Well I've decided to go to the dark side. V8's.

I've seen a real nice '95 Firebird Formula 5.7L gas guzzler automatic that I like. Its a hard top, cloth interior but the engine and exterior/interior are clean. I have a few questions.

What are the major problems that this car face? I'm a n00b about domestics since I've only owned imports. Also what is the mileage this car gets as it will be my driver to work and school and if I have to go buy some stuff.

All I know is that the car is almost stock. Has a shift kit and some REALLY loud exhaust Oh and an ugly ass a/m hood.

So, what are the problems and does anyone know anyone selling a Formula or whatever the 5.7L fast thing is called that has T-Tops and leather seats and is automatic. This is a daily driver almost, not a race car, I just like the sound and the fact that I'll be pumping gas every 10 miles down the road.

So, flame away or help, whatever you wanna do.

 

i have a 95 Z28 camaro, which is the same engine you have.

you can get close to 20mpg. i get 21 sometimes. its really not that bad, considering my 98 nissan altima got 22-23mpg, its not bad at all.

i drive mine daily

how many miles are on the car?


problems with it, lets see....
power window motors are crap. expect to replace them
ignition fuses from what i have been told tend to blow sometimes, its worth keeping some spares
Opti-spark module....500 dollar part. that is your ignition system.
chagning sparkplugs may require a college degree
if it has over 100K, go to chevy dealer and get a Knock MODLUE from a 95 corvette (LT4 motor) and replace the one on your computer. it will help with the general performance of your car. the LT1 (your engine) knock module is sensitve to the info that the sensor sends to it, which retards the timing and makes the car run like shit. supposedly, the LT4 knock module is less sensitive, as if the car is near brand new specs. its about 35 bucks at a chevy dealer, worth the investment
AC system is not the greatest, not very cold, but gets a job done.
car tends to run hot, but as soon as you are back at speed the temp guage goes back to normal.
changing almost anything on this car is a bitch.



there is a huge amount of great info on the web that i have been coming across on these cars. there is a lot you can do to them, and a lot to know.

 

-Optispark
-Transmission may crap out on you anytime over 100,000 mi
-Sparks plugs are a bitch to change
-The famous head-gasket oil leak may show up
-Power window motors are shit (seems to be a GM standard)
-Gas gauge that once you hit half tank you might as well assume that you have a 1/4 tank or less

other than that nonsense, it's all good for the most part

 

Yeah I noticed that gas gauge problem when I turned the car on, from 1/2 tank to 1/4 tank then back after I revved it to 2 grand

Car has 107,xxx miles on it and the guy says it has the tune up stuff in the back seat. Would it be better if I found a T-Tops and manual one? Is that automatic transmission crap or do both tend to mess up over 100k miles?

Should I just get a loaded one that has T-Tops, less miles and it automatic (I suck at driving stick even though I owned a manual tibby, lighting cancer stick + changing radio + putting window down + downshifting is a bitch)

Hmm.

Oh yeah and should I worry about exhaust tickets? I've never gotten one but this is a loud mother fucker. I was like JESUS CHRIST ALMIGHTY when I turned it on and revved it

Found 4 other cars ranging in years '93-'97. What years had more problems? All these cars have under 100k miles and the most expensive is 7,995obo. I'll PM whoever wants to check them out for me on autotrader cause I don't want people stealing my shit

 

tranny is rated by GM to withstand 350ftpb tq when used over 100K miles. basically you should be ok if it was not beat on too much, and you dont continue beating on it.

mine was driven by a chick that weighed about 100 pounds, and 35 pounds of her were tit. i dont even know how she had the muscle to hit the brakes or even open the door. so i know mine was driven lightly, and before her it was her dads car, so he was a puss with it. i at least know where my car came from and its total history, so my tranny with proper care may tend to last better. who knows


also i forgot the O-rings for the vehicle speed sensor (connected to the tranny) and the oil sensor (connected to the oil pan) tend to go, easy fix if you have a clue on how to do stuff. and the tranny mount as well

 

+1 on the tranny mount, can't forget that

Yeh as long as you don't beat the piss out of I rekon the automatic tranny would be fine...My 95 just rolled over 100,000 miles (mostly highway...but I do beat on it) and doesn't appear to have any problems, cept it started leaking a little about 5,000 miles ago...

Hardtops are allright, but personally I'd rather have T-tops..I have a convertible and love the hell out of that thing, but they're hard to find.

and I wouldn't worry about an exhaust ticket...you can hear me coming from a half mile away sometimes, and cars with security systems don't stand a chance when I drive by
...havn't gotten any crap for it so far

 

Thats good, at least it isn't as bad as the MAUVE RACER!!!! My Spyder gots more problems than DSMs on this site.

Firebird and Trans Am (Fomula x2) are basically the same thing. Yeah I've decided on T-Tops since the ones I've found are cheaper and have under 100k miles and come with T-Tops and don't have ugly ass hoods

Well in a few weeks ya'll need to welcome me to the family

 

your leak may be the speed sensor o-ring, thats where mine is, and it has 130K on it. 3 months ago it had 120K on it.

i just changed the motor oil, and i found my oil leak, and my tranny leak and they were both the sensors

 

i get roughly 11 in the city, and 30 on the highway (yes, 30...three, zero...did that with a road trip to O-town)

id go with a 6spd over anything....i had auto, and blew em left and right, then converted to 6spd and am loving it.

problems-
opti, plug/wire changes (headers make it easier), never heard of the headgasket oil leak, there is an intake manifold rtv gasket leak though, right by the EGR setup, EGR seems to get hot and burn up the gasket or something. 93-94 have unvented optisparks.

good news is, they sell coil pack conversions for about the price of buying a new optispark, took me about 2 hours to do my intake gasket change with "The Right Stuff", and blocking off the EGR is simple.

as for the fuel sending unit jumping around, when i did my fuel pump change, i bent the arm slightly to read ~1/8 tank less. that way i dont have 6oz of fuel left and it says 1/4 tank. being someone that came from a 1G AWD car, i was very impressed with the stock power of the LT1...the torque difference was very noticable

 

When I do get all this stuff when I get my car could anyone here help me install this. I am teh sux0rz at doing it. I changed my cars control arms, did its tune up and changed one belt. I'm hardcore like mad skillz mechanical.

Yeah but it doesn't sound bad. I've found one with like 57k miles and its a good price so when I get it I'll let ya'll know so you can give me a hand at fixing this bitch so that is doesn't own me.

Oh and 6-spd on I-275 at rush hour > Me

Reminds me of being in Rush Hour with a pissed off lawnmower 5-spd Tibby. Only lawnmowing at low RPMs tho

What are the specs of a '94 Trans Am Formula?