LeSabre :: 03 Buick 3.8L - High Idle And Delayed Shifting
Aug 26, 2014
After I start my Lesabre when cold, after about 15 minutes or so it starts idling high, usually about 1500 , but sometimes it's as high as 2300 while stopped at a light. And a few times it has been 3-4000 rpm after putting it into PARK. After it starts idling high it starts shifting late. If you shut the engine off and immediately restart it, it usually starts idling fine again temporarily. Engine has normal power and runs smooth and idles smooth. It has also randomly died a couple times while driving at 30-40mph but then immediately restarted as if there was no problem.
It has a P0121 code which is "throttle position sensor switch A circuit range/performance problem". It also has a P0420, "Catalyst System Efficiency Below Threshold (Bank 1) ", which I'm not sure is related to the issue because the check engine light had been on a long time before the idling/shifting issue started happening. Like in the neighborhood of a year and a half before the current issue, but it ran fine the entire time and got 30+mpg on the highway.
First thing I did to troubleshoot was to test the TPS and it seemed ok. Voltmeter readings were .4v with throttle closed and seemed to advance smoothly up to 4.4v at WOT. But, I tested it before the engine was hot and I don't have a Oscope. I then used some carb cleaner and shot it around the injectors and a few vacuum inlets to check for vacuum leaks, to no effect. Engine runs quiet and I don't really hear any vac leaks.
Next, I cleaned the idle air control valve which was pretty dang dirty, but that didn't seem to resolve the issue, although it may have had a slight effect because the issue seems to come and go some while driving now, but I'm not totally sure. I also tested the connector at the IAC and had voltage on all 4 pins between .4v - 11.4v approximately.
Lastly, I got the engine to reproduce the problem and then pulled and then reconnected these sensors one at a time while the engine was idling high:
MAF Sensor
TPS
IAC
Intake Air Temp Sensor
This didn't have the slightest effect on the engine... I'm thinking it might actually be the TPS or IAC but I don't want to just start replacing stuff without knowing damn near certain it's going to resolve the issue. Could a vehicle speed sensor cause this? How I should proceed from here? :?
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My 2001 Suburban, 1500, 5.3L, 2WD with 164k miles, has a problem with high idle and delayed shifting. The high idle occurs when the vehicle has been driven around for awhile. When I start it up, even when already warm, idle is normal (~600 rpm). After some time, however, it idles at 900 to 1100 rpm. The delayed shifting happens right away--almost like I have the tow/haul mode turned on.
I have cleaned out the idle air port, cleaned the MAF sensor, replaced the idle air control valve, replaced the PCV valve, replaced the engine temperature sensor, and unhooked the battery to reset things. It still idles high.
I first noticed this a few weeks ago when the battery died. After I put in the new battery, the idle was very low. So I cleaned out the idle air port and valve. Then it was high. I drove it around for a few days like that and then started replacing stuff, to no avail--still high. I also cleaned around the throttle plate.
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My car recently started running overtemp not much, but enough to bother me. I flushed the system with no change. after about a week with continued symptoms, my trans started shifting hard between 1st to 2nd and 2nd to 3rd, and running rough in general, sputtering lightly in high gear. I assumed it was running over temp with the rest of the car, so I replaced the radiator and the radiator cap, yet still am having the same problem. Is it still related to the cooling system? if I replace the water pump will i solve my problems, or is it really a hidden trans problem? I'm fairly certain the trans has never been serviced, and I'm reluctant to do so given the high milage, 174,000. The fluid is full, but its very thin, and no longer red, its sort of a pale yellow.
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Our 2004 LeSabre has the following symptoms - there's a clicking that occurs whenever the car is in motion, the car occasionally hesitates/bucks when shifting between gears (but not always), the radio sometimes does not go off when the keys are taken out of the ignition, we're losing about a quart of oil about every 2500 miles but there is no sign of a leak on the ground, we also seem to have reduced mileage (using more gas).
In this corner, Mechanic 1 (high price) - replace front lower control arms, sway bar, and bushing, front end alignment, throttle body gasket and EGR tube, oil pan gasket replacement, ignition switch replacement, brake fluid and coolant flush. $1900
In the other corner, Mechanic 2 (low price) thinks it's just the spark plugs and wires that need to be replaced, the wires, replace air and fuel filter, and PCV valve - $450
We had the oil changed about 2500 miles ago, replaced the air filter then. The oil change place suggested a coolant and brake fluid flush. I've used mechanic 1 in the past and they have replaced my head gaskets a couple of times and I suspect they are ripping me off.
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, My 1997 Buick Lesabre transmission slips at random when I shift into overdrive. I have my mechanics look at the transmission and have them drive the car to recreate the problem and what do you know the car doesn't do it. I made a post about this problem a while back and it wasn't the A/C that was the problem. I do not drive fast in the car and I checked the Transmission dipstick and the fluid is still red and at the full mark. I brought my car to Auto zone to check the codes but all i get is a loose gas cap.
