OH NO... Got my oil change.......SOLVED

No problem went down the street, got the filter and came back to let them install. Had them vaccuum out the air box while they had it open.
When I left w/new filter installed.... Engine running fine till you put the throttle down hard, then it shakes pretty bad and doesn't have the pep it did b-4....


quote="ibmoses"]Just guessing but I would say the MAF sensor has taken a crap. No idea why it happens or how but I have had the same thing happen twice(2000 Regal LS and 95PA)...
But when it happened to me it was a few days after the work (changing air filter)was done when the trouble started.
Bert [/quote]

Cool, I will pull it and clean it first, but I am gonna look for one in the morning.

you might have a bunch of gunk on the end of the#2 plug.....pull it clean it...

My comments are bold in the copy of your post, below.


OK here's the chronology starting a week ago....:
Friday, filled up w/premium, drove home 30 miles. all good
Saturday, Got oil changed, drove 2 mi, got airfilter, went back all good.
Got airfilter installed, pulled out.. ran like $hit.
[who installed the airfilter?]
Went home, looked for anything obvious.. (nada)
Did you look for the airbox not closed properly?
Went to Autozone had them hook up reader #4 cly. misfire.
Consider getting a reader you can connect to your laptop, like Alex Peper's Car-Code. It will tell you more than AutoZone becasue it reads GM's esoteric codes for the L67 engine. It is not that expensive (software is free, you can make your own cable of buy his - I would buy his) although a little difficult to use at first. It has a memory function so you can hook it up and read all the sensors while you are running - then when you get back to the house you can re-run the drive telemetry and check readings off all the %^@#!)& sensors one by one.
Bought a set of PP660's and put them in.
Still running rough.
Monday, Went back to Autozone, had them hook it up...
"Random misfire". Ordered new wires and IAT for airbox.
Random misfire? Larry Carley says: "The cause is typically a vacuum leak in the intake manifold, throttle body or vacuum plumbing, a defective Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR) valve that is leaking exhasut into the intake manifold, or even bad gasoline. Less common causes include bad spark plug wires, worn or fouled spark plugs, a weak ignition coil, dirty fuel injectors, low fuel pressure, or weak valve springs. If a misfire is occuring in only one or two cylinders, you will usually find a misfire code for that specific cylinder rather than a random misfire code." So I am thinking that in the air cleaner install a vac hose got pulled off or disturbed or moved. You have to wrestle with the air horn to get the air cleaner cover off. Depending on how the cleaner cover was removed, this is where your "gremlin" is. I'd start by checking the wires and hoses on and in the vicinity of hte throttle body. Take your time because it will takea while to check them right. A MityVac with gauge would help to find the leakers. If your car has more than 100,000 you might save headache by just replacing the )@#* things - they are not that expensive.
Tuesday, Wednesday... Rained like a beeotch didnt do $hit.
Thursday Installed new wires.. still runs rough.
This is sounding like a vac leak
Today Thinkin maybe bad gas, so bought 2 bottles of HEET
poured in tank, topped off gas to mix it up.
Went to Autozone had them read it out... Cyl 2 misfire.
although you got all that new stuff on there, the ECU is seeing #2 misfire most often. No surprise.
Drove 50mi shut off engine and restarted after 30 & 40mi.
Drove the last 10 back to Autozone shut off hook up again.
Same... Cyl 2 misfire.
What hapens with a random misfire is
swapped the #2 coil pack with the #1 coil pack & reseated
plug wires.... Still reads #2 misfire.
OK it's not the coil pack probably.
Wet home and got abused by wife, says I dont know what
I am doing and to go pay the Buick dealer BIG$$$$.
Tempting just to shut her up!
Now, now. It's not bad advice, but it also does not seem that you're done with self-help yet.
But I am not done yet....... I have my support group !
(you guyz)

I would consider getting a couple new platinum plus plugs, maybe you cracked number 2. And no kidding I would go after the vacuum leak. I had a leak fixed on my riv last week - truth was I suspected I had one and could not find it. I paid the mech (for those of you reading my other posts, yeah it was Doug) an hour's labor to check with a mity-vac and smoke machine to find any/all leaks. He found a bad canister purge vac line.

All the best to you and let us know what happens next.

By th way, vacuum leaks really suck (could not let that one pass)!

Got to run - it's midnight here in Tokyo (traveling this week) and I am bushed.

Albertj

Thanks Albert.
Does anyone know where to find the USB or RS232 wiring diagram and ODB connector to build this cable? I would never spend that kinda cash on a cable, I have built hundreds of cables over the years...

I saw a post for a series 1 cable, looked around on the web but can't seem to find pinouts for a USB direct cable.

You might buy a serial/usb dongle.

there is wiring diagram and parts kits on www.carcode.com. The OBDII dongle for GM cars is an *active* device that has to convert signals traveling on the car's CAN bus. That is, the sensors and computers talk to each other over the bus, and if I remember right the signal is relative not ground biased. So you need to do a little signal processing to get data off the bus.

As for buy vs build - the software is free, the GM dongle $122 and the USB converter $12. I bought the dongle and downloaded the software some years ago. Alex gives customers updates n/c.

Albertj

Broke down and went to the dealer.

The problem was the PP606's. Dealer mechanic says " These cars don't like these plugs" He saw the Cyl2 misfire just like the Autozone handheld... I told him I had swapped out the plug with the #3 plug and swapped coil packs. He went to his tool box found an old Autolite 101, gapped it put it in and the #2 cyl prob disappeared. I had them go ahead and change them all. $232 for computer time including the plugs which were $53 (whata freakin ripoff!) but I was sick of screwin with it and I wanted the old lady off my a$$ so I said doit...

End of story.

We'll I'll be damn.....

whats the difference on a PP606??

I can't even find the PP606 on google....nevermind....AP606.....right?

Upon reflection, I did the exactly right thing changing the plugs, and those plugs were supposed to be an "upgrade" for the car. So I did the right thing and was punished for it. Lesson learned.

I did find a USB dongle on line for $118, will probably buy that later so that I can do my own diags.

thanks for posting about your problem, I learned a lot too.

Albertj

I, too was surprised by the fix - I ran Autolite AP605s for a few years with no problems at all.

I bet it was just a cracked or faulty plug

Mark is probably right. i was helping a friend diagnose a misfire on his regal. he had swapped out to AL104's but it was bucking bad. i pulled the front set of plugs to find one of the ceramic insulators had separated from the core causing all kids of problems. it was a brand new plug too. i dont hear of this often, but that is why i always check my plugs for gap and cracks before i install them.
glad you fixed the problem, but sorry the dealer had to rape you.

Well, I don't feel all that bad about the rape... At least I found that I was doing the right thing to fix the problem from the start. My self confidence has been restored, and the wife has been reassured that I am capable of working on the Riv. That will make my life much easier.....

I think I know how you feel, Bill - I had my rivi tied up for most of a week overhauling the brakes a while back. I think spouse figured I'd lost it when I made a pressure bleeder out of a garden sparyer and some odd fittings from Home Depot. I had almost $1,000 in parts alone on that brake job. I replaced almost everything form the pads in - rotors, wheel and master cylinders, soft lines. Only things I did not replace were vac booster, hard lines, ABS motor.

It's still working well, though -- she's driving it today...

Albertj