On the trip down the coast from SF-->LA my car died calmly behind a red light, no sputters, no jolts or shaking. It just died. I cranked a couple of time and it fired back up and I drove for another couple hundred yards when it died again and this time decided not start up after cranking in for a good 4-5 times.
I replaced the fuel filter next day and cranked it for a good 15 seconds and it fired up. I did my happy dance and drove the car for a couple of days without any issues.
On the third day, I packed my bags and went for the return trip from LA-->SF and about 10 minutes into the 7 hour long drive it started hesitating and hiccups at highway speed. My thoughts were that it was dirty fuel coming through since the filter change and will pass. About once every 10 miles it would hiccup and hesitate until finally 2 hours into the drive it started coughing constantly and it died at highway speed. I pulled to the side of the highway and cranked it but no life. Waited 5 minutes and cranked it and it fired up. Drove to the nearby gas station and poured once of those injector cleaner solutions in my tank, filled it up to full and set on my way home.
Another hour into the drive and it died at highway speed again, same symptoms, coughs, hesitaiton as if either it was out of gas or exhaust was blocked. Pulled to the side of the road, got out of the car and looked under and saw a glowing red cat converter. Figured it must have been a bad cat that was blocked and glowing red and blocing exhaust gases and suffocating the car. I waited 10 minutes until it cooled, cranked the car 10 or 12 times and it finally fired up and I was trying to stumble it to a hotel when it died again and this time wouldn't start. Spent the night at the side of the road.
I cranked the car in the morning 20 times and it fired up and quickly I took it to a muffler shop where they replace the cat converter. The car fired up just right after cat was replaced and I drove back to SF. It ran fine for a day but on the second day same symptoms occurred. I ordered all new pipes to replace the "mess under the intake", new air filter and spark plugs(just replaced but didn't gap them) as well as a new crank position sensor.
Now the car fires up on the first crank but idles really rough. You can hear pop corn sound in the exhaust manifold suggesting super rich unburnt fuel getting in the exhaust and combusting. The tail pipe smells like it's spewing fuel. I pulled the spark plugs and they are all wet at the tip. I replace the fuel pressure regulator at the suggestion of a good member here but no dice. The car still runs super rich at idle and when I pull on the throttle cable it dies.
I know I connected all the pipes correctly when replacing the mess under the intake so that's not the culprit. My engine has 107K miles on it. The ignition wires are the original. Any ideas what I should look into next before dropping it at the local shop for repair?
I replaced the fuel filter next day and cranked it for a good 15 seconds and it fired up. I did my happy dance and drove the car for a couple of days without any issues.
On the third day, I packed my bags and went for the return trip from LA-->SF and about 10 minutes into the 7 hour long drive it started hesitating and hiccups at highway speed. My thoughts were that it was dirty fuel coming through since the filter change and will pass. About once every 10 miles it would hiccup and hesitate until finally 2 hours into the drive it started coughing constantly and it died at highway speed. I pulled to the side of the highway and cranked it but no life. Waited 5 minutes and cranked it and it fired up. Drove to the nearby gas station and poured once of those injector cleaner solutions in my tank, filled it up to full and set on my way home.
Another hour into the drive and it died at highway speed again, same symptoms, coughs, hesitaiton as if either it was out of gas or exhaust was blocked. Pulled to the side of the road, got out of the car and looked under and saw a glowing red cat converter. Figured it must have been a bad cat that was blocked and glowing red and blocing exhaust gases and suffocating the car. I waited 10 minutes until it cooled, cranked the car 10 or 12 times and it finally fired up and I was trying to stumble it to a hotel when it died again and this time wouldn't start. Spent the night at the side of the road.
I cranked the car in the morning 20 times and it fired up and quickly I took it to a muffler shop where they replace the cat converter. The car fired up just right after cat was replaced and I drove back to SF. It ran fine for a day but on the second day same symptoms occurred. I ordered all new pipes to replace the "mess under the intake", new air filter and spark plugs(just replaced but didn't gap them) as well as a new crank position sensor.
Now the car fires up on the first crank but idles really rough. You can hear pop corn sound in the exhaust manifold suggesting super rich unburnt fuel getting in the exhaust and combusting. The tail pipe smells like it's spewing fuel. I pulled the spark plugs and they are all wet at the tip. I replace the fuel pressure regulator at the suggestion of a good member here but no dice. The car still runs super rich at idle and when I pull on the throttle cable it dies.
I know I connected all the pipes correctly when replacing the mess under the intake so that's not the culprit. My engine has 107K miles on it. The ignition wires are the original. Any ideas what I should look into next before dropping it at the local shop for repair?
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