Regal :: Buick 1995 Shuddering / Rough Idle And Lack Of Response When Accelerate
Jan 17, 2011
I have a 95 Buick Regal, V6 3.8 Liter. The symptoms are the following: stuttering idle. And lack of response at times when I try to accelerate. Like sometimes I'll be driving on the highway, and having no problems. Then I'll be going up a hill at around 55 mph, and then the car will shudder as I try to maintain a speed of 55 mph. So I have to ease off the accelerator and slow down. At first I thought this was a transmission problem, but I am guessing it's the same problem that causes my choppy idle.
So I had this acceleration problem on the highway when I was going up a hill. And a weak idle. These problems have been going on for several months now. They were annoying, but didn't seem that serious. Then all of a sudden, on a rainy day, the car was really responding poorly to acceleration at all speeds. I was able to drive around, but I couldn't count on the car responding right away when I hit the gas pedal. And the car would shudder at times. Then, I didn't drive the car for a few days, and then it was dry, no rain, and the car ran better. So I am thinking humidity makes the problem worse.
I have also noticed over the past few months, that the car runs best when I start it up after a few days of not running it. Then if I drive the car a few miles and let it sit for about 2 hours or so, it would idle weakly when I would start it up again. The car's been doing that for several months now, but it wasn't really affecting the drivability or the response of the car when I hit the gas pedal.
Now it's gotten much worse. So, I've already replaced the following items myself to no avail: mass air flow sensor, oxygen sensor, and egr valve. I am guessing the next thing to fix is the pcv valve. But I also think it might be the fuel pump. My first guess though is the pcv valve. What else could it be? And is there any easy way to test to see if the fuel pump is going bad? Or should I just take out the pcv valve and see if it looks bad?
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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 have a 1995 Buick Regal, with a 3.8L engine. When I start the car sometimes it rough idles and I have to give it a lot of gas and then it runs fine. This is completely random. Sometimes it runs just a little rough, other times really rough. The rough idling when starting the car happens about 1 out of 25 times. Sometimes when this happens I get a check engine light, most of the time not. When I am driving around I also will randomly get a check engine light, but I can't tell anything common to it. It has come on while braking, while coasting with foot off the gas and brake, normal city driving, highway driving. Also my CEL always turns off when I turn off the car and doesn't come back when I restart the car. Always.
I haven't been able to figure out what is wrong and since my car is transition OBD1 to OBD2 I can't use a OBD2 code scanner (it is an OBD1 port), nor will shorting the pins in my OBD1 type port give me codes. Being this the case I took it to a local mechanic and they scanned the computer and said they got 16 error codes. They reset the codes but couldn't get the CEL to come back on. I took it drove it for a couple of days the light came back on so I took it back to the shop and they got 18 codes out of it, but they were mostly different, with some of them giving the opposite readings of before (O2 sensor high one time, then low the next check). They said they didn't know what was going on but wanted 3-4 hours to diagnose the PCM (Powertrain control module) and would probably replace the PCM (~500 on top of the diagnostic fee). That was a bit much for me, so I took the car back.
The things I have checked are fuel pressure (seems fine at idle and revving the car in park)Vacuum is 19 and when I rev quick it drops to zero or so then up to 25 and slowly goes back to 19 (I think that means vacuum is ok). I put the gauge in the O2 sensor before the CAT and I didn't read any pressure, so I think the CAT is ok.I put on a new fuel pressure regulator, and a new fuel filter. I got the same PCM at a Pick-n-pull place and put it is my car 3 days ago. Yesterday I got a check engine light while driving again. The mechanic will charge me to check the codes, but I think it is just doing the same thing as always. I am sort of at a loss as what to do. I though it I was to dive around with a scanner hooked up and the light went on then I could see what the sensors were doing when all the trouble codes fire. I was looking at the Actron CP9190, but it doesn't log the data stream for OBD1 cars, only for OBD2.
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I own a 1996 Buick Regal with 132k miles on it, 3.1L six cylinder. The other day I was doing some general maintenance and noticed that the exhaust smelled like sulfur (rotten eggs). Now, I am loosely familiar with the causes of such a thing but not well enough to diagnose it properly the first time. The car has been idling rough since I got it (almost a year ago now), I have a feeling that it could be the O2 sensor causing the rough idle and the sulfur smell but I am not completely sure. I should have one of those fancy three-part injector cleaners done?
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The front motor mounts are bad. This has been confirmed. When I am cruising at a constant 45 or 55 mph and choose to accelerate because traffic is clearing, etc. the car will thump a bit and only slowly creep faster. It feels as if there is very little response other than the mild thumping. Getting to 65 mph takes time. The car has 70k miles and performs almost flawlessly at slower speeds. Is the thumping/lack of acceleration a symptom of the bad front motor mounts?
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1991 Buick Regal, 3800 V6
Having a rough idle on a cold start. After some research and closer inspection of the vehicle, I'm quite certain I have at least one leaking injector that is flooding a cylinder and causing the car to misfire on a cold start. I'm also not at the gas mileage I should be at.
