engine trouble

[RussTad]

Ok so here goes. Right now my check engine light is flashing. and here is how it progressed.

Car is a 3.1 v6 1997 cutlass supreme sl (4 Door)

About 2 months ago I decided (from a friends advice) to cut a hole in my air filter box. I did that and about a month later when I was comming home from a movie. My check engine light comes on and the car start to idle really rough. I got a new air filter box and installed it about 3 weeks ago at most. I tried to reset the computer but it still flashes. (granted my dumbass still has not gone to get a diagnostic check.

So my engine sounds ok... but the exhaust sounds like a putter. so its put put put put put put and when you accelerate it sounds weird also. But the engine compartment sounds fine. oh since it is idling hard the exhaust sometimes rattles too.

If more info is needed orrrrrr I make no sense at all please email me at Rtada@comcast.net for a better description.

OH yeah last thing I just remembered. right around the power steering there is a lot of grime also on the top of the engine compartment.

[Oldsguy]

Russ, first let me welcome you to our site!

It sounds like your catyictic converter may be damaged or worn by the description you give. Those things can get old after a time and get clogged up. Does your exhaust smell abnormal or like rotten eggs? On the very earliest cars with cats they had some trouble like that but I don't think the later ones did but there is always a chance that a previous owner had the cat replaced and who knows about the quality of replacement parts people used these days. It was a good idea to replace the air filter box. With todays engines having so many sensors that the computer uses to control them it was probably a good move. About the grime on the engine, that would be normal from the power steering pump. Clean off the engine and monitor it to see where and how quickly it gets dirty again. On a nine year old car I don't think it is abnormal to have dirt from that, some pumps leak more than others and any dust at all becomes dirt as it sticks to the power steering hydraulic fluid. Use an old rag and some cleaner like simple green or orange plus and just spray and clean. I don't like using the products like Gunk engine degreaser because often you end up with a car that won't start afterwards. Not from the product but from washing it off with water. You have to be real careful with that. At any rate, good luck and I hope to have been some help.

[RussTad]

actually the engine has a little bit of a sweet smell not a sour smell. But I will check into that cat converter.

[Oldsguy]

Well, that smell is definitely very close to a rotten egg smell, I am sure you have experienced it before on SOME car in heavy traffic or at a stop light. You would recognize it again if that was it so it must not be your catylictic converter. Isn't there a way to read the number of flashes the diagnostics in the car's computer give out when you short two of the pins on the diagnostic connector? It seems that I remember reading about that? Just bringing that up as an option because it is much cheaper than buying a diagnostic reader.

[RussTad]

i will probalby just have to go to auto zone and let them do it for free.