Old t2 not runnin right, help!

87fc3s · 12-17-2011, 05:00 AM

Heya~ I've had my 87 t2 stored away for the last 3 years as I was out of the country. I got back and decided to see if it would still run. I flushed and filled the oil, coolant, brake and clutch fluids in case. I started her up, and she turned over and idles alright, besides thick clouds of white smoke.
Here's the problem, when I apply throttle, the revving is kinda rough, but then on abrupt throttle opening, the revving cuts and tries to turn off. Generally most rough around 4.5-5k rpm, and won't go above. If throttle is held full upen, the car seems to choke, fart, and spit some flames. Any idea what this might be? And what I might have to do or try? Or am I just plain SOL?
It's an 87t2, street port, lil hybrid turbo, 3" down and straight thru, and running microtech
Anything at all would be quite appreciated! Cheers~

speedjunkie · 12-17-2011, 05:57 AM

Did you change the fuel too? Not saying that is definitely the problem but it wouldn't hurt, if you didn't already do it that is. Have you just let it idle for a while? Does the white smoke go away? Might have a secondary injector stuck or something, since it idles fine but gets rough when you rev it. Something else to think about, was the car accessible to many rodents or anything like that? Have you looked over the wiring, hoses and all that to check condition? Those would be the first things I would check. I don't know as much about FCs but those things are fairly general for the rotary.

RETed · 12-17-2011, 07:22 AM

Thread moved to the 2G section...

3 years is a long time for the car to be down.

I don't see any mention of getting rid of all the old gas...

Did you check the gas tank?
If the gas tank wasn't close to full, there's a chance there's rust in it.
Rust in the gas tank will clog the fuel filters.
Remove the front one (on the firewall) and tap the feed side on the ground on a white cloth - do you see particles or gunk?

I didn't see mention of replacing the spark plugs...
They might be fouled.
Good idea to change out the spark plug wires too.

-Ted

87fc3s · 12-17-2011, 01:57 PM

Kk I'll try to check up on some of that shortly. The gas tank was pretty much empty before I left the car, so I guess rust may be present, I'll have to try to see. Im really hoping its something I can easily take care of quickly, I came back to help my brother move, and my car was stored at his place so I've gotta move it soon. I'm not very knowledgeable about mechanics, so I'm really hoping its as simple as plugs
How do you check the injectors? Never touched them so not quite sure how to check or deal with them. If anyone ha suggestions for a noob to do basic checks, please let me know how to go about things(sorry for all the trouble, just wanna get this thing rolling ASAP without having to call a tow)
Damn backfire sets off all alarms in the quiet little neighborhood so I kinda feel bad sitting there with the car running. I did let it sit for a while and smoke thins out a bit.

87fc3s · 12-19-2011, 01:59 AM

Fuel filter did the trick, thx for the suggestions

speedjunkie · 12-19-2011, 02:11 AM

Good to hear, but it still would be a good idea to check the gas tank, because as Ted said and from what you've said, it probably is rusty and it'll only clog the filter again leaving you in the same situation.

For future reference, you can check injectors to see if they're sticking by putting a 9v battery to it. I picked up some battery connectors (like you find in stereos and alarm clocks) at Radio Shack and they have two wires coming off. I plug the battery into that and then put one wire on each terminal of the injector. If you hear it click, it's good, if not, it's stuck. This won't check to see if it's flowing properly, just to see if it's stuck. You don't have to keep it on there for long, just a second or two.

12-17-2011, 05:00 AM	#1
87fc3s The Newbie Join Date: Dec 2011 Posts: 3 Rep Power: 0	Old t2 not runnin right, help! Heya~ I've had my 87 t2 stored away for the last 3 years as I was out of the country. I got back and decided to see if it would still run. I flushed and filled the oil, coolant, brake and clutch fluids in case. I started her up, and she turned over and idles alright, besides thick clouds of white smoke. Here's the problem, when I apply throttle, the revving is kinda rough, but then on abrupt throttle opening, the revving cuts and tries to turn off. Generally most rough around 4.5-5k rpm, and won't go above. If throttle is held full upen, the car seems to choke, fart, and spit some flames. Any idea what this might be? And what I might have to do or try? Or am I just plain SOL? It's an 87t2, street port, lil hybrid turbo, 3" down and straight thru, and running microtech Anything at all would be quite appreciated! Cheers~

12-17-2011, 01:57 PM	#4
87fc3s The Newbie Join Date: Dec 2011 Posts: 3 Rep Power: 0	Kk I'll try to check up on some of that shortly. The gas tank was pretty much empty before I left the car, so I guess rust may be present, I'll have to try to see. Im really hoping its something I can easily take care of quickly, I came back to help my brother move, and my car was stored at his place so I've gotta move it soon. I'm not very knowledgeable about mechanics, so I'm really hoping its as simple as plugs How do you check the injectors? Never touched them so not quite sure how to check or deal with them. If anyone ha suggestions for a noob to do basic checks, please let me know how to go about things(sorry for all the trouble, just wanna get this thing rolling ASAP without having to call a tow) Damn backfire sets off all alarms in the quiet little neighborhood so I kinda feel bad sitting there with the car running. I did let it sit for a while and smoke thins out a bit. Last edited by 87fc3s; 12-17-2011 at 02:07 PM.

12-17-2011, 05:57 AM	#2
speedjunkie RCC Loves Me Not You Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Colorado Springs, CO Posts: 2,089 Rep Power: 20	Did you change the fuel too? Not saying that is definitely the problem but it wouldn't hurt, if you didn't already do it that is. Have you just let it idle for a while? Does the white smoke go away? Might have a secondary injector stuck or something, since it idles fine but gets rough when you rev it. Something else to think about, was the car accessible to many rodents or anything like that? Have you looked over the wiring, hoses and all that to check condition? Those would be the first things I would check. I don't know as much about FCs but those things are fairly general for the rotary.

12-19-2011, 01:59 AM	#5
87fc3s The Newbie Join Date: Dec 2011 Posts: 3 Rep Power: 0	Fuel filter did the trick, thx for the suggestions

12-19-2011, 02:11 AM	#6
speedjunkie RCC Loves Me Not You Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Colorado Springs, CO Posts: 2,089 Rep Power: 20	Good to hear, but it still would be a good idea to check the gas tank, because as Ted said and from what you've said, it probably is rusty and it'll only clog the filter again leaving you in the same situation. For future reference, you can check injectors to see if they're sticking by putting a 9v battery to it. I picked up some battery connectors (like you find in stereos and alarm clocks) at Radio Shack and they have two wires coming off. I plug the battery into that and then put one wire on each terminal of the injector. If you hear it click, it's good, if not, it's stuck. This won't check to see if it's flowing properly, just to see if it's stuck. You don't have to keep it on there for long, just a second or two.