I have a 97 2.3 900S 'vert and it will cut out but will restart.
It sometimes takes a few tries to start as though its not getting fuel.
When running it runs very smooth and strong.
The car has about 127K and has been very reliable with only a failed alternator and brakes.
I have run injector cleaner through the 2/3 tank of gas in the sucker.
What are the most likely DIY things to check out for a non-mechanic carpenter type?
First the diagnosis.
If the pump is failing, it is kind enough to alert the driver via some clues.
I'll pay some attention to this, I have nearly 160K miles on mine and no sign yet.. ..(except the rather high mileage)
My 99 would run great then suddenly cut off at idle. It turned out to be the CPS. No other symptoms, none of the usual "see if the tach registers when you crank it".
Change the filter at 60K; the CPS at 90K; the pump at 120 K ???
No-one really knows how long these parts last........But we do know, more or less, how long these parts are reliable..:cheesy:
At one time, many fuel pumps were rebuildable(diaphragm, hardware) - maybe this did not work out so well...(economics, workmanship, design)
Make sure the ignition system is in good condition. Spark plugs, wires, dist cap & rotor. The hall effect sensor in the distributor could even cause similar problems. Some have had troubles with the ignition switch and intermittent disconnections.
When fuel pumps go bad they start to "sputter" and get bad contact spots. If you stop on the bad spot it won't start up again. Sometimes they can be restarted by banging the tank to nudge the pump motor to a good contact point. I like to replace the fuel pump from the top. This is very easy for verts becaues you can just lift the rear seat out of the car. With a good par of tin snips you can expand the hole to be big enough to remove the pump assembly. Fill in the hole in the back seat floor with insulation after the new pump is in place.
I wonder if you and I are sharing the same problem. Though, mine doesnt seem as severe. I hope you dont have to replace the pump, I had to at 100k. And boy are they expensive!!! A modest $500 or so... THat doesnt include labor. I had to buy one from a saab junkyard. I was watching when they pulled my fuel pump out, and it literally fell to pieces inside the tank. If you DO buy a used pump like I did, make sure they test it before you buy one. They had my car up on a rack for two days cause the first pump they said was 'good' was a dud, and had to overnight another one. Boy was that shop pissed...
I started a thread about this last week, titled Lil Problem. See if those are your symptoms as well??
It seems that it may be something else, but still don't know.
Here is an update.
Last night I put a container of injector cleaner in the tank and ran it for awhile with similar but improved symptoms.
This afternoon my eldest son came over and we started and drove it around for a while and it is much improved, but still stalled a couple of times.
The car was parked for a few months, so I'm wondering if part of the problem is some water that gets in the system periodically.
I suppose these symptoms can be caused by many possibilities, not limited to fuel pump, relays, vaccuum hoses, distributers and spark plugs. It boggles the mind.
How can you get to the vacuum hoses while the car is running without taking off the whole rectangular overhead cam cover thingy.
Jacob came up with the idea of spraying cleaning fluid at the hoses one at a time to determine a leak.
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