scratching my head ,just can't figure it out! help please

i am the proud owner of a 1997 buick riviera none supercharged from a stop when accelerating car makes a growling sound and vibrates a bit till car is in motion then it goes away it also has a power steering leak from under the car any help would be appreciated thankz.

Have you ever changed the spark plug ignition wires? How many miles are on the car?

i just changed the plugs and wires yesterday and now the service engine soon light is on going to get a code read today car has 145,000 on it

Did you have the vibration problem before you replaced the plugs & wires?

yes it was like that when i bought it its much more of a growling sound than anything

I don't have experience with a Riv doing this but I would check your driveshaft/CV joints - see if the boots are cracked, that's usually a good indication you are going to have worn CV's - if they are sort of half dead they might cause some sound and vibration at lower speeds.

I'm not a mechanic, but my guess is that if it goes away at higher speeds, it may be a tranny or more specifically, torque converter issue.

rocafella1 wrote:

i just changed the plugs and wires yesterday and now the service engine soon light is on going to get a code read today car has 145,000 on it

First - check your work for simple errors - a loose plug wire for instance. A loose plug in the ICM (the flat thing the coils are screwed to) or the wiring harness at the firewall (sometimes they get broken in the harness from mishandling). And also, some spark plug wires are "bad new" - the Riv has a very high energy ignition system *stock* and there is more than a little possibility that if you were not using very high quality wires such as Delco or Magnecor or Taylor you may have installed a problem. I mean, there are a number of high-quality ignition wire sets available. More than one person has installed a Bosch or Autolite or Valucraft set on the Riv and been disappointed. (I used Autolites on my Chryslers, when I had them, no problems whatsoever. But they had a lower energy system, too. ) So look inside the connectors and see if any of the conductors are broken. And if the connectors fit loose on the plugs or on the coils that's a problem and you need to get a replacement set of wires under warrant ("the connectors are loose") or buy a better set (don't know anyone who's had problems with the high quality wires).

Second - get your own code scanner. Consider Car-Code (http://www.obd-2.com) it's a low-cost approach. Search this site, there are even some that give you bi-directionals.

Third - when you can tell us what that code you got is, please post it. So we are not guessing and sending you chasing around wasting time on this and that.

thanks for the response when i first bought the vehicle i noticed it had a lost of horse power but figured it might just needed a tune up which it did, it never gave me a check engine light and always had the grumble noise coming from front driver side it sounds like to me.the car has been parked all winter because i drive my 4x4 for the harsh Minnesota winters so the other day i decided to do plugs and wires i did the first 3 on the front of the engine then i started on the back 3 when i got to the the back 3 i noticed 1 of the wires was completely riped from the boot after i changed them the car now runs much stronger but now the check engine light is on which i have no problem with because i can just get a code read and deal with that problem....but the problem thats got me going crazy is the noise on takeoffs the car shifts through all gears just fine its just when i accelerate from a stop it makes a rumble sound and the slight vibration but after the car is in motion it goes away it kind of sounds like a bad wheel bearing but from my experience a wheel bearing noise doesn't stop my first guess would be a cv joint

bump

rocafella1 wrote:

bump

You are welcome... but the note you posted does not really answer the questions you were asked.

So - if you think it's a CV joint, by all means don't let me stop you from putting the car on jackstands and servicing the CV.

. ..and while you are at it have a look at the chassis subframe bushings, the inner fenders, and the transmission mounts.

this guy sounds like he has the same problem as me

https://rivperformance.editboard.com/t8302-scratching-my-head-just-can-t-figure-it-out-help-please#129699

Yeah except I don't hear any noise. I can feel the vibration, really only through the gas pedal. Since I've been obsessing about it, I think I can feel a slight "bump" at the end of the vibration. I can't guess from inside the vehicle where its coming from, and I can't reproduce it under the hood.

My guesses are motor or tranny mount that's worn, CV joint starting to wear, or some weird torque converter/transmission issue that only occurs when first moving.

BMD - what makes you think torque converter?

On a previous car I had, I had a lot of vibration at the bottom end, and it didn't hook up properly, ended up being the TC, but its just a guess. I wouldn't go takin' anything apart unless you get it properly diagnosed.

Well the big ol "Traction off" button could assist me in ruling that one out....

Don't worry, I wont take the tranny apart just to see what I can see

can someone please post pics of the tranny mount and motor mount locations so i can check them

thanks aa your da man!