s13 engine trouble

[Pr0jeCt]

uh oh i did something.. uh lemme try to explain this.

i was pulling out of a gas station.. all of a sudden car has a major engine power loss, lights get dim..and when i press on the gas its puttin, put put put puttt..like i lost a cylender or so.

i bought new spark plugs and stuff today because i have been mis fireing at idle lately.. i didnt put em on yet ..so i know i didnt gap em wrong or somethin ...

no check engine light.. i also checked my belts to see if it broke and wasnt pushing my alt and stuff but they are still there .. im clueless.. anyone have this happen before?

[Pr0jeCt]

[Pr0jeCt]

took maf off..looked pretty clean, sprayed it down with MAF cleaner.. let it dry..did it again..let it dry..put it back on and still the same.. so either its something else or my MAF is just bad.. but i dont understand how under low load driving out of a parking lot it could just be pushed over the edge and break.

[positron1]

Try cleaning the throttlebody really good.

[funigui]

to be honest, sounds like bad gas.... yes it happens. Put in drygas and see what happens. Try to empty gas take and refill it.

[Pr0jeCt]

it was fine all day..i went to gas station..got cigs no gas.. and drove out and in an instant it was actin how it was..

[180fan]

change your fuel filter lately or check over your fuel pump?

[Pr0jeCt]

filter could be changed..pump should be ok.. i just done understand it.. it hasnt been a lingering problem..it just happened.

[Pr0jeCt]

http://smg.photobucket.com/alb...F.flv

vid of engine running..sorry for crappy vid i had to scaale down the quality.. 1 meg is better then 90 meg for a 1 min clip... anyway if u cant tell engine is shakeing like hell.. when i unplug the maf it settles down...still runs rough but settles..

[Pr0jeCt]

i got a question though, if my MAF did go bad.. wouldnt my check engine light come on?

[Pr0jeCt]

i got a question though, if my MAF did go bad.. wouldnt my check engine light come on?

and, i drove my car today.. it seems fine exept when car is sittling at idle in park or gear, it is idleing real rough.. shakeing the car a lil bit.. what do yall think

[rogoman]

It's acting like the motor lost a cylinder; it could either be a loss of ignition or fuel. While the motor is idling, pull one plug wire at a time to find the bad one.

Once you find the bad cylinder, if the spark plug is firing OK, then the fuel injector is most likely plugged up.

[waitn4sno]

Mine did the exact same thing coming to work today!!!We changed the plugs - no difference.Checked the fuel injectors. Cylinders 1, 3, & 4 putting out 11 ohms. Cylinder #2 registering ZERO. Found the problem.

hope this helps

[Pr0jeCt]

thanks for the pointers guys.. i havent done anything yet.. i need to get a DMM ..i keep puttin off buying one.. but maybie tonight ill go see what i can do with checking the wires and stuff.. i have a bad feeling about my AIV too.. read up on it and i think its a problem

[180fan]

if the mafs starts going south, no guarantees it'll do the obvious stuff like limiting at 2500. Mine displayed an oscilliating idle and took about a month to figure out lol

[jaytv1019]

You should never clean your maf!

It ruins it instantly, you need a new one.

I don't know why or how, I just know. Every single person that has cleaned out their MAF has ruined it, including me. Just do a search for how to clean your maf and you will find a lot of post that start of saying, " Ok guys, I cleaned my maf, changed plugs, blah blah blah and my car runs like crap." Then they all end with, well I changed the maf, and that fixed it"

The second one has a post about why you should never clean it...

zerothread?id=251470

zerothread?id=251718

Later,

Jason

[180fan]

Cleaning the mafs has it's uses. Carb cleaner is the wrong choice since it leaves residue and spraying directly at the element is clearly wrong as well, since it's a thin wire and with the force the cleaning solvent gets shot out at is pretty strong and can damage the sensor.

I have cleaned mafs before and monitored voltages across the sensor and yes, you can see a difference. Use a dry filter to keep the cleaning to a minimum but most folks will mess up a mafs by using the wrong type of solvent, spraying directly on the element, or if the mafs.

[bone_stock_240]

What is the proper way to clean the maf then? I need to undertake this in the very near future, and I do not want to mess it up. I have an extra one that I could just swap though. Maybe I should do that since I know it came out of a car that was working fine.

[rogoman]

What is the proper way to clean the maf then? I need to undertake this in the very near future, and I do not want to mess it up.

Avoid using solvents that leave residues: like the aromatics [toluene, xylene]. Use electrical parts cleaner or Windex and a Q-tip to gently scrub the wires clean. Acetone, methelyene chloride or chloroform will also work well. (NOTE: It has been said that carburetor cleaner is too harsh to use).

Note: The Q-tip method is recommended only when the sensor wires are really dirty and simply spraying cleaner on them will not clean them. Be very careful when using a Q-tip! Use a Q-tip and gently scrub the wires.

If the MAF wires are not really dirty you shouldn't need to use a Q-tip. Just spray the wires and let dry. If there is still gunk on them - use a q-tip to clean them. If you break a wire you are screwed. Do NOT scrape with anything.

[180fan]

^^^ well said. i usually just spray on the actual housing of the mafs (the metal part) and let it trickle onto the element and pour it out, and repeat a couple times.

[Pr0jeCt]

i used MAF cleaner.. in a spray can from autozone

its a MAF.. use MAF cleaner.

anyway.. i got my dmm.. how should i check the ohms on the injectors.. just probe the wires behind them or disconnect it and probe them or what do i do.. i dont want to hit it reverse and mess something up

[Pr0jeCt]

anyway.. i got my dmm.. how should i check the ohms on the injectors.. just probe the wires behind them or disconnect it and probe them or what do i do.. i dont want to hit it reverse and mess something up

[rogoman]

how should i check the ohms on the injectors.. just probe the wires behind them or disconnect it and probe them or what do i do.. i dont want to hit it reverse and mess something up

Disconnect the injector harness connector. The resistance reading of the injector should be around 11 ohms.

[Pr0jeCt]

disconnected injectors 1 by 1 and #3 didnt make much of a change at all..

i am only having this problem at idle though.. after about 1k rpms in gear its fine.. oh well i know that injector isnt doing something right.

[slowfkncar]

if you clean your air filter with oil. believe it or not the oil makes the maf all shiny.then you could either clean your maf. or buy a new one

[Didderson]

Aren't some of those symptoms bad coolant temp sensor symptoms? (the sensor is on the intake mani)

[Pr0jeCt]

anyway to test the temp sensor.. or is it just a replace and test type of situation?