Pontiac Grand Am Engine Trouble

rdunluck · August 2008

i have the 2.3 Quad 4 SOHC and its a 92 grand am SE i decreased my engine about 2 months ago and it just started to seem like its losing power and misfiring so i changed the plugs and boots still didn't work so i changed my coil packs and housing and it ran real great for a week and then when i was driving to work it just seemed to be lacking power again and at the light it just died when i stopped and i started it again it ran for a sec and i hit the throttle and it died and started again and it barely made it off the highway and now it takes a good 5 sec for it to start up and is still seems like its misfiring but the plugs look normal and im wondering if it might be my fuel pump, filter , injectors or a short from when i decreased it any suggestions would help thanks

helle252 · August 2008

hi, first thing you need to know about a quad four is they are every technicians worst nightmare lol. I ran across this problem a number of times while i was a dealer tech. it could be a whole number of things. you need to check your fuel pump and filter as you thought but you also need to check the fuel pressure regulator they are known to cause problems and when they go bad they dump fuel into your intake manifold. you said you replaced your coils and housing but did you replace your ignition module? you should definetly check it. if it seems to run worse as it gets warmer you might have a bad module. hope this helps good luck.

91323vic · August 2008

i started a project astina 91 and retro ed the engine from single to dohc transplant most of everything was interchangeable she runs but i cant get full rev thru t p s i ve check off fuel regulating module by hot wiring current wires to bypass which gave me full rev and open the fuel in thru the thottle body im either half a turn out because of model complexity on the dissy shaft the drive nodes are a little different should i change my dissyshaft nodes and will thatfix my lack of acceleration thanks 91323vic

91323vic · August 2008

i started a project astina 91 and retro ed the engine from single to dohc transplant most of everything was interchangeable she runs ( 1 ) but i cant get full rev thru temp pressure switch keeps governing at 4 grand rev i ve check off fuel regulating module by hot wiring current wires to bypass it which gave me full rev and i open the air in thru the throttle body (2) im either half a turn out on dissy because of model complexity on the dissy shaft the drive nodes are a little different should i change my dissy shaft nodes and will that fix my lack of acceleration thanks 91323vic

topcop2 · August 2008

I HAVE A 2001 PONTIAC GRAND AM THAT RAN HOT BECAUSE IT GOT LOW ON COOLANT.LET ENGINE COOL AND REFILLED WITH WATER.ENGINE WANT START.IS IT POSSIBLE I BLEW A HEADGASKET?HOW CAN I TELL IF SO.HOW CAN I TELL IF THE ENGINE IS RUINED?PLS GIVE ME SOME IDEAS>THKS.

mtm0284 · August 2008

1996 quad 4 auto trans
No warning until one day on start up - excessive rev then it will settle down until shift into gear then excessive rev and instant load until it stalls under brake/load. Car will drive but stays in gear even under braking/stopping.
Does anyone have any ideas where to start looking.
I changed the Trans filter/oil because I knew that had not been done. No luck
Acts like the Tourque Converter is stuck. Is that possible?
Help please my daughter needs her car so she will leave mine alone

Thanks

mtm0284 · August 2008

One way to know is if you have water in your oil (check the oil dip stick) or oil in the water ( drain coolent).
More info is needed such as does it crank? Does it smell? What does it sound like when cranking? ( metal in metal or rattle)

rdunluck · August 2008

hey i had that same prob for a while if you can get ahold of a pressure gauge that can go up to 220 do a compression test and that should tell you if you blew a head gasket or valves im taking my engine apart and replacing mine it blew between cyl 1 and 2 and when you pull your head or heads if you have the v6 and put a strait edge on it to make sure you didnt warp or damage it and check the block to and you should try to get a repair book like Hanes or Chiltons if you have some spare money they're pretty helpful

rdunluck · August 2008

i did a compression test and cyl 1 and 2 was 60, 3 and 4 were 190 so im changing my headgasket cause thats what i gathered from my compression test did, and do you know how to test the ignition module cause there pretty expensive and i plan on changing my fuel pump and screen in a while i have some pictures i took cause im taking everything apart the inside of my intake is just black and my valves are pretty black to but thanks for your imput maybe if my check is good enough ill look at a new fuel pressure regulator

tosmond · September 2008

1999 grand am se when i try to start it, it spudders and cuts out. The pump works plups are new. What maybe the problem?
Thanks

tonlove1121 · November 2008

is there a way to test ignition control module on 2001 pon gran am 2.4

tonlove1121 · November 2008

for some reason my pipe behind my cat turns glowing hot the cat has been rodded to check if it was clogged but now i don,t think it was but the pipe still glow red if i run engine to long ,anyone has input about that.i have2001 pon gran am se /2.4 new plugs, coil packs,plug boots and housing still glowing and running rough. i,m thinking high amount of gas in exhaust.???????? putt putting in muffler.

