1987 cutlass supreme 307

[donevin1]

I have a 1987 cutlass supreme with a 307 have 50k miles the last owner of course said it ran great the wiring had been chewed through I went through it and got it all put back together and got it to start but it will not stay running unless I have my foot on the gas I'm not sure what it could be maybe the carb needs to be rebuilt but since its the electronic bs no body around where I'm from will touch it what could be my other possible problems or something I could check or change out to get it running agin I'm stumped I've though of changing out the carb as well but I know that maybe more hassle then its worth I have a video of it running sounds rough but not the worst my rpm gauge goes fairly high but Im thinking the cluster must just be bad thanks for the help in advance

[Vimes]

I spy, with my little eye, something that begins with multiple vacuum leaks. Your vacuum hoses are split and dry-rotted, and that will cause the engine to run as described. The EGR vacuum line is coming apart, and there is one hose that's hanging loose between the carb and distributor.

[donevin1]

good catch with the egr line didn't see it I have noticed the other line that is disconnected I was planning on replacing it once I get a temp tachometer hooked up and try starting it again ill make sure I double check the rest of them for the dry rot thanks again

[ProTouring442]

Yup, lots of vacuum leaks.

Replace any you see, then, if it still won't idle, prop the throttle open enough to get it to run and spray inflammable carb cleaner on various lines. Make sure you've got the stuff marked "highly flammable!" or it won't work. Anywhere you spray that causes the engine to speed up, look for a vacuum leak.

[83hurstguy]

I had an '83 for a while with the CCC system and got pretty fluent in it. Advice - get the Olds Chassis Service Manual (CSM) for your car, they are usually available on eBay affordably. It will have step by step instructions on testing and repairing each component. You can rebuild the carb yourself, though the Thexton gauge tools can be hard to find for measuring certain things. I paid an "expert" to rebuild mine and it never ran right until I went through it myself with the book.

As noted, vacuum leaks tend to be a big issue... either the hoses split or the components fail. You'll want to use a mityvac hand pump or similar to test vacuum pods and thermal vacuum switches too.