the 12 pin ALDL test interface was on most GM vehicles that had computers. Some 1981 and 1982 used the older 5 pin ALDL connector. 1980 1/2 buick oldsmobile and Pontiac used a test adapter with 5 to 6 wires with pins. Once GM started to make TBI in high volumes there was much learning in field failures.
TPI came out I think in some 1985 F Cars engines. A buddy had a V6 2.8 TPI that seemed like as powerful as an 1982 V8 TBI.
GM made millions of TBI cars before the F car got some TPI engines years later. Cost matters. TBI was lower in cost to build into cars than TPI.
The TBI injection was used on their base 5.0L V8. It was really an electronic version of the carburator replaced. It was pretty basic, reliable and fairly easy to service. The multi port injection was used on the 5.7L V8 and it looked waaaay cooler.
@@codyluka8355 definitely looks way cooler, I've had both..Also TPI was available on the 305 (5.0)
@@standarddef8769 Yes it was. It was the top engine in 1985 in the Trans Am and Z28. Available only with the automatic. And of course on the 85 Corvette with the 350.
Once had an 1982 Firebird with the carbureted (2 barrel) 2.8L V-6 and the 5 speed trans. Even though the engine was small, the car ran surprisingly well and got great mileage. The spark pugs were very easy to get to and the car never gave me any mechanical problems. I later regretted selling it when I bought a Z-28 Camaro, with Tuned Port Injection (gas guzzler) and spark plugs that were a nightmare to change!!
The video was good on its own, but the cameo by the baby was awesome. So cute to see lying in the front seat like that.
"Luckily I have a very long one........ in my little toolbox" 🧰 😆
I work on School Busses and The GM vans have some of the worst engine bays I've ever worked on
serpentus?
The problem with putting fresh oil in your new filter before you install it; and why manufacturers don't recommend it, is that you end up with oil in the system that has not been filtered. In order to avoid this problem; you must fill the filter using one of the small holes around the edge. Not the big one in the middle
A friend had one of these. TBI also, great suspension, great brakes. Not as much power as the tuned port but a really great car.
Invest in some crows foot wrenches you will need the for oil lines and power steering as well as that distributor.
Aaawww, getting serpent girl used to the smell of oil. 🤗🤗🤗🤗 cute.
That is what I like about having a real Pontiac engine. The plugs are above the exhaust manifolds.
I don't think I've ever talked to anyone who's wrenched on an LT1 that didn't lose their mind a little bit whenever spark plugs were mentioned.
I have that same car. I have been restoring it ... I LOVE HER. The two passenger side back plugs are most easily changed with the car up in the air and taking off the Trans mount/cross member in order to let the engine tilt back just a little . with a few swivel joints on a ratchet ... you'll still be cussing the entire time LOL
My sister had an ‘89 Firebird with the 5.0 engine years ago. I still remember how hard the spark plugs were. Lots of time underneath to get them out.
And next episode will be called " When the car of your dreams becomes the car of your nightmares" :) :)
Good job. My choice with the plugs would be, iridium plugs. Take care of that old girl, and she will take care of you. 👍
Bosch instead of the AC Delco junk which fall apart
when you wrench them out.
AC Plugs resist oil fouling best. Autolites too. These tbi engines like standard copper core plugs.
Iridium plugs are a waste of money. I like good old NGK coppers, although I'm usually working with Japanese cars.
Fully synthetic is fine in old engines what you want is an Oil with high ZINC it will help keep the engine nice
I've had 7 F bodies. The TBI 305 is not that bad to work on, once you get used to it. There's plenty of tricks to learn when working on these. Specifically the spark plugs, with the right 3/8 drive ratchet and wrenches and spark plug sockets, it's about a 30-45 minute job. As far as the distributor, same thing... We have a specific wrench to get to that 14mm bolt for the distributor hold down that I've used. Getting the distributor stabbed is not difficult, I highly recommend putting cylinder number 1 to TDC on the compression stroke (using the marks on the harmonic balancer tab), and then you can stab the distributor anywhere and reinstall wires in the specific firing order clockwise starting from where the rotor is pointing (make it point towards cyl#1 if possible). 18436572 on the distributor cap. The TBI cars benefit from smog pump deletes and catalyst deletes and headers. I always removed the smog equipment from mine. Custom exhaust is a must. Those TBIs are very limited power wise due to the emissions and economy focus of the engines, I recommend changing the heads , cam and intake /fuel delivery entirely, as they are all limiting for power gains, due to the inherent design of the head ports and camshaft profile.. A stall converter is beneficial and so are better gears, if it's an auto I recommend 3.42. Also I like to advance the timing on these to about 6-8 degrees BTDC, use a timing light and make sure to unplug the EST wire when doing this. (EST wire is a brown wire coming out of the harness by the AC evaporator box on the passenger side, very easy to spot.) Stock timing is supposed to be set at Zero , so advancing it usually helps with a little more power. If you must keep the TBI 305 there are custom chips that can be burned for you and plenty of cam and head options, and you can even use a performance carburetor intake like an Air Gap with a TBI adapter.
