Hello all, I'm new here and I got to say I like the community so far.

I bought my 1995 Camaro z28 back in August of 2011 last year with 3 broke connecting rods. So, I got a new block, bearings, rings, cam, oil pump/pick up tube and seals. The block I picked up was a LT1 short block. So I just replaced the bearings and rings.

Long story short...We got it back in the car 6 months later(took time rebuilding it, my first rebuild.) And the car wont idle. It tries for 10-45 seconds sometimes, but it dies if you don't peddle it. Tore off one of the valve covers to check valve lash...Started the car up and only 2-3 of the rockers are getting oiled. The oil smells like gasoline, also.

The cam is a CC503, so I don't think it's "too much cam to idle without a tune." The PCM was already tuned to the aftermarket cam that was in the car when I got it, so it's not the stock tune. The car idles if you unplug the MAF sensor at 2,000RPMs.

The car has longtubes, 1.6 roller rockers, CM612 Valve springs, electric water pump, Hardened pushrods, new NGK spark plugs, stock injectors...I know I'm forgetting other stuff, though.

I just don't know what the deal is...And it's just a huge migraine after all the work. Anyone have any ideas to it's being such a pain in the ***?

 

If the car is only running for a short period of time the oil may have not reached all the rockers yet. If it will idle with the MAF unplugged and at a high rpm, I say you probably have a pretty good vacume leak.

 

And that would prevent it from idling by itself with the MAF plugged in?

 

If the vacume leak is not being metered by the MAF, yes.