Tataocb

New issue has come up. It feels like I fix one issue an a new one pops up.
I took it out for a short drive. Less than 10 min into the drive, I lost power steering, so I pulled into a gas station and found the belt was gone. I found the belt not so far from where I pulled over so I went and got it. I found the nut on the alternator pulley was loose, meaning the pullet was loose as well. I had a wrench and was able to put the belt back, but did not have a 15/16 socket to tighten the pulley nut so I just hand tightened it and drove it back about 4 min to get back home. Once home I tightened the nut, but now the alternator is making a noise that I cannot pinpoint.
When I removed the valve cover I removed the bolt closer to the engine and "pivoted" the alternator on the other bolt close tot he shock tower, but that was all I did with the alternator. I am not sure how that led to the alternator pulley nut coming loose today while driving.

Here is a video of the engine running a couple hours after I came back. It started fine, but after a few seconds the noise began. In the first video you can hear the noise briefly at the 7 second mark. The second video shows the alternator once the sound becomes constant and does not stop, probably about 4 minutes after the first video was over. Could this be the bearing making the noise? As you can see, the alternator bracket is broken where the bolt goes, so I put it back like it was before I moved the alternator to remove the valve cover. Could a vibration on the alternator causing it to hit the bracket somehow cause the noise? I guess the main question is if this is what a bad bearing sounds like or if it is something else? The alternator is charging fine.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/19yJ...ew?usp=sharing

https://drive.google.com/file/d/19sZ...ew?usp=sharing

Thanks for any input you can provide.

WhiteWS6

Don't worry, once you get all the issues sorted out you actually get to experience how nice the car really is. Not totally sure as to why your belt would come off, is your tensioner in good shape? Possibly the alternator pulley is so badly damaged (worn bearing) that it wobbled enough for the belt to slip off, more likely the culprit would be a bit more serious (Tensioner). Something is definitely not happy inside that alternator for sure. You may want to consider buying a new alternator bracket off eBay, I had an extra one lying around for a while but sold it a few months ago unfortunately. If you still have the piece that broke off (unlikely), you could have someone weld it back together. From the video I'd definitely say the bearing is toast, wobbling quite a bit.

Best of luck, Grant

Tataocb

So I took off the alternator today thinking I would have to replace it. I spun it with a drill once I had it out of the car and could not hear the noise. That made me skeptic about replacing it since it was not making the noise. I took off the pulley and the fins and tried to move the shaft to see if there was any play but did not find any. When I was putting it back together I noticed that the pulley had some room where it could be put together without it being centered properly on the alternator s haft. So I centered it properly and tightened the nut, put it back in the car and the noise was gone. I had it running for about 15 min. Back it was making the noise, it started almost instantly as soon as I started the engine.
I believe what happened was that since I tightened the pulley nut with the belt still on, that probably caused the pulley to be pulled down with the tension of the belt and was therefore tightened "off center" from the shaft, and that is what was causing the noise. I will keep testing it, but hopefully that fixed it.

Next issue I am thinking whether I should tackle or not (but it has been there since I bought the car) is the fuel gauge. It will not go lower than the "Full" mark. The car came with a trap door for the fuel pump. I assume the sensor is in the tank along with the pump.

Injuneer

From Shoebox:

4th Gen LT1 F-body Tech Articles

Yes, the fuel level sensor is attached to the side of the fuel sending unit in the tank.

Tataocb

Im back...new issue...
Took it for a short drive and the car started spitting and sputtering. I was able to pull into a parking lot and it died. I tried to start it twice, but would only fire up and then immediately die.
After waiting about 10 min it fired up and stayed running. I was able to drive it back home (about 1/2 a mile) and when I was about a block away it died again. During the drive it felt like it did not want to go past 2000 RPM...then 1500 RPM...until it almost died and that was when I turned it off.
I waited 10 min and it fire up and then died immediately. I tried priming the pump several times before cranking it and sometimes I would hear a little clunking noise in the area behind the pedals (is the best way I can describe it). The fuel pump sounds different when it is priming. I can't really describe it, but it is not an awful sound either.
If I keep the ignition in the start position the engine cranks and cranks and sounds like it wants to start, but never really fires up.
I will probably use a rope and tow it with my truck later this evening and start diagnosing. I am thinking it is possibly a fuel related issue.

