Automotive Technicians Technical Discussion and Fixes for Jan 17, 2004

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Open Help Requests for All Makes and Models

	Help Request	Answers
	1997 Audi A4 1.8L Surge, Misfire, MIL Lamp on VIN: WAUCB88D4V hello all. this car came in with the mil lite on and engine surging at idle from 800 rpm's to 4000 rpm's. pulled codes with vag and i got four codes.checked basics for any vacuum leaks and none were found. at idle the engine runs smooth with the exception of t... Trouble codes: 16684, (P030, 16688, (P030, 17953, (P154, 17967, (P155	View
	1996 Chevrolet Astro 4.3L Misfire, MIL Lamp on VIN: 1GBDM19W1T Hi Y'all, This thing has us stumped. On the interstate @ 70 MPH or so every now and then it will stumble (missfire). Using the Snappy MT2500 and watching the mis fire count it will run about 255 per cycle but never has set a missfire code. It does set the P01... Trouble codes: P0106 (Map sensor system problem)	View
	1996 Chevrolet Blazer 4.3L transfer case VIN: 1GNDT13WOT Truck came in with a customer complaint of feeling like the brakes are stuck on when in 4x4 sometimes...took for test drive with customer and verified complaint. Seems to feel like binding in t-case or front end. When we drive in reverse 20 feet or so, it will...	View
	2000 Chevrolet Cavalier 2.2L wont move VIN: 1G1JC524DY customer driveing may have been shifting manulaly car quit moving wont go foward or back dropped pad fluid clean no debrie in pan thanks for any help	View
	1987 Chrysler LeBaron 2.5L crank shaft VIN: 3C3CJ41K6H hey guy,s sorry to bother you with this old car but i have to change the crank shaft and bearing my qestion on this car is do i have to pull the tranmission with the engine or do ihave enough room to just remove the engine thank you for your time have a great ...	View
	1998 Chrysler Sebring LX 2.5L No Start, Hesitation, Stall, Misfire VIN: 3C3EL45HOW Hi all, this Sebring ran fine untill today. Its my wifes car and is very well maintained. She rolled into the shop today spitting and stalling (the car not my wife). It will idle sometimes and stall. Any attempt to give it the gas and it spits and tries to die...	View
	1996 Dodge Grand Caravan ES 3.3L power doors,power locks,exterior lights,interior l VIN: 1B4GP54RX1 Hey guys i have an interesting problem. I have this caravan that the power locks,interior and exterior lights and radio do not work. BUT they work if u have the key in run position. U can turn the key off with having the headlights still on the on position and...	View
	1993 Ford Aerostar Eddie Bauer 4.0L rack VIN: 1FMDA31X0P Hi guys...Need Ford experts or someone smarter than me...Not to hard...lol Another tech replaced rack because of leak. Then rack because of hard steering, no returnability. Does not matter if cold or warm, or driving speed. Does not happen all the time. You tu...	View
	1998 Ford Expedition Eddie Bauer 5.4L Stays in 4X4 at all times VIN: 1FMPU18L4W Ford Techs I would appreciate your help & thanks in advance for any given. I am in over my head on this one but like the challenge of new problems. I need a wiring diagram from the dash switch to the transfer case. "Somedata" is not very helpful on this one & ...	View
	1999 Ford Taurus LX 3.0L wipers VIN: 1FAFP5858X Greetings fellow masochists,I could use some help with this racing station wagon.It has an intermittant draw that has gotten more frequent during our bout of sub-zero weather.Customer has stated that at times he comes out in morning to find snow cleared from w...	View
	1964 GMC c60 327CID Mechanical VIN: 6525712223 I am in need of a repair manual for this transmission. Also need to find a parts supplier for seals,gaskets,bearing ,ect Thanks to all Mike	View
	1997 GMC K2500 Sierra SL 5.7L Cooling Systems VIN: 1GTGK24R2V Customer brought this truck in for coolant loss and I found the intake gasket leaking on the passenger side front and some on the driver's side front. Putting intakes in will solve the problem but my question is why they have failed at this low milage? Does GM...	View
	1991 Honda CRX 1.5L compression VIN: JHMED8455M Hi all, 91 Civic CRX with the 1.5 came in on the hook. Owner says it just stopped running on the road. He says it did restart but wouldnt move in drive. I couldnt get it to start again. Sounded like no compression when I cranked it. Checked timing belt. 1 toot...	View
	1991 Honda Civic DX 1.5L Alternator VIN: 2HGED6350M Hi Group-I thought I had an easy one for a Saturday repair. My daughter's car, a 91 Civic DX, had an occasional Battery warning light on. I never caught it acting-up, but since it had an O-E alternator, it seemed like a good bet due to age and mileage. Old uni...	View
	1998 Honda Accord LX 2.3L Poor Idle Quality, Stall, Misfire VIN: 1HGCG5548W This vehicle was worked on at another shop for this problem. They diagnosed it as fuel injectors, but that did not fix the problem. I have checked for vacuum leaks with propane and found none. I have also checked spark quality, valve timing and clearance. The ...	View
