My guess is the Seafoam soak will do it for you!! I dont think plugs will cause it either (unless there the wrong heat range) but, a new set of plugs never hurts anything!

Keep us up-to -date on your progress.

BC

 

Hey Bill, I really don't think it's the spark plugs. I changed mine with NGK's and gapped them at .55 and no change at all and they looked like the original spark plugs.

I did put some SeaFoam in the gas tank afterwards and did notice a difference but just haven't got the nerve yet to put it in the intake.

I think your right that once SeaFoam is in there sitting for a while, most if not all our problems will be solved.

I'd be willing to bet people like my self who do a lot of normal freeway driving with a 2.73 in the rear have this problem the worst. The upside to this is that I get great gas mileage

 

I checked the fuel pressure and it is holding right at 58. Slow run up to 3000 and it holds fine. Reving up to 3000+ in short bursts and it still holds. I don't have a way to take it out on the road and check it while putting it thru the paces (hose is not long enough to place guage outside hood).

I about soaked the engine around the intake (even the back) w/ carb cleaner while holding the throttle at 2000 rpms and at idle. No changes so I don't think it is an air leak.

I went ahead and changed the air temp sensor since it was cheap. I had to replace the A/C exterior temp sensor when I got it as it was reading low (40 to 60 degrees) most all the time; so thought maybe it was not reading correctly.

I poured another can of seafoam into the intake thru the pcv valve port and killed the engine and continued to pour. Will let it soak overnight.

Will let you know how it does going to work in the morning.

Hope it was either the temp sensor or carbon.
If not, it will have to go to the shop for checkout.

 

Driving to work this morning it was definetly better. I got it into a lug situation several times and heard it ping once (I think). Of course outside temp was 50 degrees.

Will see what it does at 70 degrees this afternoon.

Maybe either the seafoam overnight soak or the air temp sensor solved it.

By the way - not a lot of smoke this morning when I cranked it up. Fair amount right at first but it cleared up by the time I got out of the driveway.

 

Wow! I thought for sure you would of had a disco room full of smoke on the dance floor That air temp sensor is starting to sound like the culprit. I'll be very interested in your afternoon drive home.

 

 

I think it is fixed. No pinging today on the way home that I could hear. Will pull the plugs this weekend and see if they have browned up any from the white they were the other day.

I am beginning to think it was the temp sensor in the air intake bridge.

 

Glad to hear good news that it worked out. Thanks for all the updates I'm going to SeaFoam this weekend and change the temp sensor if that doesn't fix the problem

 

One way to figure out what it really was! Just put that old temp sensor back in and see if the symptoms come back. Unless you do,,you will always wonder which one it was

BC

 

I know - I might try that this weekend just to see what happens w/ the old temp (I saved it).
No more pinging that I can tell.
Will still pull the same two plugs and see what they look like.

 

Any reason(s) to use SeaFoam rather than using GM Top End Cleaner? Pros and Cons?

 

You can use either one to get the same results. I believe Deep Creep is also similiar but comes is a pressurized can. There's been a couple of discussions on these products if you do a search

 

If you don't have a scanner it would be wise to get one--I bought mine at kragens--the best one they had was about $450--but you can get others of the same brand that just report a few less things for around $250(Auto X-Ray)
A plug can cause pinging if it has hot spots on it--(old carbon or a nick on the strap--or near the threads on the end---
The 02's will richen up a lean fuel condition in closed loop up to plus or minus 25% before throwing a code--so lots of lee-way there
A sanner will read fuel pressure-closed loop LTFT's or called fuel trim sometimes--a positive number means a lean condition and a negative number means a rich condition---IAT temp---ECM coolant temp --actual timing---actual KR--Commanded AFR--so many useful tuning aids, short of having a data logger from a tuner like EFILIVE or HPTuners
I had some light pinging at part throttle too--couldn't find anything tht seemed out of whack--other than old plat. plugs with 60K on them--So I swicthed them to TR55's and gapped them at 40 --and the pinging disappeared. I do have a heads/cam combination and the .040 gap was reccomended to me by Thunder Racing .Also here in calif we have SH--t gas only 91 octane---My old plats. were clean but had some spots that looked like they got hot on he strap---I'm glad the IAT sensor seemed to have worked for you !!!!! On my combination I "0" out the entire IAT table as i found it to report erroneous temps all the time--It was always around 140*--cooled down a bit after running about 60 MPH for awhile--I think it reads the under-hood temp and bridge temp rather than the incoming air temp.

 

I noticed you have HDS/CAM/FAST/LT'S/MSD/ listed in your profile. Assuming you had an all stock engine, what would you have set your plug gaps to?

 

Sorry for the late reply. I have been out of town.
I did pull the same 2 plugs and they are browner now. No more pinging on 93 octane. I tried a little 87 and it started pinging (was low and only put 5 gallons in as a test). Immediately filled up w/ 93 and no issues.

I will probably pull and change the plugs at 50k miles. Only 39k now on them.

 

so you think it was the temperature sensor? did you put the old one back in? to see if pings came back?

 

Hey Bill, I will say thanks for him and also for giving me some advice about the seafoam.

 

I did not have an opertunity to install the old one and go for a test drive. Will do that this weekend and let you know. I am convinced that was it - but not sure until I try it.

 

Have you had a chance to replace the temperature sensor to see if that was the problem with you engine ping? I'm having a engine ping at present and my car is at the tunner...trying to figure what is causing it.
He is going to change out the Iridium sprak plugs and replace then with NKG plugs to see if that will help. I told him it may be "the temperature sensor".
So if you say you tried the switch and the ping came back..then I would think I have the same problem..
BTW new heads are installed and the tops of the pictons were cleaned off while the heads were removed...so I don't believe that Sea Foam is needed at thie point.
Thx..

 

I did swap the temp sensor back and the pinging came back. I would definetly try it before doing the plug swap.

I have no pinging anymore w/ 91 octane fuel or better.
I have a very slight pinging still at just the right amount of throttle (about 1/4) and the right amount of load (slight hill climb) w/ 87 octane fuel.

The temp sensor is cheap and well worth the try.