why does my car keep dying???

[blackfire93]

I have a 1993 formula with 88k miles on it and lately i have been having problems with it. Every once in when i step on the gas the rpms will drop drastically (feels like it's flooded when it happens) and sometimes when i go to peel out from a stop and let off right away it will die. this has happened when i just let off the gas really fast and when i let off the gas and step on the break. if anybody has had familiar experiences with there car or know what's wrong with my car please help me out.

[bigdaddyvu]

check this

does it over heat? does black smoke come out from the tail pipe?
is it hard to start after driving it? I had these problems. and i solved. I notice a big dent on my catalitic converter so i unbolted it and it was plugged so i hollowed it out and ran just fine.

[blackfire93]

thanks for the suggestion but i don't think that is what's wrong, unless it's from some back pressure at the exhaust tip but i don't think that there is enough to make it die on me. i still need some more suggestions.

[bigdaddyvu]

vaccum

check for vacuum leaks or vacuun lines if they fell off, timing, check the air mass flow sensor sometimes they burn out when water gets into the heated grid. does a check light comes on. and remember to change the o2 sensor when you change spark plugs they get dirty too and give the puter incorrect signals.

[KnightFire]

I would also check the voltage on your TPS.


KnightFire

[blackfire93]

plugs

i pulled one of my plugs to look at it and they really needed to be changed. i changed them and have been driving it for quite a while and it hasn't happened again so that must have been the problem.

[blackfire93]

The gap

hello again. i know that your suppose to gap the plugs at .050 for my car, but when i was down at napa i asked the guy if that was correct for the type of plugs i was buying (AC Delco double platinum spitfires) and the computer told him that i should gap them at .060. My question is that if the computer was wrong do you think .010 will make much of a difference?

[Joe 1320]

He was wrong. DOH! your plugs won't last as long before they start to missfire...... once the gap approaches .070, the ignition won't be able to consistantly fire across the gap. It will work short term.

[blackfire93]

Originally posted by Joe 1320
He was wrong. DOH! your plugs won't last as long before they start to missfire...... once the gap approaches .070, the ignition won't be able to consistantly fire across the gap. It will work short term.

how long do you think i can go before i have to regap them? because i'm sure you already know it's not the easiest plug set-up to get to.

[Joe 1320]

Never having run those exact plugs, I can't really tell. I can say if they are of the design that have little "pucks" on the side electrode, those are prone to disappearing off the plug. When that happens, your gaps increases substantially. I really think you are at the point of "run them until the misfire returns" because a few of the plugs are a bear to change.