	1998 Jeep Wrangler Sahara 4.0L Wipers VIN: 1J4FY49S2W Hello group, customer brought vehicle in due to intermittant inoperative delay and low speeds for front windshield wiper. When the vehicle was here, delay and low speeds did not work and it seemed that the motor ran rather slow for being on high speed. We chec...	View
	1994 Mazda B4000 SE 4.0L No Start, Poor Fuel Economy, MIL Lamp on VIN: 4F4DR17X2R Hey, Ford /Mazada Techs. This Mazada will not allow me to extract codes. Customer had trouble with starter and installed a new starter. Mil lamp is on and after the engine gets warm and you turn it off , it will not restart due to flooding. I hooked up NIGS ...	View
	1981 Mercedes-Benz 380SL 3.8L long crank time VIN: WDBBA45A8B need some help from mercedes techs. on the old fuel injection system - car had been tune-up with a fuel injection service 2,000 miles ago which had no problems at that time (maintance thing) - car did fine and customer had no complaints and car started and ran...	View
	1988 Mercedes-Benz 420SEL 4.2L Rear Brakes VIN: CA35D8JA38 This car is a nightmare. It has a ear piercing screech/howl in the rear brakes when you lightly touch the brake pedal. I have replaced everything but the e-brake shoes and it still does it. When it first came in with this problem she had just bought the car. W...	View
	1993 Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.3 2.3L Heater VIN: WDBDA28D9P The customer brought this car in complaining of no heat. (Fan runs OK.) I first felt both heater hoses, and since both felt hot, I suspected a temp door problem. After verifying that temp door was going to full heat position, I again checked heater hoses with ...	View
	1992 Nissan Maxima SE 3.0L Poor Idle Quality, Hesitation, Surge VIN: JN1HJO1S4N this vehicle comes in running fine. the lady has occsionall problem where for apparnet reason the car will loose power on a steady cruise, she will shift down to keep revs above 3500 to keep going. If she comes to stop sign it will idle very poorly & has no ta...	View
	2002 Opel Astra 1.8L Hesitation, Misfire, Poor Fuel Economy, MIL Lamp on VIN: WOLTG513X2 The problem is ignition control oriented, however I can't find information referring to this electronic system. The dis module is controlled by another electronic module which receives two electrical harness connectors with 64 pins each. This last module has t... Trouble codes: P0353, P0354	View
	1990 Pontiac Grand Am LE 2.5L Excessive Emissions, Poor Idle Quality VIN: 1G2NE14UOL engine runs rich, no codes, all sensors within perameters. ignition system test, good spark, good ignition pattern. fuel integrater goes to 65 when throttle open, replaced injector and cranksensor. no different, simutec shows mat sensor out or range but scanne...	View
	1995 Pontiac Grand Prix SE 3.1L temp gauge VIN: 1G2WJ122M1 The vehicle has high mileage, it came to me with an overheating complaint. I pressure tested the cooling system and found the lower intake manifold gaskets leaking coolant. After replacing the gaskets and t-stat I noticed, as I was allowing the cooling system ...	View
	1996 Pontiac Grand Am SE 3.1L No Start, Stall VIN: 1G2NE52M4T Need Help from techs that may run across this before. 1996 Pontiac Gran Am SE with a 3100 SFI that starts every time and shuts right off within 1 or 2 seconds. The car has a Viper security system and a Remote car starting system installed. The car will start e...	View
	1992 Saab 900 Turbo 2.0L No Start VIN: YS3AL36L9N Hi, Group, We have serviced this 900T for several years. It has refused to start on extremely cold mornings this winter. Each time, the plugs are badly gas fouled. The first time in, we cleaned the plugs, throttle plate and checked fuel pressure and tune-up p...	View
	1992 Toyota Pickup 3.0L Stall VIN: JT4VNO1D1N truck was towed in two months ago.no start,no start.dist.shaft flopping ,excess slop in shaft. Replace with a used distributor. Customer returned one month later, towed back in with no spark and no fuel pressure. EFI fuse was blown. Center terminal on distribu...	View
	2001 Toyota Sequoia SR5 4.7L Hesitation VIN: 5TDBT44AXI This seems like a well maintained vehicle and runs very well except for this tip-in hesitation after a complete stop. There will be a very short initial surge, followed by a noticable hesitation, then normal accelleration. By defeating the traction control (th...	View
	2003 Toyota Tacoma Pre Runner 3.4L No Start VIN: 5TESN92NX3 Engine: 3.4 L / 6 cyl / Gas Fuel: Fuel Injection Ignition: Distributorless Trans: 4-speed Automatic Transaxle (Electronic) Mileage: 12,400 miles VIN: [...] Affected Item: Condition: Vehicle fails to start intermittently More Info: Reported on num...	View
	2001 Volkswagen Golf GLS 1.8L MIL Lamp on VIN: 9BWGD61J71 This car came in two weeks ago with to sets of codes 1St code 17608 (boost pressure valve malfuncation) We tested the circuit and found the decel shut off valve diaphragm was not holding.We replaced the valve 2nd codes was misfire 301,302 ,303,304 we found no ... Trouble codes: 17705 (pressure drop between turbo and throttle valvecheckD.V)	View

