P0171 is indeed a vacuum problem - or is it?
Beware of this code 'cause it can throw you down a lot of expensive rabbit holes.-------------
Ding Dong School Class is now in session!
The teacher is IN the building
P0171 - CAN be a vacuum leak - but it can also be a contaminated MAF (K&N air filter anyone? --- Cold Air Pack anyone?) because the computer 'sees' the numbers coming in from the MAF and says: "There's not much air flowing into the engine ....."
The
MAF has a very fine couple of wires that are heated by low voltage and as the air flows over them, they are cooled and the resulting resistance in the wire will allow just so much voltage to get through to the ECM.
If those wires are covered by oil and the "clean-cycle*" has happened correctly - they had the oil burned off - but each time the oil vaporizes, it leaves some ash that coagulates into a film that finally coats the wire and it cannot read the airflow because that oil is now an insulating sheath over the wires. OK?
* this CLEAN CYCLE happens every start-up when the wires go incandescent and will
burn off (ostensibly so) any contamination. It works - kinda. It CAN be messed with though.
► The lean-problem might also be caused by the O2 sensor .... 'cause it is 'seeing' unburned fuel and that means not enough oxygen in the cylinder(s) to support complete combustion. OK?
► The fact that the O2 sensor is also possibly sluggish or cannot get to a certain number of crossover counts will mess with the ECM and guess what --- it can create a false flag that makes the fuel injection system get turned on longer and earlier to get more fuel into a system that really doesn't need more fuel
I'm not even considering a fuel pump or filter problem here - but I'll keep my mind open to a bad pressure regulator - if your vehicle even has one ... many GMs don't use them any more.
The above is just my word-y way of telling you that there are a few possibilities in that single code. Having the code is just the start of your adventure.