bad cluster mostly rpm

[Griz2ly]

Check this out yall. when i am riding in my car from 0-50, it is all right. then when i go from 50 to 60 my car starts stuttering and the rpm drops and studders even more. when i pass about 65, it levels out. and when i am at about 60, i gotta let off the accelerator then give it gas and ect. over and over again. mind that this only does it once and a while. help someone

[Griz2ly]

well i had to let time answer this question. changed plugs wires and coil packs and gone.

[4kQuad]

So the car must have been missing.

if you can't hear a miss because you don't know what to listen for.

Start the car, leave it in park, get out and go around back. Put your hand in the exhaust stream coming out the exhaust pipe. It can be hot so becareful.

Every time a spark plug fires and the pistion moves it creates a puff of wind, you can feel the puff of wind coming out the exhaust pipe. What you should feel is a little drummer in there that never misses a beat. But if he drops a stick every so often and you can feel ther beat. The missed beat is a miss. The spark plug for what ever reason didn't fire.

be it bad plug, bad gap of the plug, bad wires or bad coils. After you feel the miss of the drum beat, you will begin to hear the miss with your ears and no longer have to put your hand in the exhaust stream.

[Griz2ly]

oh no i heard and i know the little feeling thing.(got it from my dad) anyway, if u do have a misfire how do u fix it? a new plug and wire?

[4kQuad]

Yes, in most cases.

[mikem220153]

A couple of things to know about your 96 GA. The OBDII diagnostic system (the computer) Will cause the check engine light to FLASH if it detects X amount of misfires in X amout of engine rev's. The computer will cause the check engine light to come on STEADY if it detects an emissions, transmission, or ABS braking problem. The Flashing check engine light is a Class A malfunction which means FIX NOW, the steady check engine light means FIX AS SOON AS YOU CAN. Finally there is a Class C malfunction which will not turn on the check engine light but will store a malfunction code in the computer's memory. One example of this code would be a low AC refrigerant code. The hundred dollar OBD scanners will show you the more serious Class A and most of the Class B codes. However; It will not show you some of the Class B and none of the Class C codes. The scanners used at Autozone are the $100.00 scanners and these do work for what they are intended to. However if you want to see those hidden Class B and Class C codes, you need a more advance unit such as the pricey TECH2 scan tool. So if you want a quick diagnosis then go to Autozone, If you think there may be more going on with the car, got to a shop that is equipped with more advanced systems.

Now back to your orginal question. A misfire can be caused by a bad coil, bad spark plug, bad plug wire, a bad fuel injector, or last and worst bad valves, piston rings, or a cracked head.

[Griz2ly]

yes i do have a misfire. in cylinder 5 which is in the back. another error was the camshaft position sensor, tps, engine coolant, and circuit low input p0102 whatever that means. Anyone knows anything about the circuit low input p0102. I don't wanna say it but i think i have a burnt valve.

[startacv6]

Griz2ly..I was wondering about the 0 to 50 studdering problem? Cause mine was doing the same thing as soon as my needle hit the 50 mark the rpms would drop off down to like 1500 then i hit the throttle and bam right back to about 2300 rpm, and i just installed Accel coil packs and taylor wires so i wont know if this will solve that issue, but come to find out i also had a cracked head and so i'm in the process of fixing that now, but the plugs and wires solved that issue?

[Griz2ly]

it sure did fix that problem. but for the misfire, it did nothing for it. i took a plug and wire from my intrepid and put it in my ga and the studdering thing came back. but my car idled better. so i say i was just the the plug and wire.

[rixGAphx]

P0102 Mass or Volume Air Flow Circuit Low Input

The PCM is reporting a suspicious signal from the MAF sensor.
Did you stick your finger in there and break something?

To check for a burned valve, do a compression test.
tho the rear three plugs are such PITA's :banghead:

Until you get rid of the SES light (by correcting the sources of the codes), your engine is gonna run in 'open-loop' mode.
Rich air-fuel mixture, wasteful of gas, low on hp.

Hope this helps.
-Rick

[Griz2ly]

Originally posted by rixGAphx
P0102 Mass or Volume Air Flow Circuit Low Input

The PCM is reporting a suspicious signal from the MAF sensor.
Did you stick your finger in there and break something?

To check for a burned valve, do a compression test.
tho the rear three plugs are such PITA's :banghead:

Until you get rid of the SES light (by correcting the sources of the codes), your engine is gonna run in 'open-loop' mode.
Rich air-fuel mixture, wasteful of gas, low on hp.

Hope this helps.
-Rick
I don't even know where the MAF sensor is. i never heard of it. i didn't have one on my intrepid. how do u do a compression test. and YES, wasteful gas and very low hp.

[mikem220153]

Standing in front of the car, look to your right. You will see the air box where the outside air is sent through the air filter then into the engine. On the engine side of the air box you will see a large rubber tube with ribs in it that connects to the throttle body. On the other end of this tube is the MAF sensor. It connects the large rubber tube to the air box. On the bottom of the MAF sensor is electrical connector. Make sure it is connected and that none of the wires are broken.

[96GreenGaGT]

what about the compression test? i don't recall how to do one.

[mikem220153]

A compression test is pretty involved on this engine.

1. Do this on a cool engine to lessen the possibility of damaging the spark plug threads in the heads.

2. Disable the ignition by pulling the ignition fuse. Disable the fuel system by pulling the fuel pump and fuel injector fuses.

3. Remove all 6 spark plugs. It might be helpful here if you have a diagram of how the cylinders are numbered so you can put the plugs back in the hole they came out of and reconnect the proper plug wire to the proper cylinder.

4. Remove the air inlet duct from the throttle body and block open the throttle plate. I usually use a long flat tipped screwdriver wedged under the throttle cable pulley on the throttle body after it is in the wide open postition. You can then slip the screwdrive through the throttle cable mounting bracket.

5. Connect the compression testor to the first cylinder to be tested being careful not to cross thread the spark plug hole and, tighten the testor only finger tight.

6. Crank the engine through at least 10 compression strokes and record the highest reading.

6a. Repeat this procedure for all 6 cylinders.

For this engine; GM requires:
A. The cylinder that reads the lowest must be within 70 per cent of the cylinder that reads the highest.

B. No cylinder should read below 100psi or 689 kPa.

Other things to keep in mind:

If a cylinder shows low compression add about a tablespoon of motor oil to the cylinder and rerun the compression test. If there is a SIGNIFCANT increase in compression, then the most likely the rings in that cylinder are bad. The oil acts as a temporary seal around worn rings causing the compression to rise.

If the valve or the head is the problem, the compression will not show a significant increase.

Another idication of a bad head is the presence of coolant in the cylinders. Low compression between 2 adjacent cylinders is also and indication of head problem.

Remember this is only for a cylinder that shows low compression as compared to the others.


If all of your cylinders are withing 70 percent of each other, then you can be fairly certain that the heads, valves, and piston rings are in good shape.

When reinstalling the spark plugs be sure to coat the threads of the plugs with antisieze compound and torque them to 11 foot pounds.