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86 trans am will turn over but not fire

i just bought a 86 trans am from someone for 300 bucks.. no rust.. great shape except a few dents.. it just wont start. will turn over fine. what is the first thing you guys would check.. should i take a line off the fuel filter to be sure the pump is pumping? also how would you check injector pulse if you cant get it to start? and how would you check for spark? take the plug out.. keep the wire on it.. ground it and see if it fires? and if all of the above is fine.. should i get a compression tester and check that? is it possible theres a crack in the head or something.. or would it be best to check out all of the above (which is cheap) first then go to the expensive stuff

Reply to
86transam
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Does it have a hot spark or weak? Check timing. If you have good fire spray a shot of either & see if it will hit. If so you will know that you are not getting fuel. Be sure to keep the breather on in case it backfires.

Reply to
Micah

forgot to mention its fuel injected...

Reply to
86transam

forgot to mention its fuel injected...

Reply to
86transam

Can you hear the fuel pump? Most two likely probables for that age T.A. are fuel pump, or ignition module....but anything is possible, as always. GW

Reply to
Geoff Welsh

Port fuel injection or Tuned Port injection?

You need three things for a running engine, air, fuel, and spark. Generally you'll have air so that is probably ok. Fuel, there is a

1/4" flare fitting somewhere on the fuel rail to check the pressure with. A pressure guage is a pretty inexpensive tool to have. Spark, check the condition of the cap and rotor, make sure that there is power to the coil, get an inline spark checker or go old tech and use a screwdriverin the plug boot and make a spark near a grounded part of the engine. Check for stored codes before doing anything else.

...Ron

--

68' Camaro RS 88' Firebird Formula 00' Mustang GT Vert
Reply to
RSCamaro

its TPI and thanks for all of the tips.. ill update on anything i find.. also what should the fuel pressure be?

Reply to
86transam

spec. is 40.5 - 47 psi

GW

Reply to
Geoff Welsh

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