Fixes & Summaries for All Makes and Models

	Fix/Summary	Answers
	1995 Acura Legend L 3.2L Poor Idle Quality, Surge VIN: JH4KA7665S Thanks for all the replies. I had several replies telling me to check the coolant and make sure the system was full. Vinson, Howard, Jim & Jeff, hit it on the head. They told me to check the fast idle thermo valve. If the valve has an internal leak it will cau...	14
	2001 Buick Century Custom 3.1L MIL Lamp on VIN: 2G4WS52J01 Thanks to all who replied. Flashing the PROM fixed the problem. Trouble codes: P1404 (EGR circuit problem).	18
	1990 Cadillac Eldorado 4.5L Poor Idle Quality, Misfire VIN: I6GEL1330L After using a scope and monitoring the dwell, we found the Distribtor has a worn shaft causing random misfires. Thanks to you all!!!	20
	1996 Cadillac DeVille 4.6L drain on battery VIN: 1G6KD52Y4T FIRST A SUMMARY OF THE NINE REPLIES. 1. Door jamb switch. 2 Instument cluster staying powered up. 3. Lumbar switches came up more than once but this car did not have. 4. Power antenna sticking. 5. Accessory relay in the fuse block under hood in front of the le...	9
	1991 Chevrolet Astro CL 4.3L heating VIN: 1GNDM19Z6M i cant believe this one - we put a new t/stat in again - it ran 10 deg hotter & kept the pass compartment warm. thank for all the input	12
	1995 Chevrolet Beretta Z26 3.1L heater VIN: 1G1LW15M5S well, the customer has yet to return, i did find out from most of the replies that the nipple on the manifold has the restrictor built in, this seems the most likley cause to me, closely followed by an air pocket in the system, thanks for the replies and i wil...	21
	1999 Chevrolet C1500 LS 5.0L fuel gauge, radio VIN: 1GCEK14V4Z thanks for the help. it turned out to be a bad window switch back feeding the bcm. thanks again.	4
	2002 Chevrolet Impala 3.4L headlights,interiorlight VIN: 2G1WF52E42 Thanks guys,I got two good reply's,it sounds like the bcm is to blame for it so it was send to the dealer because of extended warranty,and they replaced it and everything is good,thanks and have a good day! Ralph	7
	1996 Dodge Avenger ES 2.5L MIL Lamp on VIN: 4B38U52NXT Have not been able to fix yet. Customer picked up car and has not brought it back yet. Will repost if i get an answer to the problem. Thanks to all that replied. Trouble codes: P0171, P0174.	6
	1997 Dodge Neon High Line 2.0L headlights VIN: 1B3ES47C9V Hi Guys: I finally got to look at my daughter's car today. The majority of you had said to inspect the day time running light module. I found it in the center console below the radio as stated and it smelt burnt just as most of you indicated. Unplugged it, and...	18
	1999 Ford Windstar LX 3.8L MIL Lamp on VIN: 2FMZA5147X Thanks to everyone who replied. I had no idea that intake gaskets were such a problem,especially since I couldn't verify leakage. I have tried cleaning the MAF sensors even though they looke ok and the Baro reading was good. This is an awesome resource! Thanks... Trouble codes: P0171 (system lean bank 1), P0174 (system lean bank 2).	34
	2000 Ford Escort LX 2.0L Poor Idle Quality, Stall VIN: 3FAFP13P6Y Not closing as a fix, but if you see these symtoms, check out TSB 02-9-1. Easy to miss because this TSB addresses missfire codes first, then driveability. Did a 'top engine' clean and all is well (for now). The real fix is to do the upper engine per TSB. Becau...	10
	1995 Geo Tracker 1.6L MIL Lamp on VIN: 2CNBJ18655 Brought Vehicle back in and went back to the basics after the wire circuit check were suggested. Found a inopperative egr valve, this lead us to a clogged vacumn line. Evidently the prior shop placed a b-b in vacumn line. Good fix in somecases, but not this on... Trouble codes: 15 (engine coolant temperature sensor), 51 (exhaust temperature sensor).	3
	1997 Mercedes-Benz S500 5.0L gauges/warning lights VIN: WDBGA70G5V The customer has picked up the car & is driving it to see if the problem occurs again. The replies I received thought the problem was probably the instrument panel or possibly the ignition switch.	3
	1992 Pontiac Sunbird LE Value Leader 2.0L No Start VIN: 1G2JC51H2N So it now runs. What I did this morning is order and install a new ignition module/coil assembly. Tried it and it is still the same. Start from the beginning and rethink. Verified top dead center to timing marks. found the damper turned about 10 degrees. Remov...	16
	1997 Volvo 960 2.9L MIL Lamp on VIN: YV1KS9609V Thanks again to iATN, Some further information about this vehicle before I share the final fix. I used a master tesh scanner to pull codes and the only code present was P0500 from the transmission module. When I tried to clear codes, it would be back as soon... Trouble codes: P0500 (Speedometer signal problem).	4

(Also Available: All, Asian, Chrysler, European, Ford, GM.)