20 Most Recent 1998 Oldsmobile 88 - Page 8 Questions & Answers

On the starter.

Hi,
You will need line wrenches to get the line off the steering gear assembly (tight in there near the frame sub assembly) First you will want to remove the drive belt from the power steering pump. Then remove the bolts from pump to bracket and lift pump up. On back of pump, remove low pressure line and drain fluid into a container. Under pump, remove high pressure line, and push it downward toward floor. From under car, follow the line to the steering gear, ( the line may have a keeper clamp or two for stationary support to remove along the way) then detach. Installation is reverse of disassembly........Not fun, but doable.....Mike

Hi, Thanks for you inquiry. I hate you are having trouble. Let me start by asking a question to better understand the problem. When you turn your key to the ignition( the setting that you engine would normally try to turn over) , does you cars engine try to turn over? I only ask this question because it can possibly rule out a few big possibilities. Please hit me back with a response at your earliest convenience.
thanks again

Orifice tubes are usually located where the high pressure line goes into the evaporator

It is inside the fuel tank. You may be able to access it from the trunk or back seat. Otherwise you have to drop the saddle strap to drop the tank and make sure you have a jack with a piece of wood on it to no damage the tank. Be extra careful not to snap lines or wires.

Swap the coil with one of the other coils. If you still have weak spark out of that tower than replace the coil. If you have strong spark once swapped and the other coil tower now has w eak spark replace the module. I’m happy to assist further over the phone at https://www.6ya.com/expert/jeremy_d728a59f986299fa

Sounds like a weal fuel pump.Check your fuel pressure it should be 48-55 psi with key on and engine off.If its not not within these specs replace fuel pump.

Thanks for choosing FixYa and welcome to the site. If you have a vehicle that will turn over and over but will not start, I will tell you some things that you need to check. Every vehicle needs air, fuel, and fire to start. Now, the first thing you want to check is the fuel system. You want to make sure that the engine is getting fuel. The easiest way to test the fuel system is by testing the fuel pressure on the fuel rail. You need to refer to your owner manual for the correct measurement of pressure. Another easy test is using starter fluid. If it starts when you spray the fluid, you have a fuel issue. If it doesn't, check the ignition system. If your pressure is not correct or you have no way of testing the fuel pressure, start by checking your fuel pump. The fuel pump pumps fuel out of the gas tank and to your fuel filter. When you first turn your key on, you should be able to hear the fuel pump kick on for a second or two. It makes a soft buzzing sound. Listen for this sound. This will determine if the pump is kicking on and working. If you don't hear this sound, check your fuel pump fuse, relay, and your reset button. Not all vehicles have a reset button, so once again check to see if you have this button. If you change all of these and the pump still doesn't work, you may have a bad fuel pump. Test and make sure the pump is getting power before you change it. Now, you want to make sure the fuel filter is not stopped up. Check the gas lines and make sure they have no damage. Lastly, make sure fuel is getting to the fuel injectors. If you are getting fuel, you will need to make sure you are getting fire. You need to test your spark plugs or coils for spark. If you have spark, you should look over your timing belt or timing chain to make sure it is not broken or slipping. If you are not getting spark, you will need to check the spark plugs, coils, coil packs, wires, distributor, distributor cap, and rotor. Anyone of these can cause a vehicle to not spark. Check everything you can. Make sure the rotor is spinning and make sure the distributor cap has all metal contacts. Also, make sure the cap is not damaged or cracked. Make sure none of the plug/coil wires are damaged. Make sure they are all hooked up correctly. Now, it is possible that you could have a bad camshaft sensor or crankshaft sensor. In some vehicles, the camshaft sensor is built into the distributor. You want to test each of these parts and make sure each one is getting power. If a part is not getting power, that may be the reason your vehicle is not starting. If you have a check engine light on, you need to get your computer scanned for error codes. More then likely, if your vehicle won't start, your check engine light is on. The light is on because your computer has detected a problem with the vehicle. You can buy a cheap code reader for around forty dollars from Autozone or Advanced. Just make sure you know all your codes for your vehicle. When you have it scanned, the computer may know the exact parts you need to change. Most of these parts listed run off your ECM. The ignition system is a very complex system. It is rarely, but they do go bad. If you believe that the computer is to blame, make sure you have it flashed before you put it in your vehicle. If you don't, it will not work. Finding your error codes is the best way to finding your solution. If not, you will have many things to check. Always make sure you run a test on a part before changing it. Make sure that part is getting power. If it is not, check the power source. I know this is a lot of information, but any of the parts listed can cause the vehicle to not start. If you have no access to a code reader, fuel pressure tester, or a code reader, you can still check a lot of things. It is just harder. Remember, always use the process of elimination. Determine if the part is working or not and move on to the next part. You will eventually find your problem. Lastly, electrical problems can cause the symptoms you are having. They are very hard to find. When trying to find an electrical problem, you need to make sure you know what to test for. Each wire has a purpose. One part of the engine can shut down another part. You need to know how many volts you are testing for on each wire. You can use a voltage meter to test for current.

