Any Motorheads to help a Gal out?

a reply to: slapjacks

Yea and the thing is that I am not sure all sensors are created equal today .Some may be electric over vacuum and visa versa .A simple vacuum hose being cracked or not connected can cause problems with the performance .

I have had some similar issues on my chevy silverado, but it has 313000 miles on it. I agree with the obd11 scanner, jot down any codes and have him erase all codes. Then when the engine light comes on plug it in again and read what it is doing now.

I believe all codes are stored and could be reading codes from past issues that have been fixed... Now, I know it is a far different vehicle but I took my Cadillac CTS in for an oil change and I think they had to disconnect the air intake into the mass airflow sensor to get to something, or inadvertently knocked it loose, but when I started it it ran like crap.

Now my truck, like your car, the engine light would come on and go off...then it started flashing and running really poor. After replacing damn near everything it turns out it has dropped compression in 2 cylinders. Which really bums me out as it still looks real pretty and before it started running poor I put almost 1500 bucks into the front end and 4 new tires.

a reply to: Myomistress

Just adding to the din and,

Sorry if its been addressed already...

did anyone check to make sure the oil hasn't leaked out?

Loose, (missing) or cross threaded oil pan bolt, mismatched filter, simple enough to check and see if there is oil on the ground under the car wherever its being parked.

a reply to: Myomistress

Yeah, they can tell you immediately if you have a trans issue, it is the only part I don't touch on vehicles, minus a quick filter and drain and fill. Flushes with a good shop use a machine that pressurizes an cleans, not just drain and fill, and some transmissions respond badly to flushes if done wrong, by jamming the junk up into small passages.

Guessing, but that "p" item may be cracked pcv valve. If you have that or any other leak on the vaccum sys, you will throw a check engine light as well. They are only a few bucks and changs in about a minute.

Good luck !

originally posted by: Mandroid7
a reply to: Myomistress

Yeah, they can tell you immediately if you have a trans issue, it is the only part I don't touch on vehicles, minus a quick filter and drain and fill. Flushes with a good shop use a machine that pressurizes an cleans, not just drain and fill, and some transmissions respond badly to flushes if done wrong, by jamming the junk up into small passages.

Guessing, but that "p" item may be cracked pcv valve. If you have that or any other leak on the vaccum sys, you will throw a check engine light as well. They are only a few bucks and changs in about a minute.

Good luck !

Yeah, he said if he can't get a code, he thinks that that's what he'll check first and either clean it out as best he can or replace it (though the local auto store didn't have it he said so it might take a while to get one) . I told him whatever he thought and I'll write out a check for around it because we don't know for sure yet.

intrprtr: No oil has been lost, my car is an outside car and so I would have seen some oil settling underneath the car in the driveway pretty quickly/haven't seen a loss anywhere where the car has been parked.

I don't know if this matters, but he said he used a cheaper filter whenever he changed the oil and thinks that the car also might not like the filter? Something about a filter called stp? I don't know if that means anything but I thought I'd put that information out there.

a reply to: slapjacks

Is the oil filter on those motors underneath like normal? I ask only because on my CTS it is actually accessed from above. That is why they knocked or did not re hook my airflow line into the maf.

the chirping noise is definitely being made by the belt or a pulley.

when the car is idling the engine RPM`s are controlled by the idle air control valve, the valve is controlled by the computer.
how does the computer know that the engine is supposed to be idling?
the computer gets information from the throttle position sensor, the TPS tells the computer whether the gas peddle is being pressed,how far it is being pressed or that it`s not being pressed at all.if the peddle is not being pressed the computer will know that the engine is idling and it will adjust the idle air control valve to a position that allows the engine to idle at pre programmed RPMs.

if the engine is idling too low that could be caused by a dirty or malfunctioning idle air control valve.
if the engine is idling too high that could be caused by a misadjusted or malfunctioning throttle position sensor.

I found this on youtube, a guy doing an oil change on a Suzuki sx4.
below and next to the oil fill are 2 wire harnesses plugged into a sensor,i don`t know what that sensor is but if oil got on those wires the oil would run down inside the wire harnesses and onto the pins which carry electric current to the sensor.oil is a pretty good conductor of electricity so the electric current might be travelling through the oil from the pin or pins that are receiving a electrical signal to the other pins which aren`t suppose to be receiving a signal during normal operation. the computer might be getting false info from the sensor, because more than 1 pin is receiving an electrical signal. The computer might be trying to compensate for a condition that doesn`t actually exist and in doing so it is inadvertently causing a poor engine performance issue.

a reply to: Tardacus

That's actually extremely interesting and sounds like it could be spot on for this specific problem. What are my options and can I try to clean some of the interior without actually taking it anywhere to see if that makes a difference? I might mention this to my brother and see what he thinks because I think you might be pretty close. Because he keeps mentioning something about the computer trying to fix it or restart something with the light or adjust or whatever (though he also isn't ruling out that one pcv valve being the culprit either.

a reply to: Myomistress

you can buy a spray can of MAF cleaner and spray it into the air intake while the engine is running and at idle, that will clean the MAF sensor and the idle air control valve.

I would unplug the wire harness from the sensor below the oil fill and spray inside, where the pins are with MAF cleaner and spray the outside where the wires are going into the harness with MAF cleaner too.

it`s important not to use carburetor cleaner or any other kind of cleaner on the MAF (mass air flow) sensor because it`s really sensitive and harsh cleaners like carburetor cleaners will damage the sensor.