"How to make your child a petrolhead..." Winston winning at daddying.
You need a distributor wrench. Use a single edge razor blade to scrape the gaskets. Sandpaper BAD. If you note the position of the old distributor, new one pops in
The thin oil is normal when flushing your engine. I did this to a couple of cars. The product makes everything less resistant to flow.
at first i thought this was a TPI engine, but after seeing it was the TBI 305, well, now i see what your saying. the TPI 305 & 350 were easy to work on,i own a '87 & '91 Formula 350. they are tremendous cars, and the TPI's were easy for me to work on. love your video's, thanks for this
I changed the distributor on my 89 formula 350, no to bad
But the plugs are a pain. Mostly have to get at them from underneath. Solid video love these cars.
Don't forget to pause Adblock on the page to support these guys :)
No need to pause just white list it.
Serpentza! Didn’t know you’re a car guy, after looking at your chinese car
I knew the voice instantly
HI Winston, You have the Patience of a freaking SAINT!! Excellent job!! My brother owned his own foreign & domestic car repair shop, but as a child, I used to watch him in the garage & hand him a tool or two..you brought back some pleasant memories, thanks!!
Matt, love the So what are you gonna do about...questions at the end!!
Love you guys!! Stay awesome! 😎💕
Pretty cool car! Real clean! I have done probably a half dozen 3rd gen f body 5.7 carbureted swaps in Firebird's, and Camaro's or more in my hayday. When the 6 cylinder cars crapped out, I would gank all that computer crap, and wiring. It was easy to do. That Motor flush is basically Kerosene. Get the same results using that. If I was me, I would put O.E. AC Delco plugs in there. Any other has a tendency to foul out, but whatever that is seems to be okay for now. Rebuilding the TB is always a good idea on those. I owned a few 2nd gen Firebirds personally. 1970 Formula was my teenage memory. Bad ass car.
And that my friends is why I don't wrench cars anymore.
much love from CPT my dude!
You're first mate.
remember changing the plugs on my 95 Z28, pretty big pain, most of the engine was under the cowl.
As a South African, I've only ever seen one 3rd gen Firebird in the 'flesh'. It was owned by a guy near just outside of Durban. Not many of them made it down our way. Still my favourite looking cars of all time.
Have owned 40 plus cars and whatever people tell me I always change the oil ASAP
Ever changed the oil in a Porsche where you have to drop the engine? Yeah, tight spaces.
What Porsche do you have to drop the engine to change oil?
I have had poor luck with Pontiacs. They are nightmares on wheels. As for oil, I used a full-synthetic oil in my high-mileage daily driver for a few years with no new oil leaks. It leaks a tiny amount of oil, but it did that before switching to the synthetic. Since engine oil is the lifeblood of automobiles, I try to get the best I can get for anything I have, even if the car is a beater.
Your spark plug fiasco reminds me of that time I had a Ford Cargo van which had a major design flaw. One spark plug was dang near impossible to remove due to frame clearance issues. The first five were fine, that last one took two hours of fiddling. Come to find out, it was the original spark plug, nobody had ever changed it until I came along lol.
I'm also reminded of a Ford where to replace a headlamp, you had to jack the car up, take off a wheel, and take off the fender panel to reach the headlight. I sometimes think domestic car manufacturers don't really think things through or they just don't care or they try to make it so hard to repair that you go to a dealer or just replace the car (with another domestic car).
2 things:
get a distributor wrench. they're made specifically for getting at that annoying hold down bolt.
you don't need to worry about lining up the oil pump drive. just get the rotor pointing in the right direction (find the right tooth on the gear) and crank the motor. it will quickly line itself up with the oil pump drive and drop down the last 1/4" or so and you're done.
Poor design? Expected of a GM vehicle TBH.
Hey...FUNK YOO!
@@johnchalleen3278 - Buy a GM. Drive the best. Ride a mile and push the rest. Amen and Amen
Hey, the saying goes “GM cars run poorly longer than most cars run at all.” Sure, the door handles break (bend a wire coat hanger) and the ignition keys fall out (duct tape) and you might need to try to start them several times before they pop off and you need to just ignore the lights on the dash and bring a Bluetooth speaker with you because the stereo is history, but they do run.
I used to own a 89 formula 350 TPI with t-tops back in college in 1995 until today I watch UA-cam videos about these cars! I wish I didn't sell it . Now I own a Porsche 911 turbo and cayenne turbo but my true love is my old Formula 350 😃
Wow just found this by accident, good for you Winston. Glad to see you are branching out. There is a worse engine than that one, it’s the tuned port version of that motor. Everything on that motor is a
Pain in the ass!
Hope you are all adjusting well to life
Away from the gong fei
Nice video! Yeah, the passenger side is a bit tricky to get the plugs out. You need to reach them from underneath, but you figured that out by yourself ;-) Fellow Firebird owner with the 305 TBI here.
