My car is dying...
 

So yesterday my car decided to start quitting on me. When it's cold and you try to give it a little gas (and I mean a little), it just shuts off. It seems like whenever it trys to spool maybe. The car doesn't sputter or anything, it just turns off. The first time it happend it took me a few minutes to get the car started again. Since then it tried to die twice, but I took my foot off the gas and the car just lost all power (engine not elec.) but didn't turn off. Then it died on me again a few minutes ago, but started right up. Anyone know what's going on?

Is it throwing a CEL?

Check your batter cables, connections, IC hoses, injectors, etc.

First thing I would probably check with any throttle related problem is the throttle position sensor. Put a meter on it and check the output as you move the butterfly.

Ya but it was on before from something else. No IC hoses to check, all the hoses seem tight.

When you say meter, you mean mulitmeter I take it?

Do you know what the cel is throwing? I'd get it checked again because new problems can arise while the cel is on ya know... It sounds like a fuel problem to me...

I'm not a mechanic but it has been really cold in Truckee. Guess it's cold in Reno also. If you don't have much gas in your tank, I'm thinking it could be a fuel problem with frozen lines or just plain old water in the lines. If you let your tank get much below 1/2 up here and your baby is outside over night, you can get condensation and freeze a fuel line. Anyway, I hope your problem is as simple as that and not terminal.

Yup - look up the specified voltage output range in the car's shop manual, put a multimeter on it, and move the throttle through its range of motion. I'd particularly look for any dead spots or spots where it spikes out of the spec'd range.

Do the temperatures in Truckee also indicate how cold it is in Atlanta? 'Cause that's where JC and his legacy are. :P

JC, I'd agree with Austin that is sounds like a TPS issue, since it's so sensitive to touching the gas pedal. If the TPS is out of spec, the car could be thinking you're stomping the gas when you just tap it, and it's dumping too much fuel. However, when the car's cold, it has to run rediculously rich just to stay stoich... so I don't know why extra fuel would kill the motor like that. :?:

Another thought is the mass airflow meter. A MAF car can go haywire if it doesn't get a valid signal from the meter. If the TPS checks out I would move on to that, in addition to checking all the routine EFI cables & connectors like spooln mentioned earlier.

While tuning my car from a rich state (650cc Injectors in a stock 450cc car) it does exactly what JC is saying. When you press the gas it just DIES.



I doubt its the mas. I've had a problem with my stock mas, and you'll get rough idle conditions and while driving, at WOT, you'll have the same effects as JC is describing.


JC, what year is your car? If its an OBDII, or even a OBD I, and you know anyone with a datalogger in your area, have them check it out. You can read the TPS from that and it'll tell you if it's good or not.

I fixed the other problem and no more CEL. It was throwing an inhibitor switch/neutral switch light. It's OBD I.

I'll grab a multimeter and check out the TPS when I get a chance. Also just be more descriptive when it switches from a cold idle to regular it surges. It will go from ~900rpm to about ~1500rpms+ and stay there for maybe 30sec and drop back down.

It's going to snow in Atlanta tomarrow. :P

It depends on the car. Our old mazda started dying when it had trouble with the MAF meter. It would just cut off, near instantly.

Really? What the MAS look like on the older subarus?

Well my CEL had been on because a dumbshit mechanic had left the car in test mode. Eventually I found the right connectors (one was on the wrong side of the steering column?) and fixed it. Anyway, according to one of the guys on legacy forum the car sometimes cuts fuel when trying to boost in test mode. I have no idea why or if it's true but the car hasn't stalled since.

:lol: Shopowned.

Good to hear the Touring Wagon is A-OK. I hate teh shop.

We hate you too Scotty. :lol:


JK Sometimes, you see so many cars in a day, little shit gets overlooked. Can't help it. Pobody's Nerfect.

Haha, I thought about adding "except Cory", but I figured you knew the type of weasels I meant. You know, the ones that put ATF in a 5MT and nonsuch. :lol:

My post from the Legacy forum, overlooked indeed...

Good to hear!

Okay, well maybe that guy was just a moron. . . seems like.

I forget shit sometimes as well, but it seems like this dude just disconnected a bunch of crap and didn't know what the hell he was doing!

You are correct in being pissed. Continue.