Can you hear the fuel pump prime when you turn the ignition from off to power only? Is you battery gauge doing anything abnormal before it dies? And when it shuts off do you have to wait till the car cools down again before you can start it back up?

TYPICAL for GM cars! your car should start with ONE LIGHT tap of the key! Take $20-40 to ANY oiL change place and have the THROTTLE BODY and IDLE AIR CONTROL VALVE cleaned up to SHOWROOM CLEAN! I use AMSOIL POWER FOAM for this and it REALLY works! FOLLOW up with GUMOUT spray! Use ONLY Mobil One 0W-30 engine oil and NO VALVOLINE< the sludge maker, that NO FACTORY USES anywhere on earth! ti is a HOAX for most cars! YOU will nevet get good results with NO CONVERTER or proeprly tuned EXHAUST! Only EXCESSIVE FUEL USE and eventualy your engien will self destruct with GASOLINE in the OIL! EVEN NOW if you remvoe your dipstick and SMELL IT< it will smell like GAS< I WILL BET! This will THIN down and RUIN your engine bearings! PUT A CONVERTER BACK ON THERE! Scour a few JUNK YARDS! It is ILLEGAL for them to sell USED ones, but many will ANYWAYS! ESP punks like ME that hate government intrusions and many MANUFACTURED laws that RUIN lives! ANYWAYS, the START is to get your CONVERTERS replaced! Use BOSCH O2 sensors and NOT the GM CRAPPY ONES! use NO AC DELCO PLUGS ( they FAIL in all plug tests) use DESNSO or BOSCH iridium plugs that REACT with our newest LOW SULFUR fuels to make MORE power and MORE economy and LOWER emissions! You also need a POWER BRAKE FLUID CHANGE using FRESH DELCO SUPREME fluid and MORE attention! << til you replace those CONVERTERS and get GOOD O2 sensors and good signals! WHY did you DESTROY this car this way!?? GM uses the CHEAPEST injection parts it can FIND< even though they are BOSCH< they are the rejects nobody else wants! GET SOMETHING DONE befORE you RUIN your engine with THINNED DOWN GAS FILLED OIL! Check dipstick NOW and see what i mean! BYE BYE bearings and BYE BYE ENGINE when AIR/FUEL mixture is in FULL RICH MODE! SCOUR yards for h=good used FACTORY converters! You WASTED YOUR MONEY HERE! Toss out DELCO plugs, they are JUNK and waste energy! BOSCH IRIDIUM or DENSO iridium will help IMMEASURABLY! I would be tempted to get FULL INSURANCE and then push it off a CLIFF! Nearly WORTHLESS to epoe that know CARS! SORRY PAL! YOURS is a CLASSIC CASE of how Gm makes things last for SO LONG and no further! Even your ECM was replaced, right! This is how GM likes it to be, I GUESS! They get you BIG TIME after the WARRANTY IS UP and they do NOT have to care ANY MORE! The 3.8 is VERY simple and can last a long time! A TWO VALVE PUSH ROD type. GOOD solid block, BAD oil pumps, N|BAD water pumps, INEFFECTIVE oiling system and BAD intake gaskets that eat up COOLANT after the warranty is up! GM LOVES THIS! it seems!

reset the crankshaft sensor. also if you removed the cats, how bout the monitor sensors (lambda) behind the cat. these measure if the cat is still doing its work. but you dont have one so it gives the ECU faulty data.

cchange your fuel filters.

I have a 2000 Pontiac Firebird 3.8 v6 automatic I've owned for a year.

For the passed 3 months or so, It's been having a very long start. Like 5-7 seconds i guess. and sometimes it doesnt even start the first try. anyway, after driving about 30 minutes to an hour, the trac light will come on. the car starts to sputter with a "putt putt putt" sound from the back. then the car will die. and it will not start back until it sits for a while.

Replaced fuel filter

Replaced EGR valve

Replaced mass airflow sensor

replaced plugs and wires

replaced ICM

Replaced Crankshaft sensor (didnt have it reset, could be my problem. idk)

Replaced Temp Sensor

Replaced battery and alternator

Replaced Serpentine belt

Removed throttle body and cleaned it inside out

Replaced air filter

Checked fuel pressure

checked coils for fire

1. long, hard start

2. rough idle with miss

3. strong fuel smell (the cats were removed)

4. trac light off comes on, car sputters then dies

5. will not start back until it sits for a while

repeat step 1

Please help me!