26 replies to this topic

[warder]

Happy New Years everyone..

Im at a loss for words. Right when I have the possibility to get started again on rebuilding my car, it decides to commit suicide. WHY DO ALL MY CARS COMMIT SUICIDE?! Well more I killed it..

Heres what happened.

Last night I was out at my friends cabin in my car, I spent the night. This morning when I got up and started the car it didnt warm up. It just went straight to normal idle around 750rpms... I didnt think much of it at the time.

So Im on my way home, going down the moutain. Everythings fine and dandy.. Im kinda out of it for obvious reasons... but then I finally noticed I was on flat land losing speed in 5th gear. So I was like.. wtf! I pulled off the road and checked it out. The engine started rattling and Im guessing it wasent firing on one cylinder. So I tried to wiggle the spark wires and reset the ecu. That didnt help. I didnt have cell phone service where I was and my only choice was to drive. As I drove it got progressivly worse.. I felt so bad but there was nothing I could do but keep driving til I got cell phone service. But by the time I did it was too late. I had to downshift more and more, until finally I was in first gear... slowing down... til the car just wouldnt go. It happened to be half way up my drive way when it finally wouldnt go any further... Ive poured so much money into this car. I really love it, if only it was 20 years newer. I dont have the technical know how, or the time, or the patience to deal with it anymore.

Im not sure what Im going to do yet. But Im pretty sure my car is dead. The engine had a good 209k miles on it. Theres not much to salvage from it other than the new alternator, battery, and the brakes.

Im just wondering what went wrong. Does anyone have any idea what could have happened?

[JeepGirl]

check your oil?

check your grounds? i had a hell of a time with power loss when my grounds rotted away....

spark?

fuel pump?

maybe it just needs a new engine...

[superex87]

hey , the same exact thing happened to my dads 89 toyota camry...
at a guess im gona say that the cat could be cloged up if its not that then probly something in the fuel/air system ( i know thats kinda vegg sorry)

p.s. a carzy idea for ya but try to spray some carb cleaner into it and see if it runs better of worse

[crxls]

at a guess im gona say that the cat could be cloged up

im with this guy. deffinitely sounds like a clogged cat. just take it off and punch it out then reinstall

[rollz87civic]

^^^^^+1

[warder]

wait you mean hollow out the cat and put it back on? I mean I dont have anything to loose.. Here in VA the emmisions dont matter anyways. Interesting.. BTW Code 3 comes up on the ECU!

Edited by warder, 02 January 2007 - 01:13 PM.

[1stGenRex]

p.s. a carzy idea for ya but try to spray some carb cleaner into it and see if it runs better of worse

you know whats even crazier!??!?!?

if he DID have a carb!!!

[warder]

So is it safe to run the car without any thing but the manifold on? Isnt it gonna be insanely loud?

[crxls]

So is it safe to run the car without any thing but the manifold on? Isnt it gonna be insanely loud?

i wouldnt run it for any period of time with just a manifold but you can do that just to see if it runs any better without the cat.

[warder]

Alright well I ran it like that... HOLY SHIT is it loud. Ok so at first there didnt seem to be a difference. Then I waited like ten minutes
and kept trying to start it.. Now if I start it, it runs! BUT really horrible. But if I give it gas it will rev up now. Before it would just die. Maybe its just bad gas? I dont know where the hell I would have gotten bad gas though.

Also the code 3 on the ecu went away.

Edited by warder, 02 January 2007 - 04:53 PM.

[crxls]

Alright well I ran it like that... HOLY SHIT is it loud. Ok so at first there didnt seem to be a difference. Then I waited like ten minutes
and kept trying to start it.. Now if I start it, it runs! BUT really horrible. But if I give it gas it will rev up now. Before it would just die. Maybe its just bad gas? I dont know where the hell I would have gotten bad gas though.

Also the code 3 on the ecu went away.

what does the manual say code 3 is?

i cant find a code 3 in the online manual. what lights are on?

[badpenny]

what does the manual say code 3 is?

i cant find a code 3 in the online manual. what lights are on?

I think he means a 2-1 which IIRC is O2 and TPS

[warder]

The first light is lit up which means the o2 sensor is shorted out or malfunctioning..

[1stGenRex]

The first light is lit up which means the o2 sensor is shorted out or malfunctioning..

makes sence as a plugged cat would cause this

[warder]

But thats the thing.. Took the cat off, now it runs, but really really hard. The whole engine shakes and i have to hold the accelerator for a good few seconds before it actualyl gets up and starts to rev.