Chirping and has trouble starting (Page 1/1)
Sayakachibi DEC 25, 10:22 PM
Hey, my 84 Fiero has been chirping and will only start if I accelerate. Any ideas? I’m tired of taking it to the mechanic. The other day it stopped while I slowed down, check engine light came on and I had to restart it. Any help would be appreciated it.
theogre DEC 26, 08:52 AM
"fan" belt(s) are bad & need replace
Alt bad or loose too.

see https://web.archive.org/web...cast.net/~fierocave/ serpent belt as most rules apply to V belts.

trouble starting can be battery low because alt has problems, battery bad or other reasons.

------------------
Dr. Ian Malcolm: Yeah, but your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should.
(Jurassic Park)

The Ogre's Fiero Cave

[This message has been edited by theogre (edited 12-26-2023).]

82-T/A [At Work] DEC 26, 12:05 PM

quote
Originally posted by Sayakachibi:

Hey, my 84 Fiero has been chirping and will only start if I accelerate. Any ideas? I’m tired of taking it to the mechanic. The other day it stopped while I slowed down, check engine light came on and I had to restart it. Any help would be appreciated it.




Right off the bat... the stopping when you slow down and not being able to start unless you open the throttle... sounds like a failing Idle Air Control valve. The belt squealing (is this what you mean by chirping) is a whole other issue.

The 84-86 Fieros had issues with the belts... the 84 being the worst. Often times a failing harmonic balancer (for which there is no new replacement on the 84 and it needs to be rebuilt) will sometimes cause a mis-alignment of the pulleys. Additionally, the alternator can also bend the bracket, etc., misaligning the belt. It gets worse too if you use "stop squeak" belt dressing... which over time can just make the pulley system stickey. You need to really, really crank down on that belt to get it not to slip. If you use the wrong belt groove depth also... that can ALSO cause issues. The exact belt neeeded (and not just the length) is important.

Do you have a check engine light? First thing I would do is check the engine codes. Go to the Fiero Online Service Guide, and read this to figure out how to check codes:
https://www.pontiacperforma...icles/OSG/codes.html
theogre DEC 26, 03:39 PM

quote
Originally posted by 82-T/A [At Work]:
Right off the bat... the stopping when you slow down and not being able to start unless you open the throttle... sounds like a failing Idle Air Control valve. The belt squealing (is this what you mean by chirping) is a whole other issue.

The 84-86 Fieros had issues with the belts... the 84 being the worst. Often times a failing harmonic balancer (for which there is no new replacement on the 84 and it needs to be rebuilt) will sometimes cause a mis-alignment of the pulleys. Additionally, the alternator can also bend the bracket, etc., misaligning the belt. It gets worse too if you use "stop squeak" belt dressing... which over time can just make the pulley system stickey. You need to really, really crank down on that belt to get it not to slip. If you use the wrong belt groove depth also... that can ALSO cause issues. The exact belt neeeded (and not just the length) is important.

Do you have a check engine light? First thing I would do is check the engine codes. Go to the Fiero Online Service Guide, and read this to figure out how to check codes:
https://www.pontiacperforma...icles/OSG/codes.html

"Duke" 4 cyl engines Do Not have harmonic balancer. Only 87+ can get one installed later.
Using any kind of "belt dressing" may help for a very short term but mostly cause more problems.
When fools "really crank down on a belt" will often cause more problems including killing bearings in everything the belt drives. In V belts can even break the cord layer in the belt.

Noisy belt is a Ruin belt even when new.
If have AC... Leave the AC belt Off while trying to fix main belt problems.

read codes need wire between A B on ALDL. Do not stuff big things in the connector because easily wreck the socket & cause problems w/ scanners & other tools later.
Caution! ALDL can be mounted Key Up or Down!
See https://www.fiero.nl/cgi-bin/main.cgi?ECMCodes But only shows Key Up to shop map of A B "pins."

Warning: If have belt or alt problems note that any codes may be Bogus as ECM has low or high volts. Do not replace/fix other things for same reason.
Should Check/Clean/Fix all Grounds in engine bay @ minimum besides fixing belt or alt problem(s).

Get Volt meter to check volts at battery etc.
Full Charge Battery = ~ 12.6 - 13.1 Volts.
Engine Running Alt Out or @ battery = ~ 14 - 14.7V

See cave link above... wire service, battery & more pages.
82-T/A [At Work] DEC 27, 08:14 PM

quote
Originally posted by theogre:

[QUOTE]Originally posted by 82-T/A [At Work]:
Right off the bat... the stopping when you slow down and not being able to start unless you open the throttle... sounds like a failing Idle Air Control valve. The belt squealing (is this what you mean by chirping) is a whole other issue.

The 84-86 Fieros had issues with the belts... the 84 being the worst. Often times a failing harmonic balancer (for which there is no new replacement on the 84 and it needs to be rebuilt) will sometimes cause a mis-alignment of the pulleys. Additionally, the alternator can also bend the bracket, etc., misaligning the belt. It gets worse too if you use "stop squeak" belt dressing... which over time can just make the pulley system stickey. You need to really, really crank down on that belt to get it not to slip. If you use the wrong belt groove depth also... that can ALSO cause issues. The exact belt neeeded (and not just the length) is important.

Do you have a check engine light? First thing I would do is check the engine codes. Go to the Fiero Online Service Guide, and read this to figure out how to check codes:
https://www.pontiacperforma...icles/OSG/codes.html

"Duke" 4 cyl engines Do Not have harmonic balancer. Only 87+ can get one installed later.
Using any kind of "belt dressing" may help for a very short term but mostly cause more problems.
When fools "really crank down on a belt" will often cause more problems including killing bearings in everything the belt drives. In V belts can even break the cord layer in the belt.

Noisy belt is a Ruin belt even when new.
If have AC... Leave the AC belt Off while trying to fix main belt problems.

read codes need wire between A B on ALDL. Do not stuff big things in the connector because easily wreck the socket & cause problems w/ scanners & other tools later.
Caution! ALDL can be mounted Key Up or Down!
See https://www.fiero.nl/cgi-bin/main.cgi?ECMCodes But only shows Key Up to shop map of A B "pins."

Warning: If have belt or alt problems note that any codes may be Bogus as ECM has low or high volts. Do not replace/fix other things for same reason.
Should Check/Clean/Fix all Grounds in engine bay @ minimum besides fixing belt or alt problem(s).

Get Volt meter to check volts at battery etc.
Full Charge Battery = ~ 12.6 - 13.1 Volts.
Engine Running Alt Out or @ battery = ~ 14 - 14.7V

See cave link above... wire service, battery & more pages.[/QUOTE]


I guess that explains why it was so difficult to find a replacement 84 harmonic balancer!