Nice! Glad to know there are others out there sharing my pain!
who would think a Firebird seat would be a perfect cradle?... she looked super relaxed and content...
Until she's sixteen and driving it, anyway.
To the issue of synthetic oil in an old engine: I have been using synthetic in a 70+ years old Ford engine. I have never had an issue.
An easy way to install the distributor is to simply bump over the engine once you've got the rotor aligned where you want it. The distributor will just drop down into position once the tab on the distributor gear aligns with the slot on the oil pump shaft.
I had an 87 formula with a 5 speed manual and was still carbureted. Loved that car. Miss the puff of smoke at start up.
If you take off the wheel and the splash guard you can go through the wheel well with ease my friend.
If you're in AZ ever again... I have a 4th Generation 1999 Trans Am. It's had a lot of tasteful work done. It's fast, cool, fun. I think you'd love it. I bought it for 9 grand and made it awesome. You can do a video on it.
Soon as I saw your title, I knew you were talking about the spark plugs.
Remove the tire and go through the fender well.
.... Also, paint (flat black) the pinch welds at the bottom of the car. They are always paired the color of the car. Really cleans up the bottom line of the car..... works on all cars with visible pinch welds.
Something a lot of us older mechanics learned years ago is that a lot of the older cars were actually easier to change some of the spark plugs by jacking the car up, take the wheels off, and getting to the plugs through the wheel well. There are some that are even easier to change from underneath.
If you think this is bad, wait until you deal with a lot of transverse FWD V6s. A lot need the entire intake manifold taken off to get to the back bank. Also, you definitely need a few swivel ratcheting wrenches, they changed my life.
I had bought a few worthless whips over the years and ended up having to rebuild the motors. I am not a mechanic but surely became pretty good at mechanics via trial and error. I feel your pain LOL ;)
The satisfaction of knowing your vehicle intimately is experienced through your victories...oh so sweet. Prosperity is a good teacher but poverty is a better one.
Working on my brother's Firebird (1968) and and my own Chrysler New Yorker (1966) made me very cognizant of repairing machines when I designed aircraft at Boeing.
There's a special wrench made for that distributor bolt, but a crow foot or a flex head ratchet wrench works just fine, too.
That engine is simple, easy to diagnose/ repair and capable of darn near half a million miles. You can buy a cable on eBay to use with your smart device as a scan tool.
Yes, the horsepower leaves one rather underwhelmed but with a good exhaust system there's lots of low end grunt to be had. The
87-95 GM v8 TBI is probably the best engine ever for someone to learn on. Cheap parts, lots and lots of them in salvage yards, decent power and economy for what it is. Usually the body or frame rusts away long before the engine is worn out.
They make a special distributor wrench that is several feet long with bends in just the right places, to easily loosen the distributor bolt. It is not expensive. And here's a tip: when you tighten the bolt up afterwards, do not tighten it too much....you want to be able to just move your distributor in either direction after the bolt is tightened. It will not move on it's own at this level of tightness, but only with a strong effort of both hands. This means you'll not need to mess with the bolt in the future!
Hey Winston. There's actually a Snap On and possibly Craftsman specialist tool designed for Chevy type distributor bolts. Makes life SO much easier
Motor flush is mainly kerosene. What some mechanics do is drain the oil, fill the crankcase with kerosene, run the engine for a few minutes, then drain the kerosene. I've heard of cases where the crankcase passages were really clogged up (you could see the oil pooling up under the head covers - bad because that means the oil isn't down in the sump) and it took two or three cycles of kerosene to clean it out. I remember changing spark plugs on a friend's 1974 Chevy Impala (400 V8) - it had a huge dent in the back, he bought it for $250 - it was just as bad as these, by 1974 they'd put all sorts of emission controls on the engine. I think I gave up on the last two.
Take it from an old timer.. On the Olds V8 engines we had the same problem getting to the plugs on the right side.. Best thing to do is take the right front tire off and go through the wheel well to get to the plugs.. For the distributor you need a Distributor Wrench.. Makes the job a lot easier..
LOL This video caught my eye literally by the title. My dad use to tell me that my Firebird was the Devil's Car! It took me 2 days and a lot of patience to change my spark plugs the first time. I didn't have a jack, so I had to drive two wheels onto a curb to get underneath. Trust me, I feel your pain! :)
We did many pickup coils and modules on tons of pre coil on pack chevies. No need to replace the whole distributor. Knock the roll pin out to get the shaft out and the pickup coil can be removed.This design has been around for years. Once you have the right tools the distributor is easily serviced.
1:58 If this is the 305 cid engine,I used to use a bigger AC Delco oil filter meant for the 350 cid engines in my 1992 Camaro RS.
Changed the oil every 3000 miles religiously and used B&M Trick Shift drag racing ATF instead of regular ATF. I finally got rid of it at 300,000 miles and it just started to drip oil from the rear seals.
13:41 The dash @ night reminds me of my Camaro. Good times!
The Formula Firebird is my dream car. Nice work my friend.