properly timed= hesitation

[korey_gunn]

This is very good advice for the symtoms you are describing.Jus my two cents I would do it before I spent any money on sea foam or fuel additives. Sounds like the VAF isnt doing its job all the time....

ok whats the "vaf" stand for?

[nitrofarm]

Vane Air Flow- Its a Vane that gets moved with very slight air movemant. And there air springs that apply slight pressure on its movemant. Ther is also a "fuel switch" located inside of it. You must "make" pwr thru this switch in order to get 12v to the fuel pump.

[JohnGunn]

when i got the car a few months ago my nephew [a mechanic] had to slightly advance the timing to rid the car of the hesitation. No timing light used.This was causing the pinging. So last weekend I asked him to retard the timing to fix the pinging. He did and it ran great for a week. Slowly the idle got rougher and more loopy, and after sitting @ a stop light on take off it would sputter for the 1st 10 feet or so, then clear up and run properly. Now I asked my other nephew [also a mechenic]to put his timing light on it and time it properly. We had a strange problem with timing light it didnt flash very often, only every 5-10 seconds. Anyway we manged to get it in time. Idle was a lil better but, it had a very bad bog/hesitation. We wound up adjusting it to a point when it pinged but had no hesitation.
air filter is clean,plugs,distributer cap,rotor,wires look good. Intake looks very clean. A few weeks ago I put lucas fuel system cleaner in tank, seemed to help the car run better..that was 3 tanks ago....I'm gonna put some seafoam in the tank tonight before work...Thats the history of the car fellas!

Well, Korey, I just went back to read the whole of this thread. From my perspective I would have to say it isn't going very well. Everyone suggests some other thing that should be done. I've seen this happen before, sometimes going on for page after page with every message propounding some new theory about the cause of the problem and what should be done about it.

I think the one characteristic all of those confused threads have is a lack of focus on the part of the person describing the problem. As you can see, this site of full of well meaning people who sincerely want to help. They take whatever they are told and do the best they can with it. While there is certainly room for well meaning people to disagree, when the disagreement becomes universal, it must be for lack of a clear description of the problem.

For example, the whole idea of advancing the timing in hopes that it might correct some engine roughness shows a basic lack of understanding of the process of diagnosing engine problems. Instead of trying to return the car to its factory specified settings, you, with some help, to be sure, go in just the opposite direction. And in the process introduce more problems than you had to begin with. Now, if you have a perfectly running engine and you want to adjust the timing a few degrees to see if you can increase your mileage, that is OK. But when you have a poorly running machine, it is time to go according to the manufacturer's recommendations. Your purpose, and that of all of us trying to help, should be to that end. The whole timing thing served only to force us to included timing as a possible cause, or cure, of the problem, when, without your suggestion, I don't believe anyone would have even considered it.

Here is what I suggest you do. Pick a time when you are feeling pretty good and relaxed. Go out to your car and sit behind the wheel for a couple of minutes breathing easy as you think about what you are about to do. And what is that? With your mind focused solely on the running of you engine and without any thought for what might be affecting its performance, turn the key. Listen carefully to every sound produced. When it starts pay particular attention to the smoothness of the idle. If it is perfectly even and smooth, you can shift into gear and start driving, but if it is not smooth, concentrate on the sound it produces and try to think of words that describe what you are observing. Is it surging opr just uneven. And, above all else, is it misfiring. You might even want to take some notes.

Then drive off listening to the engine and the quality of the acceleration. When you have finished driving the car around in a normal fashion, go back home and write a long and exhaustive description of all that you observed and can remember. All of this with absolutely no thought on your part of what may be causing any of it.

As I end this I am aware that it is possible you may take offense at some of the things I have said. I'm sure some would say you have that right, but I can assure that played not the least part in my motivation to speak as frankly as I have. These thoughts presented themselves to me as I reread this thread and realized that it lacked a sense of forward movement. If you feel I have offended you, say so and I'll unsubscribe from the thread and go on my way wishing you well. But, if you believe the sole purpose in all that I have said was directed at getting this thread back on track and you and your car back on the road, I assure you I will continue to give my best efforts at getting your Festiva up and running better than ever.

John Gunn
Coronado, CA

[korey_gunn]

I take no offence to any help I'm offered! Further more I greatly apperciate any and all input. I didnt realize how inexpensive the plugs,wires,distrubiter cap and rotor were. So the basic tuneup will be done today....we will go from there.
Thanks all...........Korey Gunn

[iceracerdude]

Yeah, it's expensive to be poor!