Pontiac - Grandam :: 2001 Getting OBD Code P0301 / P0420?
Aug 2, 2014
We bought a used 2001 Grand Am (V6 automatic) a few months ago. Mileage was just under 100,000. It was running decently at first, but that improved once we did more maintenance. It's gone from about 150 miles on the highway on a full tank to about 250. A lot of the problems didn't reveal themselves until we took it onto the highways. These are the parts we changed in the last 2 months:
-new battery (old one was 0.1 above fail)-all 6 spark plugs-catalytic converter-front oxygen sensor-oil filter-timing belt-pcv valve and breather hose (old one melted)-all 4 shocks/struts
Latest problem is OBD code P0301 cylinder #1 misfire. The entire car started to shake when we were in low speed in a drive thru. It only seems to shake in drive gear and it does it the whole time. It doesn't shake in reverse or any other gear. Found out #1 spark plug was cracked and a chunk of the ceramic portion was missing. It got replaced but that didn't fix the problem. Haven't noticed any white exhaust yet. The ignition fails 1/7 of the time since P0301surfaced.
The last problem we had was P0420. We went to 3 different shops and nobody was able to fix the problem properly. It wasn't until the pcv valve and breather hose were replaced that the code disappeared. The valve was actually cracked and parts of the breather hose were melted. I can't understand why nobody noticed that.
I know there could be a lot going on, but I was hoping the possible problem could be narrowed down.
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I drive a 1995 3.1L V6 Pontiac Grand Am SE.
My mechanic told me that my EGR valve was throwing a code, so I took it off and cleaned it out and tried to fish out some of the carbon in the air intake tube. I used carb cleaner on the valve and the tube and I sprayed a little bit of air duster into the tube, but it made a funny noise so I stopped after about 1 second of spraying.
When I put it back on, I forgot to snap the wiring harness back onto the top EGR solenoid. I reconnected the negative battery cable and started my car. The gauges red fine. I revved my engine a few times and everything seemed okay. Then I turned off my engine and then turned it back on to listen for any rough idling (that's why I decided to clean the EGR in the first place). Then I turned it off.
When I got out of the car, I realized I forgot to reattach the wiring harness to the EGR. I disconnected the negative battery cable and it sparked a tiny bit. I reconnected the wiring harness to the EGR. Afterwards, I noticed that it had leaked some fluid (I'm guess oil?) into my engine. There was a very small amount of light smoke or steam (not sure which), but it stopped a minute or two later. I've attached a picture for reference.
Is it safe to reconnect my negative battery cable and try restarting my car????
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2001 Grand Am, 120,000 miles. Struggles to starts, when it does turn over it is only for 1-2 seconds and then cuts out. Even if I get it plenty of gas it still cuts out only it revs and then cuts out. It worked fine on Thursday and sat on the drive until this morning. If it makes a difference, we've had lots of rain recently and the remote keyless entry stopped working too.
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My 2001 Pontiac Grand Am gt won't start. Turning the key gets no crank. Also there is no power that seems to be in the car at all. Nothing on instrument panel. Battery is good and all Ignition fusses are good.
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I have a 2001 Grand Am that I cannot get it started. At first it was an intermittent problem and now I cannot get it started period. When it was intermittent I took it to the dealer and they could not find anything wrong. When I got the car home and try the next day it now won't start. It tries to turn over but won't. I put a new battery because I drain the old one. Change the fuses but still no luck. The fuel pump I was told was okay.
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I have a 2001 pontiac grand am se 4cyl with an automatic transmission and I've been having issues with my transmission, about a month ago the transmission started shifting hard then just went out so i took it to a transmission repair shop and the tech said that it was the pulling clutches and i told him to completely rebuilt the transmission including new electronics and torque converter and he did i got it back and it drove fine for that day then stared doing the same thing my transmission slams into gears and I don't know what the problem is sometimes ill be going down the road and the transmission slams and then the trac light comes on for a little bit then goes back out??? also some days i can drive it a mile or 2 before it starts slamming into gear.. what this could be causing it to slam i would think it couldn't poss be the transmission as everything has been replaced? could something else be causing it to slam into gear..
