bogging/cutting out after rain???

[tfritz]

Got in my car the other day while it was raining, and moved it into the garage where it sat for a few hours. I then went to leave the house, pulled onto the road and couldn't go. The car was bogging down and would not rev. I limped it down the street barely doing 5 mph trying to work the bug out until it finally started running right. My previous e30 did the same thing when wet every once and a while. What is the problem? Any help would be awesome!

Thanks!

[Pussy30]

Sounds like what happened to me when I went through some big puddle right after I got my eta. Took like a week to dry out, guessing it was water in the intake or something.

[tfritz]

that could be but the car just sat in the rain, no water forced in under or in the grill where it could get into the intake. My brother suggested water draining and sitting in the spark plug holes but everything looked dry.

[Sagaris]

It is likely that the spark plug wires are bad. The humidity is causing them to arc. Try running the engine when its dark and watching the spark plug wires for arcing, even try a spray bottle of water; mist some water around the plug wires and note any arcing or change in engine behaviour.

[tfritz]

I'll have to try that when i get a chance. Also my brother unhooked the afm plug while the car was running and nothing changed. Shouldn't this affect how the car runs? Could this be part of the issue? Would cleaning it do any good?

[Sagaris]

I have heard that the AFM signal is ignored after 4500 rpm, It is possible that the AFM signal could also be ignored when the engine is running in open loop when the engine is cool enough. Physically cleaning the inside of the AFM such as the vane, is only going to be beneficial if the vane does not operate smoothly. You can inspect the resistance track in the AFM for wear by removing the black plastic cover from the top and following some of the ideas posted on this site http://www.the944.com/afm.htm


But yes, a bad AFM could be part of the problem, a rough running engine only in wet/humid weather makes me immediately suspect an ignition problem though.

[tfritz]

Yes, i suspected an ignition/electrical issue.

[tfritz]

Also i could rev it up really slowly but if i tried reving it normal it would bog/not rev. I just read something about a similar issue but no mention of it happening when the car was wet. An idea for their problem was a crank sensor or throttle position sensor.

[jlevie]

The first thing I'd suspect would be the ignition wires, distributor cap, and rotor.

[tfritz]

Any other ideas? Just looking for possible problems to test when I get a chance.

Thanks

[PAkilla86]

It is likely that the spark plug wires are bad. The humidity is causing them to arc. Try running the engine when its dark and watching the spark plug wires for arcing, even try a spray bottle of water; mist some water around the plug wires and note any arcing or change in engine behaviour.

I am having a similar problem to the OP; extreme hesitation over 3K in 2-5th gear on humid/rainy days...everything ive read or been told by e30 enthusiasts is just wat Sagaris said...plug wires. I will be swapping mine as soon as they get here...hopefully thats what it is.

[Mr. Schwarz]

Any conclusion to this thread? It happens to me in heavy rain and it bogs/misses in even fog.

Looks like I get no spark at all. I do, however, get fuel.

[StereoInstaller1]

Any conclusion to this thread? It happens to me in heavy rain and it bogs/misses in even fog.

Looks like I get no spark at all. I do, however, get fuel.

Does the CE light come on? Watch your tach, see if it follows or just goes to zero.

The reason I say this is my car did this with a bad main relay.

Luke

[Mr. Schwarz]

No check engine light. Tach works as it should. Would a ground issue cause this?

[StereoInstaller1]

I dont see a ground issue changing dramatically when wet, as yours seems to