it takes 1 gallon(4 quarts) to fill the system.

When i had this problem i found everything i needed to know on this site http://vatspasslockpasskeysecurityhelp.yolasite.com/

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/User:Disgustin%20Hatfield

i would check, for any vacuum leaks, you could have a vacuum hose with a hole in it, or one that is disconnected.

The ignition key has a small pellet in it which has a precise electrical resistance. There are about 30 different values. In order to start the car you need the correct ignition key to turn the lock and a pellet with the correct resistance. If the computer measures the resistance incorrectly, it disables the starter and shuts off the fuel injectors for 3 minutes. The message "clean your key" should appear on the computer screen. The problem can be caused by several factors.
What Im trying to say is you'll need to get the key reprogrammed if you've cleaned it and the car still does not start. This is a "security feature" to make sure that a duplicate key i.e. cut from yours will not work in your car as they have special resistor chips in them the car recognizes the value of.

Hi!!
Look on the engine compartment power dist. box for a 15A HORN FUSE, if fuse is OK, check HORN RELAY on same box.
About your turn signal, over time the switch return spring wears out or, since is made out of hard plastic, it wears out or gets brittle and breaks and fails to turn switch OFF. The only way to repair it is replacing the TURN SIGNAL SWITCH assembly. It runs for about $30 at almost any auto parts store.
Good Luck!! A HELPFUL - 4 THUMBS - rating for this solution would be greatly appreciated. Thank you for using FixYa!!

fix transmission leak

It may be your signal switch. You would need to test the wires with a volt reader. Make sure the switch is getting current. If it is, change the switch. If not, you need to check the rest of the circuit for a bad wire or you may have a loose wire.

It starts with the security light and then gets worse till the car won't start anymore. The security system (VATS/Passkey) installed on these GM cars is anti-owner more than an anti-theft. There are 3 parts involved: 1) The chip-key 2) The lock cylinder 3) The TDM (aka the brain of the system) if any of these parts fails or is even slightly malfunctioning, the car stays stuck where you are and you only get a dealer asking you about 1,000$ to fix it. And all the 3 parts have a quite short lifespan. Way too many people got in this situation (including myself). I don't recommend any partial solution or any used parts as it would happen again way too soon to be acceptable and if it happens 100 miles from home (like it happened to me....) it's a big burden. I finally made it to save my beloved 94 Park Avenue (with the same system that is installed in your car) with a solution that I found on the internet and that bypasses the entire factory security system, all 3 pieces altogether and you can even remove the TDM at the end and use 99c keys without chip. The product I used is at http://newrockies.com and is still working perfectly after 5 years. Don't go to the dealer!

CHECK FUEL PUMP AND FUEL INJECTOR FUSE AND RELAY.IF BOTH OKAY.CHECK FUEL PUMP WIRING.COULD BE BAD GROUND WIRE.SCAN CAR FOR FAULTY THEFT SECURITY SYSTEM, PCM AND CAM SENSOR SINCE BOTH FIRES THE FUEL INJECTORS.

The very first thing you need to do is a good tuneup including plugs, wires, rotor, cap, air and fuel filters and fix the exhaust. There is a good chance your problem will be solved. Note that your car MUST have an intact exhaust system or it will lose a lot of power.