The mass air flow sensor is similar to the filament in a light bulb and is located in the air intake tube. the computer sends voltage to the thin filament to heat it up to a pre programmed temperature. as the air is drawn into the engine through the air intake tube the air cools the filament which causes the computer to increase the voltage to the filament to maintain the pre programmed temperature, the computer can tell have fast the engine is running based on the amount of voltage that is required to maintain the filament temperature and information from the throttle position sensor, among other things.
the faster the engine is running the more air is being drawn in, more air passing the filament cools it faster,which requires more voltage to maintain the filament temperature.

If you don't have one, you could rent an Old II code reader, and it will pinpoint the exact trouble code(s) your vehicle is registering.

It'll be easier to diagnose with that information.
It sounds like a cylinder misfire though. Depending on whether too much or too little fuel could be being supplied to be ignited by your spark plugs, it could be a new spark plug or fuel injector corresponding to the specific cylinder that is experiencing the misfire.

Without reading reading the code you just replace all the spark plugs and give it a full tune-up as it might need it in the near future.
Whatever code it reads, you can find the specific part that needs replaced by finding the info online.
Any real mechanic at least has their own.
Also women are just as capable of learning this stuff as men are just to be a true CPT. Obvious.

It could also be a vacuum line leak also.


If money is a concern, though, have someone read yo codes, yo.

a reply to: DeathMetalJesus

it would be a good idea to buy an obdII reader/scanner they are really inexpensive now for a basic one and they are always good to have.
check e-bay for one.
autozone still does free readings.

a reply to: Tardacus

She should be glad it wasn't a frozen spark plug on a triton motor.
Costed me $110 just to replace one.

a reply to: Myomistress

You can buy a cheap code scanner at Walmart for around 20 bucks if you suspect it to be a problem with the engine/sensors /drivetrain

I may just have to get a scanner the next time I'm by walmart because he has since decided that he's going to be stubborn and not take it and just buy a series of parts and replace them thinking that he knows it all. He's replacing that valve and buying air filters and a bunch of other stuff and putting them on himself I guess. I suppose in about a week I'll be able to tell you guys whether it's fixed or if it's still doing the same thing. Yeah, it sounds wise at this point for me to buy my own scanner...

The first time I started it up today, it went to the correct rpms and the engine sounded great again like it always did... But the very next time I put it in park the rpms dropped again. I'll keep everyone posted and want to thank you all again for your suggestions and advice.

Just giving an update. Performance is still sporadic but my brother swears up and down that he's going to work on it this weekend. He had me order some spark plugs and a new valve which arrived about two days ago. I'm hoping that he can look at it or I'm just going to have to make time to take it to a real shop (he recently got hired as sort of a mechanic's apprentice at a shop during the week so he's doing that now).

I know you guys that flagged were interested in the outcome so I'll keep the updates coming if he gets this valve put in and the new spark plugs. Otherwise, things are much the same though it has its good days and its bad days.

I'm going with belt/pulley and something with the spark plugs arcing to the block. Mainly, I'm going there for "hope" since those issues are relatively easy to fix.

For that, you'd replace belt, plugs, and plug wires. Wires are likely source for arcing, sometimes you can examine them to see but not always.

Pulling codes is always a great idea though. Remote diagnosis isn't exactly precise

a reply to: Myomistress

Have you ever replaced the fuel filter, and if so how long has it been since you did that? A clogged fuel filter could cause issues like what you describe I think. Also I thought I would recommend going to an autozone and having them help you. They usually have a scanner they will help you use, and can print out likely causes of any codes that come up. That may help point you in the right direction if your brother doesn't get it sorted out, or if he gets stuck on it.

a reply to: Myomistress

I would also recommend purchasing a Haynes manual for your vehicle. Mechanicking brother or not, it's always good to have a reference guide. As a beginner or laywoman, you can learn a lot about your vehicle and auto repair in general just by reading that book. They walk you through most repairs step by step. The tricks of the trade aren't all in there of course, but the basic procedures are.

Chilton makes repair guides as well, and the manufacturer usually has a highly detailed manual available, but a Haynes would be better for your purposes in my opinion. They are better references for the less experienced. I have a Haynes' book for every vehicle I own. Totally worth the twenty or thirty dollars spent.

You might be surprised at what you could do yourself, if you decided you wanted to. You want to be guided by a more experienced mechanic at first to make sure you're doing everything safely and maybe help you when you get stuck. I bet your brother would help you learn if you wanted to though. Just a thought. I know some women just aren't into that stuff at all. Where do you come in on that, just out of curiosity?

Just thought I'd update everyone since a few seemed to be actually into what happened to my little car. XD


I had my brother replace the PCV valve and also got four new spark plugs put in. It seems to have more get up and go again, but now quite perfect. He is going to put a new air filter in it sometime this weekend because he said that mine is black and he is honestly surprised that the poor thing hasn't choked up yet. On top of that, I am taking it to a mechanic on Friday because of the chirping and he'll probably look at the belts put in a new water pump etc. Apparently according to my brother my rear differential is also slowly leaking oil so I should probably get that looked at soon too (though I drive ALL the time so there's not much time honestly) .


That's the state of the little Suzuki that Could at this point. XD

a reply to: Myomistress

Have you replaced the spark plug wires?

A lot of times, they can be overlooked, but arcing to the block can manifest very, very similarly to what you describe. Its not a bad thing to replace anyway if you aren't sure.

For the air filter, it can be a good idea to get one you can wash too. They usually give a bit more "oomph," but the really nice thing is that you just wash it instead of replacing it. Can save a bit of money in the long run