My 2002 Toyota Camry XLE V6 (115k miles) stalls once every 4 months (happened thrice in the last year) or so when I'm braking & bringing the care to a complete stop.
The check-engine light comes on just before the car completely stops. The steering wheel feels locked. Putting it back in parking, turning off & turning it back on doesn't work. The car doesn't start. After 10-15 minutes, If I put the key in, turn it on & try to turn the steering wheel while turning it on, it turns back up & runs without any issues for the next few months.
I've taken the car to 3 different mechanics (including a Toyota dealership mechanic) & they tell me that the car is in great condition (I've done a lot of preventive maintenance on the car). They can't find any error codes & they checked everything but can't find any issues
I filled up my car at the local gas station. It had been raining non-stop for the past three days and nights. 10-15 minutes later as I'm stopped at a light, the car starts shuddering, almost stalls a few times. Rough idle all the way home.
I limp home, guessing water in the fuel. Next day I go to Advance Auto and buy some fuel additives which are supposed to solve the water problem. The guy there mentions that he's had a number of reports of similar issues from this particular gas station (it's now out of business, go figure). Additives make things better but not fully.
2 tanks of gas later now and the rough idle is much better but not gone. Car seems to have less power and sounds a little bit raspy on acceleration (not noticeable unless driving near a wall which can bounce the sound back). My guess is that one of the cylinders is not firing, maybe needs a new spark plug?
The more worrisome thing is that as the car has started running more smoothly I've also noticed a smell of gas after startup (may still be there when running but I don't notice it then) -- coming from the exhaust. This seems to be in-line with the missing cylinder theory but I'm running blind here as I don't have much experience on this topic.
The car's a 1997 C280. 130K on it. It's old but mechanically the thing has been a tank so far (Inline 6 I think) -- very sturdy and responsive. I'm hoping that this whole ordeal hasn't done permanent damage.
I have a 1997 88 with 79k. When the engine is warm and my foot is off the gas, the car occasionally dies. I can restart it each time this occurs.
View 4 RepliesSo I got my 2004 Grand Am about 2 months ago and noticed after about a week that the front right tire was low. I put air in it, came back to check it in the morning and it was down again. I had it looked at and was told that the tire was pulling away from the rim because of the rim eroding. He put some bead sealant on it and got rid of the erosion on the rim. Everything was fine. But then about 2 weeks later I started to notice a slight crunch when I went over bumps. Over the past month and a half the sound has gotten progressively worse.
It sounds extra bad when I am making a right turn. My brother put it on a lift, took the tire off, pushing some things around and couldn't figure out the source of the sound. Everyone who drives in the car with me can hear it. Other than that annoying sound the car is beautiful but the sound makes it seem like a junky car and it's not. It doesn't crunch when I break or at high speeds (maybe because I can't hear it). I'd hate to bring it to another mechanic and pay dollars for him to tell me he can't figure out the sound either. The car had it's suspension checked etc.
I have a 2004 Ford Explorer V8 4 wheel drive. Yesterday I was on the way home from a 2 hour drive and was on the expressway at a complete stop on a downhill grade. When I hit the gas, the car started lurching - it would shoot forward, then slow down, then shoot forward, then slow down.
I got the car to the side of the road and called a tow truck. Just to test - while I was waiting for the truck I put the car in neutral and even though I was on a steep downhill grade, it wouldn't roll at all. When I put it in drive - it wouldn't go initially until I had to put a decent amount of pressure on the gas pedal. I reminded me a being at a speed bump that you couldn't idle over and have to give the car some gas to power it up over the bump.
When the tow truck got there - I watched the driver drive the Explorer up onto the bed of the tow truck. What I noticed was this:
The left front tire was completely locked when he was hitting the gas. But when he gave it enough gas, the right tire that was working would push the car forward while the left tire remained locked creating friction on the pavement but the car was still moving forward from the other wheel.
Then after 3 or 4 feet - the left tire would unlock/release and start to rotate - causing the car to suddenly lurch forward. But then after another few few it would lock again. Then release again.
The thing I found odd was that when the driver later reversed the car down off the truck - the left front wheel worked just fine. So the car works perfectly in reverse, but in drive the left wheel locks then releases then locks then releases.
I recently had an issue with my car overheating so I changed the thermostat. About 3 months later it happens again. I know I need a new tensioner arm but I decide to wait on it. I take it to a place and have the radiator flushed and the guy calls me back to the garage and says your belt fell off... i was like o man, so he showed me how it would slip off the tensioner and i said ok and put a new tensioner on. He called me back and said he found a new problem my crank shaft pulley was wobbling a little. I didn't have enough money to have him check it out further so he said he would just finish the flush and go from there. after he finished the flush he said there is still a problem with the heating on the car. He didn't know if the problem came from the pump, the t stat, or something like a sensor. and it would cost alot in research time for him to find the problem and fix it. so i am going to take it to another mechanic. I have replaced the pump about 2 years ago, I replaced the thermostat about 3 times before the flush over about 1 years time, i replaced the stepper motors on the gauges since they went bad. and now I am at a loss on what to do next. I just wish that click and clack would come fix my car.
View 5 RepliesMy car steering wheel is hard to turn now and i don't know why it's doing this.
View 4 Replies92 Toyota Pickup (22RE auto). New block, rebuilt head, new water pump at 300k about a year ago. Sounds strange I know but that's what seems to have happened. Ive never been able to get heat from the truck since Ive owned it so Ive been trying to fix that. I flushed the coolant out and replaced the tstat. I brought the car to a mechanic and he put a pressure tester on the cooling system and he said it wasn't holding any pressure. He also pulled off the heater core inlet hose with the truck running and no coolant was coming out. He thought there was a blockage somewhere but how to fix it. I figured I might as well try replacing the old radiator cap with a new one so I did. Once I did this, the first time the truck went out, it overheated and the radiator crimped upper seam (on the plastic) burst outward.So all in all...something is wrong.
View 2 Repliesit's been parked for about 2 months in my driveway, which slants upwards. I cranked it for a solid 30 minutes (jumped the battery so it wouldn't die). I don't smell gas so I think gas isn't making to the motor.
View 1 RepliesI bought my outback a few months ago from a dealer/mechanic who had fixed the car after it was totaled. So it has a reconstructed title, but it was hit in the back, so all the engine parts were unaffected by the crash. Since I have had the car I have experienced intermittent loss of power steering ability. Sometimes it's nearly impossible to parallel park or turn a corner gracefully, and other times, within the same short trip, the steering will be completely fine and smooth. I have had the issue looked at about three times now by different mechanics. Each time they have either replaced or tightened the belt, which temporarily fixes the problem. But within a few weeks it always comes back. Is there something not keeping the belt tight, or could the issue actually be in the power steering pump?
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