Yeah I'm thinking of going to get a tester today. Where along the fuel line do I put it? And what size is the line?

 

I forgot to menton that it would not start at 33 psi. Prior to that it had been 53-55 psi but was having intermittent problems where you might crank it 1 time or as many as 10-12 times before it would start. After I put a new pump in it starts great and runs fine but the pressure is only 47 psi. It should not start at that low pressure.
There is a test port with a cap on it on the fuel line slightly on the drivers side toward the rear of the engine. The tester I got had a hose that screwed right on.

 

Awesome, thanks. I'm on my way out to get one right now. Got my fingers crossed.

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Man, what a long day. I was doing so much running around and forgot to pick up a fuel pressure gauge. Anyways, this guy told me to remove my intake and cycle the key and see if there's fuel, and if not to dump some fuel in there. Has anyone done that to test the fuel pump?

 

Alright, buddy came over and the only code it's throwing is for the map sensor. Does that make sense?

 

Alright, so I finally got around to doing my plugs. Fun. Had NGK's that were caked with carbon, so I went out and got some nice shiny new AC Delco's and she fired right up, but it still kind of runs like crap. I also replaced the ignition coil and the MAP sensor. So on to the changing distributor. Can I use one from the wreckers? Or do I have to buy a new one? Any tips would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

The black thing underneath the Vortec cover is an air valve... it directs the flow of air through the plenum differently when at idle and when the throttle is floored to give it a slight boost in power. Why it doesn't do that all the time I don't know... I'm guessing it's a fuel mileage thing.

 

Thanks for clearing that up. Would having the Vortec cover off effect it's operation at all?

 

Nope, not at all. I don't even know why that cover is there.

 

That "air valve" is called the manifold tuning valve. It does not open because of throttle position, but rather because of engine RPM. It transitions between long and short runner lengths to improve low end torque (benefit long runner) without sacrificing too much high RPM power (benefit short runner).

And no, the cover is just trim. It has no function other than to make the engine look prettier.

 

Ah that was the name... thanks.