So I'm wondering, is fuel injector replacement as straightforward of a job as it looks? Any major issues I could run into in doing a replacement?
I'm planning on replacing all six injectors (I can get them for $50 each buying online with a discount code), but given that the vehicle is so old am I better off just replacing the faulty ones? I'm assuming pulling the spark plugs and seeing which cylinder is wet will tell me which I need to replace.
And one more question: Is there a way to depressurize the fuel system when I park the car for the night, thus preventing fuel (or most of it) from leaking into the engine until I get this fixed? I've read that just unscrewing the gas cap can depressurize the system.
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About the Car: It has 101,00 miles on it. I haven't own this car for long (less than a month). I bought it pretty cheap to do some grocery shopping with. I have no plans to drive it more than 10 miles in a trip. I have a bicycle with a trailer, but there are days in the winter when the weather says, "No" to bicycling. I had the fuel pump and filter replaced at a shop when it wouldn't start a couple weeks ago. They said the fuel pressure was low, and it needed to be replaced. It was fine for a little while, but then it wouldn't start for the past three days now. No cranking at all. I can turn on the radio and roll windows up and down, though. I do remember seeing a Check Engine, Battery symbol sign, and a couple other lights off-hand. I'm at work right now.. so I'll have to go home to see if the Security light also was there, too.
Also! I did find an electrical line that did not go anywhere... not sure if that has anything to do with the fact that there is no window washer fluid tank (wipers do work).
After reading a little about other Buicks in the forum not cranking, I will definitely try the Security Light issue after I get home from work.
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My 1995 Buick Regal seems to loose gas pressure. Have had several repairs done, fuel pump, fuel pressure regulator, fuel filter and nothing seems to work. It seems that the repair shops are guessing at the problem. Sometimes it even stalls out completely but usually starts back up.
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my 1995 buick regal does not have a spark, and I have had 2 mechanics look at it. The sereptine belt broke while I was driving, I believe it was because the water pump was bad and locked up. the belt got wrapped up in the crank pulley and I removed it. The AC has not worked in a really long time so I do not think that it is that pulley. It is not getting a spark. I have replaced the water pump, and the car sounds like it wants to start but it is getting no spark to it. I have had the crank sensor tested and the coil something. none of those seems to be the problem. some one suggested that it is the computer brain. I suggested that it was the timing. Though I do not really know. the battery is good so i know it is not that. and it has fuel. and i know that the engine is getting fuel. I know that the spark plugs are not getting spark (tested with a screwdriver in the socket on metal) So what is wrong with it.
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1995 Buick Regal, 128k miles, 3.8L V-6.Problem: When running errands around town, car will temporarily not start after 3rd or 4th stop. Vehicle cranks, has spark, has fuel pressure at fuel manifold. No codes on computer (Wish it was a '96). Car will start normally after cooling off (generally takes at least 45 minutes). No problem driving to work, parking all day, driving home. Have not tried long distance driving since problem arose, due to concern about being stuck for awhile far from home. Have determined at EGR valve is NOT a part of problem.
Sample situation: Drove 5 miles to town. Shopped for 15 minutes. Drove 2 miles further with 5 minute stop. Drove another 2 miles with 5 minute stop. Drove 1 more mile and stopped for 30-40 minutes. Car would not start. Cranks strongly, has spark and fuel pressure (don't know if fuel getting to injectors). Still would not start 30 minutes later. Left car for several hours. Started promptly and ran normally on return. Weather conditions - 90 F, low humidity. Problem has been occurring for several months. No computer codes to dive guidance.
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1995 Buick Regal 3.8L Series 1
This is my first car and I got it at 100k and I am up to 162k. She has been good to me. A week ago I noticed that my car was shuddering and having real issues getting up to 55 (misfire). These were intermittent and seemed to go away when I put new sparks in it.
Tonight I started it and heard a good sounding pop. The car would not idle right at all. Press the gas, up to 3k rpm, and let go ... stall. I got under the hood, heard a strange sucking noise, with some cell phone light found out the vacuum hose fell off??? Put that sucker back on. Idled way better. Driveable (the brakes worked again).
Took a look around the car and noticed that some smoke was coming out of the exhaust. Not a lot, but I havent really seen exhaust from it before. My buddy followed me home and said he could smell me the entire way.
It is was dark and I lifted the hood and noticed moisture all over. I mean everywhere. Spark wires, airbox, frame, and etc... I have been looking through my books and then online. I cant find anything. What I can be looking at for a root cause? What is messed up with this car?
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My running lights aren't working. My father (who has been working on cars since the mid 1960's and now fiddles with small farm equipment too)- checked every single fuse - on the passenger side panel, and both right and left panels under the hood. All fuses were good. A couple of years ago I had a problem with the brake lights (not the third one) not working and it turned out it was in the turn signal lever. We had tried the fuses, wires, etc. and couldn't figure it out. So I'm thinking that the running lights are something weird like that too. Especially since I can't drive at night without any running lights.
