Engine Keeps Cutting Off, pissed off & broke Options

[Jen]

yes, engine codes. all of them said the distributor. but they've ran a diagnostic before (three/four times) and it was always very different.

unfortunately i do not have my car at the moment. it's still at the shop getting looked at. they keep saying it's the distributor. because they this is the fifth time i've taken it up there, i'm only going to be paying for the part. but the part is expensive. i'm so frustrated.

it's only at the shop because it broke down saturday, and i called them cussing at them and screaming. so they towed it for free.

if/when i get it back, my friend and i are going to check it out. i'm trying to get a new car but i just spent close to $1000 getting my car fixed with things that weren't even the problem in the first place.

[lagos]

if thats what th codes say, then thats what it is. you can get a use distributor from someone on here for much cheaper.

[ecaddiction]

Maybe take it to a different shop? Which shop in Jacksonville?

[Jen]

if thats what th codes say, then thats what it is. you can get a use distributor from someone on here for much cheaper.

yes. but we've gotten different codes before. none of them said distributor. i got one cheap already.

Maybe take it to a different shop? Which shop in Jacksonville?

i will if it doesn't work after this time. goodyear on san jose in mandarin.

[hurley97]

have they checked the timing?

I'm not sure how different it is but at work we had a Mazda Protege come in with a similar problem, his timing had jumped and was a few degrees off. our mechanic reset it and its fine.

[Jeremiah]

I'm not sure how you all handle your mechanics, but my attitude is this:
If you didn't fix the problem, I'm sure as HELL not paying for the 'fix'.

[DrAg1n320]

Hey, hopefully i'm not to late, if your vehicle is stalling roughly 30mins-60mins after running, and stalls after it's been warm for a while and then wait till it cools and starts up again, then it's most likely your PRIMARY COIL it's called, and the codes you just got about the distributor is related to that. but the primary coil shouldn't be expensive?, at most it should b like 50-80 dollars. and i will garuntee you that's the problem. and yes, most mechanics are dumb.......

[alltracman78]

It could be the coil.
Which is in your dist.
I don't know if it's available separately or not.

vac leak. start the engine a look for loose or cracked hoses. you should head a hissing from where the problem is.

NO, NO, NO, NO, NO

I don't know how many times I've posted this on different forums.
For some reason 3SGTE folks have this misconception that since it works this way on their engine it will work this way on all engines.
Engines control systems are NOT THE SAME on all engines.
A pressure based system [MAP sensored] WILL NOT, NEVER, WON'T, CAN'T die if it has a vaccum leak. The idle will RAISE. The ONLY time it will die is if the actual vaccum hose to the MAP sensor is disconnected [that DOESN'T mean a crack in the hose, ONLY completely disconnected].
Only on flow based systems [MAF/AFM] will the engine run worse/die if it has a vaccum leak.

sadly, most mechanics arent too smart when it comes to simple stuff like that. pop your hood and take a look around.

hm........

Are you getting any check engine codes? My sources tell me to check the EGR to make sure it isn't stuck open. Also if it is a loose connection you could try to wiggle the wiring harness around the components while the engine is running. The main sensors that I would check would be your crank position and cam position ( cam position is inside the distrubutor requiring the full replacement). A way to free up a stuck egr valve is to lightly tap on it and see if it clears up the rough running condition. If the egr is stuck open it will cause almost all of your symtoms.

Just for reference, the 95 older don't have a crank sensor, only a cam sensor.
96^ has the crank sensor.

Jen, for reference, or if this isn't fixed, there is a more sensitive diagnostic mode you can put the ECU into.

Jump TE2 [NOT TE1, TE2] and E1 [you have to do this with the key OUT of the ignition, if it's in, it won't work].
Drive the car around until you have the problem.
Jump TE1 and E1 to read the code.
I don't know if it will pick up a bad coil or not, but it will pick up loose connections and such.

What was the code[s] that you got?

[Bitter]

funny thing is...even if you pull the hose from the sensor the engine will still run, just very poorly. i knocked mine loose once, but got it fixed before i drove anywhere.

[alltracman78]

It might run sometimes, but normally the engine will just die.

[Jen]

not working still. i told you that the engine code thing didn't work. i've been carless for over a month now. i hate this.

[lagos]

wait... you took the car to goodyear? a place that normally just does oil changes and tuneups is going to be really horrible at diagnosing this type of stuff. you should take the car to toyota and ask them to JUST do a diagnosis. normally its about 50-90bucks. they will tell you what the problem is and then you can decide if you want them to fix it or have a friend help you with it.

[supradog1]

not working still. i told you that the engine code thing didn't work. i've been carless for over a month now. i hate this.

that doze suck!!! you know, i can talk with my bf and see if he can help you if you like??? he is a super car WIZZZZZZZZZZ!!!! he engineers porsche gt2 cup & alms cars for a living, im sure he could figure out your celica's problem!!!
just pm me and LMK if you want our help!!!

This post has been edited by supradog1: May 9, 2007 - 11:51 PM

[Jen]

okay, no longer at goodyear. took it to the dealership. i've had 6 diagnosis'. all of them said 6 different things. 2 of these were at the dealership. many things were fixed, and things have not been fixed. at this point, i refused to pay for anything until my car was fixed and will run for more than 5 minutes.

btw. i really appreciate the encouragement.

[lagos]

well, we are trying to help but your not giving us a lot of info to go on... can you post in detail of what they thought the problem was and what they replaced the first few times? and what exactly did ALL of your ecu codes say?

This post has been edited by lagos: May 10, 2007 - 12:10 AM

[Jen]

1) Fuel injectors
2) Fuel pump
3) PVC valve
4) IAC valve
5) Distributor

This last diagnosis has showed NOTHING WRONG with my car. It stumbles, sputters, and does not, at all stay running. It gets worse by the day. It used to only do this very rarely. Then it was once a week, then it was once a day, now it won't stay running for 5 minutes. It is very difficult to get it started. We can try cranking it for 30 minutes, and it will just randomly start out of nowhere. Whether we let it sit or not.

[Delta_Phoenix]

Seeing that you've had most of the diagnostic problems fixed, I'm suspecting the distributor.

That, or whoever replaced your fuel pump dropped their ratchet into your tank. But I don't think that's gonna show up on your diagnostics.

Does the car seem weak at all when it does run? I managed to get water into one of my spark plug wells some time ago, ruining my #3 plug wire, and making the car run like a go-cart. I never got a CEL, but it could be worth a look.

[lagos]

1) Fuel injectors
2) Fuel pump
3) PVC valve
4) IAC valve
5) Distributor

This last diagnosis has showed NOTHING WRONG with my car. It stumbles, sputters, and does not, at all stay running. It gets worse by the day. It used to only do this very rarely. Then it was once a week, then it was once a day, now it won't stay running for 5 minutes. It is very difficult to get it started. We can try cranking it for 30 minutes, and it will just randomly start out of nowhere. Whether we let it sit or not.

out of all of those things, what did they replace so far?

[WALKER]

This may sound dumb, but has all this been on the same tank of gas and has the weather been hot? If so, could it be air lock? Try opening up your gas cap to let some of the pressure off.

[lagos]

This may sound dumb, but has all this been on the same tank of gas and has the weather been hot? If so, could it be air lock? Try opening up your gas cap to let some of the pressure off.

lol no.

the more i read about it, the more it sounds like a fuel pump thats on its way out.