today i was driving home, and about 40 feet from my house, my car jerks like i just down shifted from 5th to 1st, i was going about 15mph in 2nd gear when it happend.
the car tries to stall, and pressing the gas peddle has no effect. so i manage to pull the car to the curb. at this point the car has stalled, and when i try to start it, it cranks, but wont start, after a few tries it will start, but idles low for a few seconds then levels out, when in neutral i can rev the engine just fine (when i tap the gas quickly the idle drops then goes up, which isn’t normal) anyways when i try to put it in gear and go, it feels like the car has no power, and will try and stall when getting out of 2nd.
The car has sat for a few months while i had to work out a few things with the tags, and i had only been driving it for a few days prior to this happening.
the car is a 2000 Mitsubishi eclipse gt, all stock.
after some researched i checked the vacuum lines and they seemed fine, intake was getting air just fine, i dont have a fuel pressure gauge, and im praying its not a bad fuel pump, any ideas?
Sounds like a fuel delivery issue of some kind, my first guess would be just a crappy old clogged fuel filter. Try bashing the fuel filter with a hammer to dislodge anything that might be blocking it. If this improves it for a bit then its new fuel filter time.
Ok first sounds like a fuel problem try taking off the fuel filter and cranking the car and seeing if it delivers fuel if it does then it might need a new filter, While sitting in the car concentrate ur ears to the back where ur fuel pump is located and see if u can hear the Buzz of the pump working… Go to local autoparts store and get a thing of sea-foam and dump it in the gas tank your injectors might be clogged. If you don’t hear the pump more than likely you need to replace it, Before trying any of the above mentioned disconnect ur fuel lines and plug them and spray starter fluid into your intake and see if the car starts up perfectly if it does… most likely clogged filter needs replaced and or a new pump is required. If you need any additional help do not hesitate to ask.
thanks for the suggestions, im going to start looking at it now, ill let you guys know what i come up with
lol scratch that, my local auto store is closed for Martin Luther King Jr. Day… just my luck…
so seafoam is out of the question till tomorrow, but i did take my back seats out and get the the fuel pump, and i can hear it going. wasn’t able to reach the fuel filter, gunna need to get my hands on some jack stands for that. I wasn’t able to get it started this morning so im a little worried now, lets hope all i need to do is wack the fuel filter a few times
did you go to the petrol station and filled it up? stuff like this can happen if the fuel is very dirty, very low octane or crappy quality. seems to me it doesn’t want to vapourize, that’s why it wants to stall when you open the throttle all the way.
If not , check if fuel comes out of the fuel lines (take the filter out and crank the engine), fuel should pour out if it’s not clogged.
If neither of these apply , the problem should be the ECU.
the gas is good, i’ve had bad gas before and in the worst case i get a little white smoke. my issue i had no smoke coming from the tailpipe.
i just checked my fuel filter and it looked clean, i tried to start and nothing, but i had fuel coming out of the pump.
at this point i think its either a clog in my rails or in my injectors, sea foam is looking like a good idea at this point.
and as far as my ecu. i reset it last night and still had the same issues, i do have a code from it but its for an o2 sensor. ino o2 sensors with this car are an issue. but i’ve been getting this code for over a year, and have never had an issue getting fuel into the engine before.
i think while the car sat, some gunk got jarred loose once i started driving it, and now its stopping fuel getting into my fuel rails, if it was just 1 injector im sure the engine would still run. this morning i can’t get it started at all.
i know some engines suffer fuel cut-offs as a result of faulty o2 sensors. in any case you should change it because it’s cheap and easy to replace.
If the fuel filter is clean, there is no residue inside the rail. injectors cannot clog all at once and even one cannot clog that easy because of its placement.
try starting the engine with starter sprays. i guess it’s winter there as well so it should be easy to find.
ps: i’ve put very bad quality fuel in my honda and ford and both had difficulty starting, in fact only the ford managed to start, but could not hold idle speed and needed revving until it was warm. this is caused by a fuel that has high viscosity and low volatility (even if the fuel has high octane and seems to be fine , corners cut in the refining process, etc. causes the fuel to form large droplets , especially in cold weather, that cannot igninte. And everyone hates diesels.
ok well i went and got some starter fluid and seafoam, i hit my fuel filter with a rubber mallot in hopes of dislodging anything, no start. I went and got some starter fluid and tried that and still no start. would this mean my spark plugs are bad? and what are the odds that all 6 would go bad at once? im sure air is getting into the system, when it was running i could hear air getting sucked in through my air filter.
Try pulling a spark plug out, but keeping it attached to the lead, then CAREFULLY ground it against the block/head or whatever and get someone to crank over the car and watch for a spark. (Do this CAREFULLY holding the spark plug with insulated pliers or something, I’ve given my self unpleasant shocks a few times doing this)
I’d say its VERY unlikely that all the plugs have gone that bad at once. dodgy plugs usually gives a miss/rough running under full throttle but OK performance at idle/light throttle.
ill try the spark plug trick tomorrow, this all might just be a bad electrical short stopping my plugs from getting any juice, i was looking at my fuses and they all seemed fine, maybe i have a burnt wire or something.
Maybe you have the immobilizer stuck. glitches in alarm systems can cause a car to refuse starting up. or the electronic distributor module could be faulty and not provide a steady current.
Ok well i just got done checking my spark plugs, and spark plugs 2 and 4 were covered in oil, so i took off my valve cover and low and behold, both my spark plug gaskets were either loose or broken, so i was getting oil coming into my cylinders. so i went ahead and ordered new gaskets, and ima swap everything out tomorrow (including new spark plugs). And i was getting a spark with my plugs, but as soon as i put them back in, crank it and take them out again, they we’re covered in oil again.
on a side note, does anyone know any tricks for getting old hardened valve cover gaskets out? i almost snapped my puddy knife trying to get it out.
well, you’re in trouble. I know some japanese cars place them at the flywheel, but it could also be behind the balancer pulley (you should check here first).