WhiteWS6

Sorry you've got a new issue, hopefully you can diagnose and fix it quickly. Hook up a fuel pressure gauge to the shrader valve on the back of the intake manifold and pressure test it. You'll need to do it under load on the road, may have to tape the gauge to the windshield. In my case the hose wasn't long enough, so I stuck a flashlight and a phone under the hood and recorded it. A little annoying but it worked. Injuneer has a little write up with how to exactly test the fuel pressure, I would link it but I'm not at my computer. Just have to lookup "Fuel pressure" and you'll find it. You may want to check for codes too.

Goodluck, Grant

Tataocb

Thanks for the prompt reply Grant. I let it sit for an hour and a half, when I got back the temp had dropped to a bit above 160 so the engine was pretty cool.
I cranked it and it started up and immediately died.
I then primed the pump 5 times and tried again and it would stay running, sounded awful, and would not go above 500 rpm. If I gave it a little gas, it would stall and shut off. It did that about 3 times. Then it started making that clunking noise again so I tied a rope to the lower control arm and towed it home with the truck (with the help of someone else of course) for the remaining block.
Any time it would stall and shut off I would immediately hear the pump priming the system again.
I will go and rent a fuel pressure testing kit from the auto parts store this weekend, but will probably only be able to test with the key in the on position and while cranking. Maybe I am able to get it to start and see what the gauge shows.
And I just bought a set of Z06 wheels yesterday. Since they are probably replicas they were not too expensive so I have some extra cash in case it ends up needing a fuel pump . It has a trap door already but I really do not know what the previous owner did with regards to the pump.

WhiteWS6

Definitely sounds indicative of a fuel delivery issue for sure. My parts store near me didn't have any so I bought a $30 kit off Amazon and it's worked great for what I need. If the car is acting as badly as it is, you may not even need a pressure gauge, should be easy to tell just by pressing your thumb on the shrader valve and having some fuel shoot from it. Be careful if you do this, may want to wait until it is cold and then prime it a couple times, if fuel doesn't spray out with a decent amount of force, it's definitely something rearward in the system. Could even be a fuel filter for all you know. Best of luck, hopefully it's something cheap and easy. Pump should prime to atleast 40psi fyi

-Grant

Injuneer

Check the pressure, Don’t guess. Check the pressure when it primes and shuts off.... should reach at least 40 PSI. Watch how fast the pressure drops after it shuts off.

Watch the pressure while the starter is cranking the engine.

Does it smell rich and flooded? Try holding the accel pedal on the floor BEFORE turning the key to start. Keep it there while the engine is cranking. That puts the PCM in “clear flood” mode.

This is all you need. One of the first things I bought when I got my LT1 26 years ago. Probably $25.

https://www.camaroz28.com/g/picture/12591068

Tataocb

I have not had time to rent/buy the fuel pressure tester yet. I tried it again this morning, and it would only turn without firing up at all, similar to how it behaved before I changed the Optispark. I then tried spraying some starting fluid into the throttle body and the car ran until I stopped spraying.
I then checked the schrader valve behind the intake and it squirted some fuel, but mostly it was air. At that moment...I felt really stupid and realized I was probably out of fuel. I added a couple gallons I had and surely enough it fired up and ran like normal.
Still need to take it for a test drive but looks like there should not be any issues.
I must have miscalculated how much fuel I put in there. I thought I had filled it up almost up to full assuming I was getting about 15 mpg. I guess the gas mileage is lower with the day I drive it and probably all the time I had it idling while checking different things probably used up the fuel much quicker than I thought. I only have 36 miles on the odometer after adding about 6 gallons. Anyway, thanks for all your help again. I feel so dumb...lol.

WhiteWS6

Well at least it was a pretty quick fix then lol, probably want to pull the pump out with the sending unit in the future so you actually know what's in the tank. If you plan on keeping the car and pushing a bit more power out of it you may want to consider an aftermarket pump. Definitely more time effective to do it now than later. I've heard Racetronix makes a good kit with a harness to add a bit more juice to the pump itself. I've never actually used that kit however.

Best of luck, Grant