Thread: back with my GTP

Hey guys im back. I saved the money to change some of the things you guys guided me to. I couldnt find a MAF sensorat the local pullapart so i decided to start with the cheapest option that needed to be changed even if it wasnt the problem, which was the spark plugs. Ive never done any real work on cars so i watched a video on it and did pretty well. I did 1 spark plugat a time to insure i didnt get any wires mixed up. In between each change is started the car to see if it made a difference and all stayed the same as before. I got to my 4th plug, cylinder 2, on the back leftand it was hard but i got it changed and started my car and it was all fine. Then came cylinder 4. I could not for the life of me get the heat shield and wire out of it and ended up accidentally brealing the wire. So i left and went to get new wires and let a friend of mine change out the last two spark plugsbecause hes more familliar with cars and i was running out of time. I got back and he said he changed them but one of the old plugs broke coming out but he still managed to get it out and put the new one in. I reconnected the last two wires and changed only the one i broke. I started the car and it started clunking and sputtering and idling rough as hell. It slightly resembled how the idle was before but it was much louder and shook the car a whole lot. I checked all the wires and all was good. I changed out the wires for all 3 of the back plugs and it didnt help. My friend said the timing is probably off but i have no idea if it is or how to fix that. At this point im simply trying to get it to return to its previous less messed up state. Should i change the coil packs? Or change the remaining wires? Or redo the last 2 plugs myself? Im only 17 and dont make a whole lot of money so spending $200 only to make my car worse is kinda pissing me off. Let me know if you can help.

**********previous forum: http://www.grandprixforums.net/threads/99776-Struggling-with-my-GTP ************

i got new plugs when i accidentally broke one and changed them out and its still the same. and ive checked the order many times and its good. i did something stupid and swapped the 4 and 6th cylinder wires and made them run to the wrong coil packs just to see what itd do and it sounded the EXACT same as when they were in the right spot. which leaves me to believe the 2 spark plugs my friend did are the ones causing issues? (plugs 4 and 6)

look at my previous forum up top and see the many codes that i posted if youd like but i previously had ' multiple cylinder misfires' before i did this. i havent scanned it since

I changed the coil packs and the rest of the wires and when driving it is much smoother and shifts cleanly most of the time but whenever im at a stop sign or idling it idles rough as hell and threatens to stall.Would that be the maf sensor?

i dont know what the hell is going on. i got it running smooth when i was driving and it was just idling like ****. yesterday it started dying on me and i realized the the very bottom of the maf sensor broke off, but it was just a piece of plastic. i unplugged the MAF and drove it to an auto parts store and bought a new MAF. it ran worse. i took the part back and managed to get my car home and now when i start it with or without the maf it turns off or runs for a second and makes this weird sound like its a fan and it sprays a **** ton of smoke out of the exaust and some comes from below the alternator. i have no idea what to do. please if any of you guys know a way to fix this without blowing money let me know because i am entirely out of options.

On another note, off topic but.....gotta say it.

Its nice seeing a young kid willing to do things like this. Thought the days of texting and consoles took all that a way. Kudos to you young man for trying to figure out how things work.

well i went from building computers to attempting to learn how to work on cars and its not going all so well. i honestly just wanna light this b*tch on fire more than i want to attempt to fix whats wrong. one of the joints underneath the alternator is busted or some **** and its got oil and **** everywhere down there but its never smoked this bad before.

You really should check those spark plugs that your friend changed when you couldn't. Too many times something gets screwed up and they just throw it together and give it back.
Check and see if the o2 sensor in the downpipe got screwed up back there changing plugs.

okay guys, i feel dumb. with my car acting up right before all of this and my fuel gauge being broken i was unaware that i ran it out of gas. which means i was pushing it full throttle while parked with no gas in it. probably pretty bad for my car but idk. i put some gas in it and now it will idle. it still idles like **** but it stays running until the rpms start to lower. when this happens it starts to make a whirring sound. and if i push the gas the rpms wont go up right for a second and it makes a louder whirring sound. could i have broken my fuel pump or something? what could cause this? it is still undrivable. i had a guy i met on craigslist look at it and hes a certified gm mechanic. he didnt know what exactly was wrong but he said it was very important for me to replace my MAP sensor because one of the codes i got was for it. would my map sensor cause these kinds of problems?

Have you checked the MAF fuse? Are you sure there is no damage to the o2 sensor wiring in the back? Who gapped the plugs?

i gapped all but the last 2, but my friend said he gapped them. the ING fuse? ive swapped it out and all and nothings changed. i think its okay. i will try to find the o2 sensor and check that out

Originally Posted by Dust

Have you checked the MAF fuse? Are you sure there is no damage to the o2 sensor wiring in the back? Who gapped the plugs?

I'm not sure. It was 2003 when I had my GTP. I was messing with the MAF, and blew a fuse. Didn't know there was one. Felt like the car was on a delay. Hit the gas.........car would accelerate.

Also, did you check your wiring for other things in the area? EGR valve, MAP, vacuum hoses to see if anything was damaged?