Nomad74

I found a killer deal on a C4 I could not pass up. The car had been sitting in a field and was very neglected by the owner. It had been sitting out there without the targa top on it! The poor car was covered in dirt and mud. All sorts of fun stuff was in the interior. The guy had got it for $500 from his buddy that owned a tow yard. So the guy picked it up, and put it in the field where it continued its life of neglect (with the top off!)

Anyway, after going around with the guy for a couple of weeks, He finally became desperate enough to sell me the Vette for what he paid for it. I was a happy guy.

I got it started and nursed it home. It was running surprisingly well and the dirt clods were flying off. Over the next couple of days I started cleaning it up, pulling out empty cans and pine needles. I figured some Seafoam in the gas tank would be good measure so off to the auto parts store I went in the Vette. Poured in the Seafoam and within 7 miles the car started to back fire and lose power. As I drove, it got progressively worse. Now the LT1 will barely Idle.

Currently I'm replacing the plugs. So far I've replaced the 4 plugs on the passenger side, and tomorrow i'll knock out the drivers side. I tried to test it after doing only 4 plugs but its still running horrible. Hopefully after I replace the other 4 it will be better, but I'm thinking my next step will be a new fuel filter. Oh, all the plugs I pulled were gummed up and black.

Does seafoam in the fuel tank work that fast? Did it work through my system and cause the deposits to come loose? Seems rather fast.

Anyway, here is a little youtube video of my project. Any advice would be appreciated!


Thanks

Klondike

If you poured Sea Foam in on top of nasty old gas, there is no telling what got washed down stream into the filter and possibly your injectors. Cars that have been left to sit out have a wild number of things that could be contaminating their liquids. You should drain the tank and change the fuel filter. Check the oil for water if you haven't already changed it. Might be able to take the injectors out and clean them with carb/injector cleaner if it still won't run after a plug/filter change and fuel line washout. You don't have a lot of money tied up yet so don't make things worse by trying to rush it. Check the water pump bottom side for a leak or drops of antifreeze while it's cold and you can put your hand under there. You don't want a leak to pee into your Opti Spark. That would be a tough initiation into the LT1 club! Good luck with it!

Joe C

if that's the original color, it looks to be a copper metallic - one of the few "rare" colors in the C4 corvette world (one of 116).

no telling what the seafoam kicked up, but start with a complete fuel system cleaning and service, and service all fluids - baby steps....

if you don't have a FSM, get one.

if you need injector cleaning and service, call Jon at FIC for a set of boschIII rebuilds.

$500 -

tlong

That had to throw some codes. A fuel pressure gauge would tell you in 1 minute what's happening. Drain the gas, change the filter. It can be changed from the bottom in 10 minutes.. Leave it alone up top. For the money you are golden, however formulate a better plan for resurection. A new opti and injectors are not that awful considering how much impact they make on driveability.

Seafoam is not that agressive, but could have dislodged some crap. The '94 opti is vented so check that. After seeing the fan switch God knows what you are up against. Have fun! It's a cool rare color.

BOOT77

I'm sure it was well abused before it sat in that field or you put seafoam in it. I put the stuff in my car all the time for storage, same thing as fuel Sta-bil according to the msds.

WW7

Seafoam didn't kill the car, you did, by not draining and cleaning the tank before ever starting the engine...You probably have a tank full of water since C4s are notorious for having the drain in the filler boot clog up , and then allowing water to enter the tank..The car should have never been started until the oil and gas were drained and replaced..Big mistake......:...WW

bjankuski

Just check the basics, the sea foam did not cause a problem. Look for spark and fuel. To me it sounds like a spark issue but could be fuel so trouble shoot the basics and move on.

Note: I just watched part of the video and it appears to be a fuel issue to me, check the fuel pressure, and check to make sure you do not have water in the fuel. It has been suggested that you should drain the fuel tank and I agree with that idea.

cv67

Nomad74

Ok, Thanks guys. Sounds like i'll be draining the fuel tank. What is the best way to go about this? Remove the fuel filter and let it drain into a bucket?

The guy told me the car had been driven, but I should have know better after seeing it. I feel dumb now, but I guess my optimism got the best of me.

Good to know about the color. I'll have to find the color code and make sure. I just assumed it was Dark Red.

s carter

The Best and sure way of knowing that Fuel System is clean is to remove the sending unit and Syphon out the tank and wipe the inside of tank out. That way you can see First hand what is in there and Guarantee that Old Farmer Joe didn't pour gas from that old Nasty can from the Barn. Not to Mention he Didn't Exactly get it from a Genius either.

vader86

I believe you have clogged up your injectors with whatever junk the seafoam dislodged. You should not have started it.

If its been sitting a long time, i'd disconnect the fuel lines, drain them, change the fuel filter which is certainly clogged, and I'd get into the fuel tank and make sure its alright.

If you have pressure at the rail (valve is pass. side, rear, near the distributor), its probably the injectors that will have to come out and be cleaned as well. If you don't have pressure the fuel filter likely caught most of it, but you will want to get the injectors out and cleaned anyway.

Then I'd drain the oil out before starting, check for coolant leaks with the old stuff, then drain every drop of it out too.

Your brake fluid needs to come out as well if its been sitting, but that is for later.

Red Dwarf

Very good video.

Nomad74

I'll see if I can borrow a fuel pressure gauge from my mechanic. I just got done with the remaining four plugs. What a fun time that was!

Once again guys, Yes, I admit, it was a dummy move to drive it home. At the time there were 4 other guys bugging him about the car, so i wanted to get it out of there ASAP. I admit, I screwed up. But i'm willing to pay for my mistake and fix it. Thanks for the help!

cv67

before you get in too deep its easy to get ooh ahh over seeing a vette laying in a field for 500

But if its been there for any length of time, esp with the op off and left for dead me thinks youll be chasing problems and expensive ones for LONG time.

If youre in love with it and just like to mess with cars, one thing
Otherwise get it running enough to say "it runs/drives" clean it up a little and dump it. These are just too expensive to bring back from that condition. Not trying to burst your bubble just throwing it out there.

Some cars can be brough back for some elbow grease and reasonable money these, different ballgame. Many parts are Vette specific and expensive.

JrRifleCoach

You need to drain and clean the tank.
Flush all the fuel lines (pressure and return) and the fuel rail.
Replace the fuel filter.
Find a reconditioned set of 22lb (stock) injectors.

Simply changing the plugs is not the direction you need to be heading at this point.

Good Luck

FASTAZU

Well looks like you got a great find. You can find out what options it came with by looking up the codes on the Service Parts ID tag that is in the rear under the passenger side compartment door. should look like this.

Nomad74

No, it was running bad before the plug change. My hope was they were just fouled out. I'm now doing a fuel pressure test. I'll post my results. You have a good point about the wires. I tried to be careful, but who knows!

Nomad74

Dang! My sticker is missing!

JrRifleCoach

^^ ^^

aklim

Plug wires aren't that bad that they have to be changed every year or other year. I would check them with a fine water mist at night but not just change to change