I just bought a '95 Riviera last week. It seems to have an issue with something getting warm and shutting down, preventing the car from either being restarted once shut off, or bogging down (audible through exhaust, can be felt when driving) and eventually stalling and no start..
The other day, I tried to back out of a parking spot and the car refused to move while running and in reverse, even while the accelerator was floored. The RPMs stayed low at idle, but car was struggling to move and eventually stalled out with no restart. I left the car for about 45 minutes, came back, it started and also tried struggled to move and eventually backed out and I took her home and parked her.
At this point, I can only trust the car to go to work and come home. It HAS to sit in between running times to "cool down", but my question is, WHAT is cooling down?
As I stated, it'* a 1995 Supercharged 3800 Series 1. It has 98,000 miles and little to no rust.
I read up on rivperformance.com, that it might be a fuel pump (mine is pumping, it can be heard, but not on a dangerous level) or it might be the MAF sensor (not sure how to test that one).
I once experienced a '89 Cadillac with a similar problem. THe car would heat up and shut down and would need to cool to be restarted. It turned out to be a bad PCM.

Either way, ALL of the 3 parts are expensive! Too expensive to make a wrong guess...so how do I test this issue out and find the right damaged part?

Is the check engine light on? Is it flashing at times? Take your car to Autozone and have them scan it for diagnotic trouble codes.

If you think it might be the MAF sensor, try unplugging it and see what happens. If the car runs better you need a new sensor.

To test if its the MAF sensor, disconnect it, then attempt to drive it. If it drives runs better you found the culprit. Either its dirty, or its bad, but if its bad, more than likely you would have a check engine light.

Check Engine comes on intermittently. May come on immediately, or a few miles down the road. May go off while driving or stay on.

AutoZone/ VIP/ Advance Auto Parts are all useless in scanning this car. It is a transitional year. I need a OBD1 with a OBD2 connector to scan this car. GM seems to be the only carrier of such a tool.

If the MAF sensor is unplugged for too long, won't this cause an issue?
Definitely a SES light, but the car will actually run better?

When the PCM sees the MAF sensor disconnected, it will default to calculated cylinder air mass table. Or something like that I had read about. Basically, its guessing how much air is going into the cylinders. It will have an effect on performance and fuel mileage, but it should get you where you need to go. I suggest not romping on it or anything.

You need to find a shop that has Snap-On scanners or a Tech2 that can read your PCM.

Thank you!!! I'll let you know how it turns out!

if its not the maf, i would think its the ICM or crank position sensor. if you start it cold and heat it carefully with a heat gun and it cuts out thats your issue.

I would almost bet the crank sensor. Probably a good time to change the balancer also.

Why would the balancer need changing? I don't think I have ever seen anyone on here ever have to change a balancer unless it was physically damaged.