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Greetings from the desert of the SW. I have a 1995 Buick Regal I inherited from my Mom when she passed away several years ago. It had low mileage at the time so when things started going wrong, I replaced things like a rusted gas tank, head gasket, thermostat, and belts and the car got me from the Midwest to the Southwest. It now has 105K miles and I've started to smell antifreeze when I drive. The temperature gauge needle will move from the middle line towards hot but never all the way to hot when the car is idling.
As soon as I get moving again, the temperature indicator moves back down to the middle line of the gauge. The anti-freeze level in the 'jug' is fine and the level in the radiator is ok too. I'm wondering if there might be a problem with the thermostat? Unfortunately I live in an area where there aren't any "real" car mechanic garages to take it to for a check up. I'm planning a trip to Phoenix in a couple of weeks which is 5 hrs away. Since antifreeze isn't pouring out of somewhere, I'm going to drive it and hope I make it there and back again.
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My 1989 Buick Regal is making a grinding sound when I accelerate. It makes the sound slightly when it's just idling as well, but it definitely gets worse when I start going. It's been dying a bunch too. The engine will just shut off. The scariest part though, is when I pop the hood and have a look, there are shards of metal that I can only assume have been ground off, thus the grinding noise. It's near the belt, but that's all I really know because I'm not car smart at all.
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Where is the ignition control module on a 95 buick regal custom 3.8L ....
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I recently worked with a friend get a '95 regal custom 3.1 with 178k miles and the only issue I cant figure out on my own is that the back up lights never come on when either shifting into reverse or through it. I've checked all of the fuses and replaced the bulbs and still not even a flicker.
I have researched online a bit and my only idea is it could be the back-up light switch/neutral position switch.. Would that be an accurate guess? And if so where at on the vehicle would that switch be located?
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My car is a 1995 Buick regal gran sport with only 64,000 miles. It has been cutting of for 2 years now. It usually cuts off when we slow down. The RPM's will suddenly drop to zero. We have taken it to 3 different mechanics over the past 2 years and have put in thousands of dollars to fix it (more that it is worth). We always just throw it in neutral and it start back up and keep driving. We were sick of paying to get it NOT fixed so we decided throwing it in neutral is ok. Well now some days it won't start. It turns over but won't fire. Some days it will start. We took it in and got it "fixed" again, but it is still doing the same thing (some days it starts, some not). It still also has the problem of cutting off while we are driving too.
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Got a strange one here. 1995 Buick Park Avenue, supercharged 3800, 159K miles... an older car, but an unmolested one. A little over a week ago I began to notice an occasional miss when cruising along at highway speeds, along with a slightly rougher idle. Both the fuel filter and the plugs/wires predated my ownership of the car (a little more than 6 months); so seeing no obvious culprit, I replaced them and hoped for improvement.
Unfortunately, neither had any impact. The missing continued to become more noticeable. It was never present under acceleration. Most of it was like a split-second long version of "bucking" that could be observed while cruising at lower (<2000) RPMs. It was also very noticeable at idle. Eventually a code was set: P0341, camshaft sensor issue. If the story had ended there, it would have been just another night in the garage. But it didn't.
As I was noticing the aforementioned symptom increase, I also noticed my voltmeter would occasionally "twitch" in the downward direction. Eventually I had an incident where I came to a stoplight... transmission in Drive, foot on brake, gauge dropped to around 10-11v. It returned to 14v momentarily, but dropped back down, held there for several seconds, returned, etc. No particular rhyme or rhythm. Of course my first guess was that the alternator was failing; a separate problem from the other.
I checked all the relevant connections (at the battery, at the alternator, etc), and cleaned them for good measure. All were tight, relatively clean, and the cables showed no resistance on the ohmmeter. It happened that I had another correct alternator on hand (used/working pull), so I swapped it in. No change. I reinstalled the original and was back where I started.
On my most recent drive, I noticed both issues had become very noticeable. The drop in voltage was happening at nearly every stop, and the missing was happening a few times per minute while coasting along. There seemed to be some correlation between the missing and voltage fluctuating, but it wasn't absolute.
I decided to attack the voltage issue again. Re-checked all the cables; same result as before (all OK). Looked all over the car for possible bad grounds, loose connections, or other visible problems, but found none. My next thought was to run a jumper from B+ to the voltage regulator's Sense input (have seen issues there on more than a few older vehicles) - but after reading that this car uses the PCM as the voltage regulator, I didn't proceed.
Just to be certain I'm going to have the alternator tested by the local auto parts store. But I suspect it'll pass.
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Turn signal lights not working on a 1995 Buick Regal. I have replaced fuse & flasher but still didn't solve problem.
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My son is about to purchase his first car. A 98 Buick Park Regal. Feels like it idles rough, and has a little hang-up when it shifts. Seller claims it's due to needing a transmission mount replaced. Does this sound viable?
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2001 Buick Regal , 125000 miles ..
A couple weeks ago I notice that my car has started making some noise and has become a rough drive. Whenever I rev, especially between 0-30 mph, its like a mini jackhammer, or a sputtering/rumbling sound when I drive.
What it could be, and what I should do?
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