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99 Buick LeSabre ... I only have one low-beam working, the other low-beam bulb went out today ... When I switch to high-beams, the high-beams come on, but I cannot turn them off via the manual light on/off switch on the door panel ... The Twilight Sentinel works properly, and will shut off the high-beams per switch setting ... During the daytime, the high-beams will just stay on till I turn off the car, manual headlight switch won't turn them off ...
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its 94 degrees outside and I take a ride then when I park the 2003 Buick lesabre v6 3800 custom , I shut it off in my driveway, then as I walked past the car I notice a rubber type high heat smell through the seam in the hood its like a combination of heater or radiator hose and belt rubber smell yet when I open the hood no leaks no extremely hot belt and the hoses just feel normal hot the car runs fine ,no noises oil is high on the mark not low on antifreeze nothing , I just got this car in the early spring and never noticed it until now mid Summer high heat weather .is this normal?
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I have a 1995 Buick Lesabre. The car jerks while I am driving or when idle as if it wants to shut off. Sometimes it jerks and then the check engine light comes on. When I described the problem to my mechanic he said that it might have been the fuel filter but then he said it might be an electrical problem. I would like to start with the fuel filter to see if that would work but I am not a mechanic nor am I an expert on cars nor do I want to spend tons of money on such an old car.
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My sons 97 LeSabre runs and drives like a top most of the time. Twice now though over the last three months it has died on him. Both times the car stalling out has been preceded by a high pitch whining noise that seems to be coming from the fuel pump. The first time, it would restart and run for a few minutes with the whining sound then die again. We towed it and let it sit a couple days and found that cleaning the MAF sensor may fix it. We did this and it worked.However, yesterday afternoon he and a couple friends ran into town, about a 20-mile drive, to run a couple errands. Drove around in town for about 30 minutes and it started the high pitch whine from the tank again and made it a couple miles across town before it died again. Pushed it around the corner to a gas station and parked it. A few hours later, my wife and I went to go get it, didn't know if I would have to push it or tow it, but I turned the key and it started immediately with no whining noise, so I drive it the 20 miles home without incident. The outside temperature yesterday was in the mid 90's and humid, and thinking back to the first time the car did this, the weather and circumstances were almost identical? When used to go to work out, or to work, or just little drives around there seems to be no problem. The car has even run this 45-50 mile round trip without incident numerous times, but at different times of day with cooler temps, and some lengthy waits between driving times.Does this sound like a fuel pump or sensor that could be failing? And why would it only act up under high temp situations? Almost like it was vapor locked, it had plenty of fuel, and didn't make a difference earlier in the heat even opening the gas cap to relieve any pressure? Completely stumped here?
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My Buick has started acting weird and I've had a hard time figuring out what's going on. As I understand it 94' was the transition year for the OBD1 and OBD2 sensors, therefore auto zone and o'reilly haven't been able to pull codes on my car. It runs off of OBD1 codes but has 16 point OBD2 sensor pins.
Here's the problem: When the car is started it revs up to 2000rpm at idle, when shifted into neutral the rpm jumps up to 3500. In drive and reverse it goes back down to 2000rpm. While driving the car is hard to stop and surges when I take my foot off the break, it also gains speed on flat ground without touching the gas pedal. After driving the car when I put it back in park it revs back up to 3500rpm and is quite noisy.
I've replaced the mass airflow sensor, cleaned out the entire throttle body (there was a little carbon build up but not too bad), replaced all the vacuum hoses(that put a stop to it for about a week), and I'm still having the same problems. I recently replaced the a/c pump because the bearings went bad but I don't think that would cause any problems like this.
I have a very, very slight gasket leak on my valve covers but it's been like that for the last few months and the car was acting fine. The car has done this before but it usually stops after you drive it somewhere. The hotter it's gotten out the more often it started happening and now it's not stopping like it did before.
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I have a 1991 Buick LeSabre, sometime last year the check engine light came on, and I took it into a mechanic who told me that a magnetic sensor on the timing gear broke off and that it is the problem with the car, but it would cost me 500 dollars to replace the part, because it is located in the engine. I noticed that the engine felt like it lost power, and the car started vibrating when I was idle. The beginning this year, I replaced the spark plug wires, and replaced the spark plugs, when I replaced the spark plug wires, I realized that two of the wires were broken, as soon as I was done.
I tested the car, and the power is back, but I still have the stalling problem. I will try to describe how the car stalls, I come to a stop, and when I push on the gas to accelerate, the car just conks out, so I have to restart the car, and rev it a little to keep it from conking out again, and it starts running normally. I have been told by another mechanic that I need to replace a Electronic Ignition Control module, which I can not find, and that it is possible the fuel is not getting into the chambers. I just want some answers to my problem, so the car will last me till I can get a new vehicle or something better.