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I have a 01 GrandAM 3.4. I have a reoccurring problem with this car. The car will randomly not start, and die while driving. Some days I can drive the car with no problems, and some days it will only have starting problems. These problems are very random. When the car doesn't start it will crank and turn over however the fuel pump will not kick in. You can turn the key on and off several times, and it will fire up. This DOES NOT seem to be a problem with the passlock theft system. The security light has never came on, and you do not have to wait any amount of time for the car to start, you only have to flip the key back and forth several times. The car after running will occasionally die, after the car dies it will usually start back up on the first try. I am very puzzled by this problem not sure if it is the ignition switch, fuel pump, or something in between.
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After changing 3coilpacks on my Passat 04 1.8T soo far finally the last one went out. The codes I got are P0301 (which is misfire cylinder1) and the other code is p0420 which I do not know what it is... I think it might do something with cat or something.
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I had a consistent misfire on this car and finally got a P0301 trouble code. I installed new Autolite AP 104 plugs and wires. Now, when I start the engine. it runs perfectly. But when I put it in gear, it misfires. After a minute or so, the misfire clears and the engine runs perfectly. I have not received another trouble code. One thing I did notice is that the plugs I took out (Motorcraft AWSF 32P) had a much larger gap than the .044 the associate at AutoZone set the new plugs to.
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So i've had this volvo for about 6 months now.I knew when I purchased it that the two codes being thrown were p0128-Engine coolant temperature, and p0420- Cat efficiency Bank 1.Inspecting mechanic said it needed a new cat to clear the p0420....I went ahead replaced the thermostat and changed the coolant to "fix" the p0128, and cleared the codes, I think the jiffy lube state inspector did not notice the that the catalytic converter test was Incomplete when he passed it. Lucky me I guess.
But now I know that I'll probably have to fix before it gets inspected again. Eventually the p0128 came back on, so I went and got a new ECT sensor. Still doesn't clear the p0128. What am i missing? Coolant temperature sits at a 3'oclock position pretty regularly and quickly. Where to start on the p0420 besides understanding its the Pre-cat o2 sensor that is throwing the code, is there anyway that these are related?
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P0420 code. Catalyst Efficiency Below Normal (Bank 1)
This was the explanation I got from autozone. First question is how serious is this? The car seems to drive fine and normal, but I just purchased this car about a month ago. The light turned off after the guy at autozone plugged in the scanner. I am sure it will come back on again after some driving. Is it ok to drive with it on?
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2001 Jetta 2.0, manual trans
I've been having problems with intermittent P0420 cat below efficiency code. Everything else is fine, no codes, runs great. I tried spacing the post cat sensor back w/ extender bung (after replacing post cat sensor..) and still get the code. I don't hear any rattling or anything to make me think cat is bad physically. I was told by dealer that a code update might resolve for $200 - which got me thinking that that if that was so, it should should be a problem which Feds should be aware.
I searched safercar.gov and found this NHTSA ID Number: 10054864
It's a service bulletin saying that VW made the limits too sensitive and it seems there was a customer satisfaction campaign to update code - pdf on site CSC-10054864-8736
It says:
May 2007
Subject: Emissions Service Action N7
1999-2002 Jetta, Golf and GTI with VR6 Engine
Update Electronic Control Module (ECM) Software for Catalytic Converter Monitoring System Dear Volkswagen Owner: We are writing to inform you of an emissions service action on some 1999-2002 Jetta, Golf and GTI VR6 engine vehicles. Our records show that you are the owner of one of these vehicles.
What Is The Problem? The electronic control module (ECM) software for the catalytic converter monitoring system is too sensitive. This can cause the MIL to come on, and some vehicles may exceed Federal and/or California emissions standards. Also, in some cases this leads to unnecessary catalytic converter replacement. What Will Volkswagen Do? Dealers will update the ECM software.
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It has been running very smooth since I changed the lower intake gaskets, and I just went on a 1500 mile round trip roadtrip. It ran perfect the whole way, getting 22mpg to boot. In the last 50 miles, the CEL came one. The code read P0420 which is the cat converter? I dont want to fork up for a new one, are there any tricks to get this fixed or cleared?
