Check Engine Light Codes

I have a 1995 Riviera Supercharged that is running bad. It's sputtering, kinda feeling like its missing, only when the check engine light is on. The check engine light started coming on about 2 weeks ago, at first it wasn't on all the time but now it pretty much stays on. When the check engine light is off it runs okay. I'm pretty broke right now, I can't really afford to take it into the shop, I did take it in this morning to see what codes it was reading. It came up PO112 (Intake Air Temperature Circuit Low Input) P0321 (Ignition/Distributor Engine Speed Input Circuit Range/Performance) and P1361 (Ignition Control (IC) Circuit Low Voltage). Does anyone have any idea what may be causing this? Or maybe any guess that may lead me in the right direction into figuring it out?

probably the best bet is to clear the codes and check again after the light comes on again. I suspect it's a bad coil and/or wires and/or plugs but I really don't know. ALso - driving with bad plugs and wires will only get worse.

Can you replace the spark plugs and wires yourself? There are instructions on this site for that - you need to be aware that sometimes mechanics will only replace the front 3 because the back 3 are tough to get to but you can do it following the instructions on this site. Please comment.

And finally - if you are going to work on the car yourself, you ought to get the factory service manuals. They are usually pretty cheap on EBay.

Albertj

You could have multiple issues. Sounds to me like you may have a dirty MAF sensor, and you should measure the voltage at your ignition module supply. Also, sounds like you may need plugs and wires.

If you can't afford to take it to the shop, you CANNOT afford to troubleshoot without finding yourself a FSM (Factory Service Manual). The FSM will be able to guide you through all of these trouble codes. They come around on Ebay for around $50-$60 IIRC, and will save you lots of hours in labor fees.

The spark plug wires look pretty new on the car so im assuming those have been recently replaced probably along with the spark plugs. I bought this car a few months ago. I tried just cleaning the MAF sensor and the engine light was off for a little bit until i turned the car off and when i turned it back on the engine light came back on and it started running bad again. Also the Traction Off and Low Coolant lights stay on. IDK if that could be related. I was thinking about pulling the MAF sensor from a junk yard and maybe trying that?

Does the sputtering happen when you are idling and cruising, when you give it gas, or when you really push the gas hard? The traction and low coolant lights are probably unrelated, but should be addressed as well. What is the mileage on the car?

The mileage is 128xxx and the sputtering happens when I hit the gas to accelerate sometimes its not that bad and sometimes it feels and sounds like its running out of gas. It's the worse when I'm taking off from a red light or trying to accelerate on the on ramp to get on the freeway.

Unless you're sure the previous owner replaced the correct ignition wires with the correct ones, I might change them out for a new set of AC Delco for supercharged engines ($36 online). The non-supercharged V6 uses a different set, which is cheaper, and looks the same, but will not work correctly with supercharged engine spark voltages. I had a similar issue with sputtering at 109k miles. Wires were original, and looked totally fine, but they turned out to be the problem. My problem did not throw any engine codes, though.

While you're at it, check the plugs and replace them if they look worn, black, or otherwise used. Good plugs should look like new, except for a mild coating of light grey/white. A new set is cheap insurance for only about $10.

okay ill check them out today

dos it act like this?