92 lumina 3.1 euro WOOSH from air filter, now dead!

was running great until 2 months ago, then got rough, running and idle. just delt with it and still ran reliably. went out this morning to start it and ran slow (rpm), chugged alot, gave it gas, really rough idle, then died? never done that before. opened hood, restarted and heard a stong wooshing from from air filter box, removed cover partialy and pulled air filter, was comming from the duct going into the intake i think. placed hand in there, hardly no suction, should it such up my hand? seams it should? i dont know, im a single mom with one car and in a bind, shops have said all differant things and price quotes are outragous, plz someone help!

Does your Service Engine light light ever come on? If it does theres a trick you can do to get the codes that the ECM stores when it does that.
Sounds to me like you've got a bad ICM, or its in desperate need of a tune up. (maybe both?) When was the last time it had one?

maybe a little more information will be helpful in this. This has 156k on the motor, bought used from an old lady who bought it from a rental company. have replaced the radiator, hoses, battery, water pump, serp belt, starter, alternator, fuel pump, fuel filter and brakes...............uggggggggg all in 1 1/2 yrs......isnt it happy yet? plugs and wires havent been changed due to that stupid rotate motor issue, how stupid can a design be, and i LOVE chevy! so other than the plugs and wires what else do u mean by serviced? never had it in for a tune up i guess if thats what u r asking? what about the load sucking sound from the intake? never was that loud till today that i noticed, i did get it to re start roughly 1 outta 10 times, but idles till it dies out, im so crushed, plz explain what that ic? thing is? where is it, can i change it my self?

really sounds like the ignition module has dropped a couple cylinders if it has the module w/3coils.

you could also have a plugged up catalytic converter due to misfiring.

at any rate it really sounds as though your gonna need someone there that can help ya.

is there anything i can do to test/eliminate one of these formentioned problems? or should i just bite the bullet and bring it in? should i bring it to a chevy dealership or is any reptuible shop ok? i dont get check engine light at all, exaust does smell funky tho, gassy smell. and i do have 3 coil elec ign i think, the plug wires goto the front of the block into a bank with 2 wires per coil, 3 of em i think. i hope im giving right info, im a girl with little mechanical experiance, but i will get dirty , not afraid of that at all. i do appricate all the help so far people.

I believe autozone/advance auto tests coil packs and ICMs for free(fee?). If the exhaust smells gassy then a cylinder isn't firing. If its a coil, then you won't pay out the nose for one. if its the ICM, you probably will pay a chunk for it. The loud wooshing may be the IAC stuck open/closed, it allows the engine to run with enough air to idle. If its messed up it can cause low/high idle. You won't feel much vacuum with the throttle closed, engine idling and no load.

I'd say have the ICM/coils checked out first before you go on a parts replacement spree. Hope to hear back on this soon.

ok, heres a question then, what do i do to test them myself, is it just getting an oms meter from walmart and checking resistance? i have been reading posts all night and it seams its something i feel i can do. we have napa and carquest and checker aoto shops here, will they do it if i cant, and if so what do i have to remove to bring to them?

the ICM & coils can be a bit of a pain the first time you take them off.

first you will need to disconnect the battery. remove the air cleaner housing (4 screws to remove the top, and one bolt, (10mm), to free the bottom portion and move it out of the way.)

remove the two bolts that hold the top of the radiator, this should allow it to move just enough to get the fan out

remove the radiator fan (four bolts, two top, two bottom and the harness connector) be sure to be carefull not to damage your radiator taking the fan out, its a tight sqeeze to get it out.

the ICM & coils are mounted on a bracket that is bolted to the block. there are three harness connectors that plug into the ICM. carefully unplug all three, taking care NOT to break the locking tabs that hold them in place.

you'll need to remove one nut, (13mm), (pass side) that holds the spark plug wire separater, then remove the stud bolt, (13mm), behind it. there are two more bolts,(13mm), one on the drivers side of the bracket, and one on the bottom side. you'll have to feel around to find them, as you cant see them.

after those three bolts are out it will just fall right off. there are 6 screws(5.5mm) (2 each coil) that hold the coils and the ICM to the plate.

most likely the ICM itself is the culprit, ive seen many of these drop two cylinders and only run on four. ive not seen any bad coils, but its still possible.

the ICM around here runs about $90, ICM and coils both about $150.

that adresses one problem, however i still feel like you catalytic converter is clogged as well and could be where the woosh is coming from, being excessive backpressure that is being relieved through the intake when the engine stops. you'll have to fix the misfire first, as its the misfire that clogs the cat.