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I bought an 04 elantra a few weeks ago. The check engine light is now on and I get code P0420 listed twice with my code reader. I have replaced the downstream O2 sensor and reset the codes only for them to return again. It is my understanding that this is going to be a convertor problem. My question is that from the research I have done it looks as though this car has two converters. One at the exhaust manifold and then another in the tailpipe. Which one is going to be the most likely causing my Check engine light to come on. Or do I need to replace both converters.
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I have a 2001 Honda Odyssey with 90000 miles. Lat last year around Oct/Nov time frame, check engine light came on. I took my vehicle to a local Auto Zone store and they scanned the code and told me it was P0420 - bad catalytic converter.
I replaced the cat converter with an after market model, however after 3/4 months (after driving 2000 to 3000 miles), check engine light came on with the same code. The mechanic changed the cat converter and put a new (after market model). Again after 3/4 months (2000 to 3000 miles) check engine light came on again. And this time the mechanic replaced the cat converter and also oxygen sensor. Now after 4 months or so the check engine light is on the vehicle again.
The mechanic is now saying that the problem is not with the cat converter and he is saying there is a lot of abnormal deposit on the vehicle. When he scanned again he found another issue that read something like "high voltage" and this time the guy thought may be due to short circuit (per code) the fuel injector is sending high volume of fuel and this is causing excessive fuel to go into the cylinder and hence high volume of emission. I replaced the fuse box again and after another 100 miles or, the problem is reappearing.
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Last night when I was driving home, I noticed that all of my "night lights" were off. The lights on the speedometer, gas gauge, gear shift, etc. did not seem to be working, but all of my system warning lights (Traction, Brake, etc) seemed to be fine. I tried to turn the car on and off a few times and also tried fiddling with the lights manually. Nothing seemed to be working.
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I have a 2000 grand am Gt with 3400 motor it started up just fine went to turn around in the drive way the dash lights came on where the ABS sensor is bad, but if u shut it off and started it back up they would go out so i shut it down and went to start it back up and all it does is click, so i thought it was the starter and replaced it, still only clicks. I called GM dealership they said more then likely it is the plastic piece the ignition switch goes in to so i just replaced it and does the same thing.
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This is on a 2004 Pontiac Grand AM.
The old GM ABS light problem. The lights were on a month ago and the left front hub was replaced, the light went out. They just came back on all of a sudden (coincided with the temperature dropping to 15F). The next day they were out. Then the next day they came back on. I couldn't get a code read with the basic scan tool.
Where should I start? I'm thinking of cleaning the speed sensor connectors and reseating with dialectic grease. Maybe they're dirty or a bit brittle due to age and the cold?
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I have a 2004 Pontiac Grand Am with about 130k miles on it. For some reason my car has been dying lately. It did this a few times so the obvious thing was to buy a new battery- oct 2011. Everything was good for a couple months but I recently went on a trip for the weekend and when I came home the car was dead. I jumped it and everything was good until this week. I had a work conference and left wednesday at 8am. When I got home Friday at 5pm the car was dead again. I had an alternator test done before but could it be the alternator? I love my little car and would like to get a couple more years out of her!!!
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Have a 2004 Grand am that was having some problems starting:
1) The last 10 times it would start cold, but it would take about 5-10 seconds of turnover before actually starting.
2) After it started, it would start fine the rest of the day.
Now it will not start at all. Today is the coldest day of the year so far... 43 degrees. It tries to turn over. The security light came on once, but did not come on again (i know that's a common problem). (note: I have not seen it in person, but will later today). Either fuel or spark.
My thought: either fuel pump, fuel pump relay, sensor, wires/plugs, etc.
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I have a 2004 Pontiac Grand Am with a 3.4L engine. When I start my car after it has been sitting for a while, especially in the morning, the engine shutters making the car shake when it is put into Reverse and Drive. Plus a horrible gas smell come from the hood and into the heating vents. So to alleviate the shaking I let the car run for several minutes which in turn makes the gas smell worse. The smell continues to get worse when the car is stopped at a alight or stop sign. to eventually go away as the car heats up. The check engine light blinks with the shaking then disappears but eventually stayed on with a cylinder misfire code. I took it to a shop who told me that was the head gaskets.
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