57TanShoe · November 2008

Hi all. Got an engine noise that I'm trying to figure out and would appreciate any knowledgeable posts to offer ideas. Bought a real nice '99 F-150 a while back, it has the 4.2 V6 with 183K miles. Truck looks better than most with way less miles, so I feel sure it was well maintained. I bought it from a guy that lived a couple hours drive away from me, and so met him at a store on a major road that would be easy for me to find. The engine was warm and the truck drove out great. Next day, and every cold start since, the engine makes a bad bearing type noise on start up and the noise lessens after about a minute and is gone in about two minutes. I removed the accessory drive belt, still makes the same noise. Something internal for sure. I've used a stethoscope and can't really pinpoint any exact location, other than it sounds like it's in the front half of the engine. A mechanic buddy of mine said he would guess that it has some oiling problems with the camshaft bearings and one of them is making the noise until it gets enough oil to it. Sounds logical but I'd like to hear more thoughts on it. I have a half dozen vehicles and only use this for occassional hauling of bigger loads than my little Sonoma can handle, or if I need the 4WD. It's been driven only a couple thousand miles in the last year that I've owned it, but I am leary of taking off on a several hundred mile trip to haul a car or something. Don't mind if it dies close to home, but don't want to get stuck very far away. Any ideas on the possible cause would be greatly appreciated.

burdawg · November 2008

Sounds like excessive clearance on a rod bearing to me. It will be noticeable on cold start and then go away as the bearing warms up and expands a little. I had a Suburban that did it for years, and the person I sold it to still drives it.
It may not be any problem for a long time, but it's an indication that the engine is worn, and at 183K miles I'm not surprised.
If you rev it in neutral then let off on it quick, do you get the noise when the engine is warmed up? You may have to punch it kind of hard, like to 3500+ rpms.
I has this occur on my MGB also, and found that one of the rod bearing shells was broken in half and worn bad.

smc0407 · February 2009

i bought a 2001 pontiac grand am SE a couple months ago. When i bought it, it had a good amount of miles on it. But i needed a car and it was cheap. When i got it, i knew it had a coolant leak but that hasn't caused me any problems..other than having to constantly put coolant in it. When i drove the car home..it had been sitting for a while previous to that and wasn't drove much at all. It had some oil in it but it was old and nasty. I took it to have an oil change & have all the fluid changed. when i reached my 3,000 miles and was due for another oil change..my change oil light came on. I knew i needed to get an oil change very soon. well, the night before, i was going to take the car to get one..i was sitting at a store..had my car running..it hadn't been running for long..and all of a sudden it just shut off. so i turned the key off and just sat there for a few minutes and then cranked it back up. when i did, i could tell that it wasn't running right. it was like a spudder. so i imediately turned it back off..and so i checked my oil..and there was no oil. even though i do not have an oil leak..there was no oil... so i bought a quart of oil..put it in there..hoping that i hadn't completely ruined it. and then i cranked the car back up...it continued to run weird...i pushed the gas a little trying to get the oil to circulate through the engine..and it just ran horrible...so i was going to pull my car to the side of the building so it wouldnt be in the way..and when i went to reverse it back fired..so i put it back in park and turned it off. I dont think the engine is blown..but then again i do not know. It still will crank up..but it doesn't run good. it's not driveable. Someone said it could be the timing. that it could be off. I also have the problem that i've read a lot of other people have..with the security light comming on & it not wanting to crank for atleast 10 - 20 minutes. . Also my trac light stays on. my service engine soon & service vehicle soon lights stay on. but i've had the engine checked out previous to what has just happened & everyone has told me that my engine was in good. If anyone could PLEASE help me..i would greatly appreciate it...this is my only transportation and need it fixed as soon as possible. Thanks

burdawg · February 2009

You didn't say where the coolant was leaking. Was it leaking out on the ground or was it just disappearing and you were replacing it?

kylehunter44 · April 2009

your coil housing has a short in it. replace it and your car should run fine. the car has a multi misfire cylinders code if you scan it.

justin26 · April 2009

i have a friend who bought a wrecked car and had it fixed. it was a front end crash. after it was fixed there is a constant grinding noise it sounds like and exhaust noise but its too constant to be that. i have another friend with the same model and circumstance AND the sme noise. its not a wheel bearing noise because they were replaced with new spindles. it is a constant noise when ever the car is over 10 mph. any help would be awesome thanks.

crimsonglory · May 2009

Did you ever find out what caused this in your car?
I have an 03 GA 3.4l V6 - new plugs & wires, coil packs, new fuel pump, swapped MAF sensor & fuel pressure regulator (no change) car runs rough acts like too much fuel, cat turning red, putt putt sound...SES light on and was coding P0300 random multiple misfires. Not losing oil, not losing coolant, no overheating. It is going to the mechanic's but it would be nice to have more of an idea of what it could be!
CrimsonGlory

Pontiac Grand Am Engine Trouble

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