black smoke

[new to this]

My 95 grand am burns gas like crazy, puts out the black smoke. I have replace the egr (?) valve and it still smokes and burns gas. Also, my temperature gage is very low any suggestions would be great....
Thanks

[xeroinfinity]

you need a thermostat or replace it. Is this a 4cyl or V6?

[new to this]

it's a v6
Sorry I don't know much about cars but the thing that bother me is the burning of gas and the black smoke .. can you please help me....

[GTP Dad]

Welcome to AF! First of all to explain the problem, the car is running rich due to the fact that the computer thinks the engine is cold and putting in too much fuel. By changing the thermostat this will make the car run at the proper temperature and the computer will cut back on the fuel. Also you may want to have your mechanic change the temperature sensor so that you are certain that the computer is reading the proper engine temperature. If you are not mechanically inclined don't try this yourself as the engine will need to have the air bled out of the cooling system to prevent overheating.

Once this is done the engine should run better and the fuel mileage will increase.

[new to this]

Thank you so much, I'm going to take the car to the shop and get it fixed..
Thanks again....

[xeroinfinity]

that sounds good to me too.