3800 Five Cylinders???

[rjaz gtp]

Today I went and looked at a '97 GTP with 81k miles on it. The car was in perfect shape and the interior was flawless. The only problem was when I took it for a test drive the Serve Engine Light came on when I started the car. I asked the guy the reason being and he stated that the light "just" came on in the last week and he took it to a mechanic and was told that the PCM is only sending out codes to 5 of the 6 cylinders. They told him that he needed to go to a Pontiac Dealer and have them reprogram the PCM and this would solve the problem.

First, would reprogramming the PCM take care of this problem?

Second, what damage is being done to the engine while 1 cylinder is not functioning.
When we sat in idle the car idled real rough...

The guy seemed really honest about it and said he is having it fixed immediately...

-Rich

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[mybluegtp]

mostly likely the car is missfiring on cylinder 5&6 and that would make the car idle so not only would he have to erase the codes he would have to check the coil packs, wires, and spark plugs for the problem. Or worse the cylinders could be going bad.

 

[zeez gtp]

The guy said that he took it to a mechanic and the mechanic checked the spark plugs and spark plug wires to see if it was misfireing. The mechanic said it was not misfireing at all. The mechanic could not scan the car, so he told him to take it to the dealership to get it all worked out.

I was misfireing for awhile. But car did not shake like how this car was sitting at idle. It was a crazy shake.

Zack

 

[mybluegtp]

Originally posted by zeez gtp@Feb 15 2004, 07:38 PM
The guy said that he took it to a mechanic and the mechanic checked the spark plugs and spark plug wires to see if it was misfireing. The mechanic said it was not misfireing at all. The mechanic could not scan the car, so he told him to take it to the dealership to get it all worked out.

I was misfireing for awhile. But car did not shake like how this car was sitting at idle. It was a crazy shake.

Zack

there is always different misfires theres the ones that misfire right when you start the car up and you can feel it and then there is when you have it in drive and idled and there is when you are flooring on the gas and the engine jumps... could of been one of those.. I could be wrong though.

 

[zeez gtp]

ya, see when i was misfireing, my car idled fine and everything, but when i stepped on it, the engine made popping noises and hesitated like no other. the car we drove today just idled really rough at stops, it almost felt like it was going to die, but as soon as you accelereated, the car ran smooth.

zack

 

[rjaz gtp]

and then there is when you have it in drive and idled and there is when you are flooring on the gas and the engine jumps...

This was most definitely what it was doing, cause when I started the car it wasn't bad but when I drove and came to a stop the idle was crazy shaking! It seriously felt like it was going to die...

 

[horist]

well.. if he's saying it's not a big deal and just needs the PCM flashed... I would ask him to do that before purchasing the car... also if you know anyone by you w/autotap... have them bring it and read the SES light to see what's going on... either that or ask the guy to go w/you to a pontiac dealership for an estimate...

unless you're getting the car for a song I'd pass it up... it's one thing to buy a used car expecting it'll prolly have issues... but it's another buying a used car knowing it has issues...