one thing i did notice
if i open the blade on the throttle body and look down inside it looks rather clean.
now i know i cleaned it very well when i did the lim gasket last but that was 50,000 miles ago shouldn't it be all black in there?
also it does not have a goldish yellow tint like you would expect from fuel but it does look rather clean.

 

You can try going back to the old injector assembly, but be aware that removing the new style nozzles from the manifold can be difficult and you run the risk of damaging them. When you remove the plenum, inspect the spider lines for any kinks. Pay special arttention to #1 & #3, (those are the ones that need to be adjusted during assembly). As long as you're in there, you might as well replace the intake gaskets as well.

As for the black carbon deposits in the plenum: When the EGR valve opens, the entire plenum is exposed to exhaust gasses. If there is a problem with the valve, (binding or stuck open or closed) a DTC would be set. An amber or gold tint indicates a fuel leak. If not present, don't worry about it, (fuel quality can affect the amount of deposits).

 

ok sounds good

i am going try the old spider but i'm not going to change the gaskets yet because either way i am not going to leave that spider in as i know when i removed it i saw evidence of a small leak but i do know that the truck ran perfectly fine with it so i just want to use it to determine if its injectors or not

now my question is if this determines that the injectors are clogged is there anything i can do about that or do i have to buy the whole setup again?

 

If you install the old injector assembly, and IF that fixes the problem, you need to figure out if it's a restricted line, a clogged injector, or a defective injector. That will determine what you need or want to do. If it doesn't fix the problem, the next step is replace the intake gaskets and reinstall the upgraded injector.

 

that was my exact plan of action. i'm gonna kick my nova out of the garage this weekend because i don't want to do all this work outside.

IF this determines the injectors are at fault how would i go about deciding what is wrong and what to do with them?

 

If that fixes it, you need a new injector assembly. Injector balance test, along with a visual and resistance test, to pinpoint the problem

 

ok that's what i wanted to know thank you

 

Alright spent a few hours in the garage today

I noticed the intake bolt under the ac bracket ( number8 in the torque sequence) was very loose

Put the old fuel spider in it failed the leakdown test (not too surprised with that) but it ran exactly the same

Warmed it up and all the live data was Damn near the same

So I assume fuel injectors are good

I did notice when I took the upper intake off there was a little oil around the edges and some gritty black stuff mainly in the back

 

The results are not too surprising. Maybe a little disappointing, but not surprising So, uh, when does the intake come off? I know you're not looking forward to it, but the loose bolt points to a problem

 

Yep that's the plan going to order new intake gaskets tonight I will try to find a tap and I'm just going to get new intake bolts since Amazon has them for $9 thread sealer already on them

And I hope to hell this fixes it