Hello all,

I'm new to this forum as well as new to Corvettes. This is my first one. Just picked up an 04 CoupeThursday, it has 16,000 mi on it and it's in pristine condition.
However about 60 miles into my drive home going about 65 in 6th gear the engine started sputtering a bit, I downshifted into 5th but it continued for about a minute and went away. This happened 2 more times on my 300 mi trip home. Just before I got home the check engine light came on and the engine started idling rough.
Searched this forum and found out how to check codes (thanks!). Currently I have no new codes however there were about 14 historical codes..PCM, IPC and HVAC. apparetnly this car had some issue in the past, hopefully this is not an indication of any chronic problems.

I'm no professional mechanic but kind of acts like I got some bad gas. I filled up atone of thosebig stations...multiply pumps, food store lots of traffic etc.... And yes I did buy Premium 93 octane.

The car ran great when I test drove it but prior to making the trip back home I topped off the tank...itwas 1/2 full.

Has anyone experienced this or know what might be the problem and how to fix without taking it to the $$Dealer.

Any help or suggestions appreciated,

Nick.

 

Well,Papanick,Welcome to the world of Corvettes. Get ready to spend the money you saved not buying an '09! (just kidding) Sounds like you have already bought or borrowed a code reader,you also need a pretty good digital multimeter,a fuel pressure guage and a good shop manual. For your problem I might check the screen on the fuel pump and the fuel filter.
Ron

 

Thanks for the reply Partsman, I'll start there.

by the way, I used the DIC (in the car) to get the codes...do I need another code reader to get more info?

Nick.

 

I guess not,I didn't know you could get history codes w/o a reader.
Ron

 

Make sure you know how to read the codes. Normally when the check engine light goes on there is an active code (that is why the check engine light comes on).

Did it go off by itself before you got home?

 

There are 14 historical codes in the computer as indicated by the "H" following the code but there is not any current codes.
So far I've checked the gas cap to make sure is was on correct and tight, the air filter appears to be brand new and no visable signs of anything loose under the hood.

Lee, the Check engine remains on and there still is a noticable rough idle.

I suspect bad gas but not sure want is the best way to handle this. The tank is about 1/4 full.
Do I add some octane booster, fill the tank with fresh gas on top of the suspected bad gas??

Thanks for your replies,

Nick

 

The very first thing I would've done in your situation is to call the guy who sold you the car to ask him if he had an idea. Something tells me he'd know where to look, and really, the guy should help you out with this.

BUT, you should examine ALL vacuum line and electrical connections very carefully. Pop off the passenger-side engine cover and check the vacuum line that is routed to the intake. Check the connector that plugs into the MAF sensor (connected to the airbox). Look at all sparkplug wires to see if any had come offa sparkplug.

It might be something very simple, so get out there and check!

Dave

 

Thanks Dave,

That was the first thing I did...called the person who sold it to me. It was a independant dealer in the Dallas/Ft Worth area. They said it was possibly bad gas but that was about all the support I got from them.

Being new to Vettes I'm still learning where everything is, howeverI did check all the spark plug wires, the MAF sensor connection, the air filter and the gas cap. I'll look under the passenger side engine cover this evening for loose wires or vacuum hoses when I get home.

What's your thoughts on the possiblity of bad gas and would just filling with more gas or putting an additive in the tank to see if that helps? I currently have a little more than a 1/4 tank of gas left.

I really do appreciate everyone's input on this.

Thanks,

Nick.

 

Checked all vacuum lines and electrical connections that I could find and all seem to be okay.
Heading to the local auto parts store now to see if I can buy some type of additive for the fuel that treats "bad fuel". Then if that don't work then I guess it's off to the $hop.

Thanks for everyones input,

Nick

 

Alright! It apparently was just a tank of bad fuel. Took the car to a local auto parts store and they put their code reader o on it and they found no historical codes but did find two current codes..(go figure). They were P0171 and P0174 "fuel system lean bank 1&2. Puta can of "Sea Foam" and filled the tank up with 93 octane and the check engin light cleared and the car almost immediately started idling better.

I'm not sure whymy DIC only showed historical codes and not current ones unless I just don't know how to read the DIC yet but I can assure you this there wasa letter "H" at the end of each code in the DIC. To make sure I don't have this mix up again I've cleared all the historical codes in the DIC.

Thanks again for all who offered suggestion and I hope this info will assist anyone else having this problem.

Regards,

Nick.

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