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I have a 1997 LeSabre with 180000 miles. I can drive the car for 4-5 miles before it stalls and then dies. the car will start to idle fast, then bottom out a couple of times before it dies. It also makes a horrible noise under the hood and sounds like the rods are all clanging together. Once it dies, it will not restart until it has sat there for 30-40 minutes. After sitting for some time, it will crank right up and then repeat the process again. My oil pressure is off the chart high and it stays there all the time. Does this have something to do with the problem of is that another problem all together? What is causing my car to die like this and how do i fix it?
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1994 Buick LeSabre Custom 3.8 Litre V6 with 103277 miles.
It runs smooth when idling in Park, rough when I put it in gear when I am stopped (either drive or reverse) has hesitation when accelerating, it smooths out again when driving then it starts to drive rough at about 55 MPH.
Mechanic told me it was the plug wires. I replaced those and the plugs. This fixed the hesitation when accelerating issue, but the other issues remain (now even seem a little worse) I thought the plugs and/or wires were bad, so I rechecked the gauge on the plugs and traced to make sure I had the wires hooked up right. Everything seems in order.
I have added fuel injector cleaner, and changed the oil, oil filter, spark plugs, spark plug wires, air filter, flushed the radiator, and changed the thermostat. (For a tune up since it has admittedly been a while)....
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The equipment:1995 Buick Regal Custom 3.8
I noticed a year ago that my car would randomly stall out coming into work after a 20-25 minute drive. It then started to idle really high, very rarely. So i cleaned the throtle body, new air filter, new fuel filter, sparks, and wires. This is about where my expertise ends.
Its seemed better, however, it would act up now and again (stall) but I was fine with it.
Recently I have noticed that the car idles really high 1.5 in drive (compared to 900) and 2k in park after I have drove for 20-25 mins. So I put the computer to the car and all I have is transmission error codes which I have had since I owned the car at 80,000 miles and I am now to 160,000 miles. This car has been pretty good to me because it starts, goes forward, and backwards! What else can you really ask for. A better idle maybe?
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I bought my '07 Passat 2.0T Wagon as a CPOVW 6 weeks ago. It had 4700 miles on it. I complained about the transmission having a delayed engagement when shifting into reverse and drive. (it drives normally however with positive shifts and is very enjoyable) I was told it was normal and not to worry. (could it be designed-in to soften the engagement?).
This week I noticed a light "thunk" in the right front when re-applying power while coasting below 40 MPH. I never noticed it before but I usually strive for smooth driving so that may be why. I've had other Aisin Warners but they were in Volvos. I got out of a '99 Volvo Cross Country because I didn't trust the driveline. Am I going down the same road?
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I have a 1991 bronco with a 351w and the e4od trans.. The transmission is shifting late and hard and sometimes when i let off of the gas to slow down it shifts between gears up and down by itself... The only lights on the dash that are on is the Rear Anti-lock brake light and the speedometer is not working either.. Where to start the trouble shooting to fix it?
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Brother in law has the above truck with shifting problem. On a cold start, pulling out of the driveway, it will get to about 3-4000 rpm and will slam into gear. Sometimes its worse than others, but is consistant. Once it warms up, the problem goes away for the most part.
I've researched a little online and have found a few people mention the 1-2 shift accumulator (servo...?) and was wondering if any of you have ran into this or have replaced one on the A4LD.
And if you have, which servo is the 1-2 shift? I think there are 6 of the little suckers in there. Anyway, all i've done so far is fluid and filter. Old fluid looked/smelled fine.
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I have a 1998 F-150 XLT, 2WD, 4.2L, V6, just over 103,000 miles. My transmission shifts fine into reverse but when I put it into drive it is very slow to engage, sometimes it doesn't. I have to put it in drive, hold down the brakes, give it some gas and then it will engage and lurch forward. I have check the fluid level and quality. Both are fine. This just started to happen two days ago with no fore warning. No previous problems with transmission.
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I have recently noticed that my car will stall out when I get up to about 20 mph. My car starts fine, no check engine light on. I has a tendency to just die in the middle of the road at times too. I have changed the spark plugs, spark plug wires, and a new fuel filter. Do I need to change the mass air flow sensor? Or the crank position sensor? I have no problems starting the car either. Runs good when it runs.
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My transmission has been shifting rough and seems "delayed" in shift response.
I can only go from gears 1-3 without revving up to 3500-4500 RPM's before it will go ino 4th.
It does not hold RPM in 4, 5, or 6 and instead goes down to the normal idle spot.
I had it diagnosed and the codes are
P0761 Shift solenoid C Performance or stuck off
P0781
1-2 shift error
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Lately my transmission has delayed shifting into first when I shift my car into drive on cold starts. It delays for usually about 2-3 seconds then kicks hard into first. The rest of the shifts are smooth and on time. I've tried replacing my transmission fluid, but that doesn't seem to fix it. Is there an actual problem with my transmission? I had the TCM replaced when it would get stuck and not shift. I have a 2009 GLS with around 53k on it.
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