87 Camaro Bad Performance

I have a 1987 Camaro with a 305 carberated motor and an automatic trans. When I punch it, it bogs. It seems as if it wants to go, but it is being held back. when I accelerate slower, I can get it up to 120 with no problem. The valve seals went bad so I had the heads rebuilt, I changed the intake manifold with an edelbrock, I had the carb rebuilt, I've had the timing set, and I've even tried another computer. The car has 120,000 miles on it with the original timing chain, can that be it? I don't know what to do next. Any suggestions would be appriciated.......Thanks.

Flat cam... Shoddy distributor... bad spark plugs... bad sensors...

Could be lots of things.

or fuel filter... but you could just have a clogged catalytic converter. Might be a good idea to have that checked out.

Does you car make a rally weird popping noice from the carb? lol, maybe your wires are crossed

ill agree with the filter...sounds like your mixture is all screwed up, you might be running too lean

all those are good ideas, could the cat sounds pretty likley, as does the fuel filter, or even the air filter. and spark plugs and wires, and distributor. its a can o worms buddy :) i would reccomend getting it scaned, either at a dealership, or elsewhere, the computer on board the car is there for a reason, to tell you whats wrong with the car, rather than just hitting it with a hammer like it was done in the past ;) why waist time changing part after part, trying to trac down the problem, when the computer will tell you in about a minute, at no cost. if you dont want to have it scanned, do this. take a paper clip, unfold it so that the two ends are close to each other. take one end of the paper clip, and put it in the top right hand side terminal of your diagnostic connector, then put the other end of the paper clip in the terminal on the next terminal on the top row, to the left of the one you just put the clip in. so they should be creating a link between the top two right hand side terminals. at this point your check engine light will start to flash, dont worry, this is a good thing. it will flash once, then pause, the flash twice, and long pause, then it will do that sequence two more times, a total of three. that is the code 12, indicating ignition voltage but no engine rpms. ignore this code it is always there when the key is on and the engine is off. after that code flashes three times, start counting off the codes that follow, for instance, a code 13, would flash once, pause, flash three times, long pause, and repeat the sequence two more times, a total of three. for a code 42, it would flash four times, pause, and flash two times, then long pause, repeat sequence twice, total of three times, and so on and so forth, when it starts flashing a code 12 again, you are done. take all the codes, other than a code 12, and you might be able to get a technition at the dealership to tell you what they mean. without spending a time. maybe buy him a six pack of beer or something. or look up the code online. and if you repost them here, ill see if i can get them decoded for you at work, i work as a tech at a chevy dealership.

I have changed the catilitic converter, it seems to run better when I did that, but it still has the same problem. I have also changed the fuel filter. I don't think the wires are crossed, I have checked this. The car does pop when I rev it, but it's not coming from the carb, it comes from the exhaust. I will check the trouble codes and post them ASAP. Thanks for the help so far.

OK, I checked the trouble codes, and it gave me a code of 24. Now what?

24 Vehicle Speed Sensor (VSS) - signal is constant (no pulsing) during engine deceleration

I don't believe that would give you the problem you describe. I would definitely check the mixture, if not that, then perhaps the fuel pump itself. If it's electric, it could be getting weak and not supplying what you need. Mechanical, I don't know what to tell you other than replace it. But it does sound like you leaning out.

ifyou somehow miss-counted or mixed things up, a code 42 is the electronic spark timing...

so, how do you guys know these codes?? are you mechanics, have th book next to you, or do you just have alot of free time, lol

i know the codes cuz im a mechanic and have the book at work to decode them, im guessing most other people know them from experience. having to deal with the problems themselves. also, the code 42 is set by the computer when you set the timing on the car, because to do it right, you have to dissconect the timing sensor, a one wire connector near the passenger side firewall. try disconnecting the battery for ten seconds to clear all codes from the computer. and then drive it for a few days, and check the codes again, if you still get the code 42, then its more likely than not the electonic spark timing.

i didnt mean any offence, i just find it funny how people name codes, and then give the #'s, i am not a mechanic yet, but next fall i am going to try toget certifyed. btw, ahat is the # for a speed controle cencer, ihave to run the code again on my 90 Z24 caviler, but i was wondering what the # code was

didnt take any offence boots, just answering a question :) the reason codes have numbers and names, is its easier for the computer to handle numbers rather than words. so the computer spits out the nubmers, and then you go look them up and find out what they mean. hence the "names" they have. as far as the speed control sensor, im not sure off the top of my head, but genopside said it was a code 24 i believe.

OK, I checked the trouble codes, and it gave me a code of 24. Now what?

Well, he said it was a 24, so I looked it up and....yea i have a book with the codes and all that wonderful stuff.

well, yeah ok, burgiedanny said it was a 24, and you said it was the speed sensor, my mistake.