PontiacBonnevilleClub.com

o.k so out the blue today my 88 sse started acting very funny..

i have no power off the line. ( from a stop sign or red light ) i can floor it with the pedal all the way down and the car will not go any faster then 35-40mph..

and when i leave the car in park and rev the engine all i can, it sounds very week and shakes like a s.o.b

but when i gradually step on the gas slowly and give it some power then the car moves and gains speed fine up to what ever i want it to go to.

and also no matter if im going 30 mph or 60 mph and i just floor it then it does the same thing and gets stuck in 40-45mph,

i do however have every gear even reverse working fine when i shift it manually


the only code im getting is code 44.. ( lean exhaust oxygen sensor ) i dont think a bad oxygen sensor can cause the car to run like this can it.. or does it sound like a tranny problem..



also im not sure if im supposed to have a rev limiter on my 88 sse but i can always since i owned the car rev itto any rpm i wanted to with no restriction.. so if there is a rev limiter it dont work...


any help guys... thanks so much,, i need this car to last me untill i can afford another one..thanks

well i have found the issue of the problem..

its actually got me so stumped and suprised as to how such a lil thing can make you think you have serious tranny problems... i was totally amazed on how great and strong the car runs now.. holy cow it runs better then it ever did.. this must have been a growing problem for a while that i let get past me..
people here on the club told me i had a problem that they heard in my videos i post up but i never looked into it good enough untill today.. and wow such an easy fix for $3...












and the fix was this.................... for only $3 a foot at the pontiac dealer..






very suprised i did not get no responses to this thread either..oh well..

glad you found it, but remeber, everyone does not live on the club and you have to be patient with responses, you waited a day

gonzo4191 wrote:glad you found it, but remeber, everyone does not live on the club and you have to be patient with responses, you waited a day

i know.. im just use to getting alot of reply's within hours of posting like the old days.. im not sure what happened to the club since we changed sites...oh well.. like you said atleast i got it fixed....

For reference, where were those cracked vac lines?

i will go take a pic and show you where exactly.. give me like 5 minutes..

and also i just dropped my wife off at work and the car drives alot better but it still has the heavey hesitation sometimes only now when i floor it.. it gets stuck at about 35-45mph.. i cant be sure if the speed exactly as my speedo dont work..
and also i noticed the lil oil light under my speedo is starting to come on bu twhen i checked the oil level it was fine..

pics in a few minutes..

here are the pics.. and i also noticed when i checked the oil level which was fine that the oil was black and smelt burnt.. then i checked my lil oil change reminder and im about 2500 miles past due of an oil change.. would that make the car run and have the symptoms im having.,?

o.k in this first pic the long black bent peice of hose is where the broken elbow was...





and in this pic the new black straight peice of rubber hose is where the rotted one was i replaced.. it connects to something attached to the firewall on the driverside..

That goes to the vacuum for the cruise control and climate control.

That's the line to the vacuum reservoir for the HVAC. Do your vents work better now?

Have you tested the fuel pressure lately? This doesn't sound like a tranny problem to me.

J Wikoff wrote:That's the line to the vacuum reservoir for the HVAC. Do your vents work better now?

Have you tested the fuel pressure lately? This doesn't sound like a tranny problem to me.

well i just tested my heat and defroster and they are stronger then ever..


no i have not checked fuel pressure.. but i am getting pretty poor millage within the last 2 months out of no where,,

how do i check the fuel pressure,,?


and also rember im getting code 44 and 34.. i replaced the maf with one that allows the car to stay running unlike the last one. and for code 44 i replaced my o2 sensor last summer.. not even a year yet...

Get/borrow a fuel pressure test gauge and screw it onto the test port of the fuel rail. Then start the car. Check the pressure at idle, then pull the vacuum line off the fuel pressure regulator and read the guage again. The numbers should be in the 40-50 psi range with the line pulled off. I don't remember what idle pressure should be.

31-42 psi at idle
40-47 psi after key on and pump runs and key turned back off

myfirstbonnie wrote:31-42 psi at idle
40-47 psi after key on and pump runs and key turned back off

sorry i have not had time to get my hands on a fuel pressure gauge.. i am having personal problems right now.. will post back to this problem when all is good.. thanks for you r help peoples...

o.k now i would like to get back to the cars issue..

i have not got the money to buy a fuel pressure tester and i dont know anybody to lend me one so i have to hold off on this till i get paid friday...


does anybody have any ideas on what else could be causing this hesitation problem...?

i want to sell the car but i wont get much if the car is not atleast running correctly...

i beleive most would think its a tranny issue and not believe its something minor and not buy it.,,

so any help here guys.. thanks

Have a harbor freight local? They have cheap fuel pressure testers though I'm not sure how accurate they are. Theres really not much we can do without eliminating a few things first.