Questions and Answers

Chevy 1500 Pickup Keeps Pinging Q. Hi Vincent, I have a 1990 Chevy 1500 Pickup, 350 throttle body. The plugs and wires, cap and rotor only have about 5,000 miles on them. The radiator was replaced about 10,000 miles back. Here is the problem. I have the timing set back to the point that it is running hot on warm days and it still spark knocks.

The knock sensor is working because when it really gets to hammering you can feel it retard, and then it quits for a little bit.

It only uses about a quart of oil every 2,000 miles. Which isn't bad for 260,000 miles. The oil pressure is 30 psi at warm idle, 40 psi on the highway. I have noticed that at smooth idle the oil pressure bounces back and forth about 3 or 4 psi.

Does this sound like a timing chain or maybe something in the ignition? Any information you could give me would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks Vincent,
Albert

A. Check the EGR system first to see if it's working. All late model engines will "ping" if the EGR isn't working properly.