Sputters & Dies But Love Too Much To Sell...

ShempBob wrote:
>
> Hello There,
>
> This is probably an easy question to answer, but being not all that
> mechanical, I have a problem that might need a more expert answer. I
> have a 94 GT 5-Speed manual with a little over 156,000, in good to
> excellent condition, plus amazingly well-preserved (virtually no rust)
> for never being garage kept in a heavily snowy region during winter.
> Needless to say, I love this car.
>
> Having another primary car now, the Probe has been off the street for
> over 2 years. It?s rarely driven, but with stabilized gas in the tank,
> I run the engine on a regular basis to keep it active. The battery
> doesn't really have any juice left to crank the engine up on its own,
> but with a jump, the motor fires right up.
>
> Here?s the problem. Upon initial start up the engine idles fine. But
> after warming up, and my first rev of the gas pedal, the engine
> sputters and usually dies unless I can manually pump pedal to keep the
> idle higher than normal. The car can drive, but again, I have to
> manually keep the idle high (at least at 2,000 rpms) to ensure it
> won?t sputter down and die. Needless to say, driving on the street
> gets pretty tricky.

Perhaps a bad engine temp sensor. It starts and idles fine when cold,
but doesn't run well when warmed up because .... it still thinks its
cold.

> I replaced the battery last fall, but even with a new one, I get the
> same sputtering after the engine warms up. Any thoughts on what the
> problem might be? Could this be the alternator? Or is it something
> more complicated? Thanks in advance for the comments.

Almost certainly something to do with the fuel system or something that
controls the mixture.

--
Paul Hovnanian
------------------------------------------------------------------
I could get a new lease on life but I need the first and last month
in advance.

ShempBob wrote: (1994 Probe GT Manual Trans 156k Miles)

<Paraphrased> It's been parked for over 2 years, with stabilized
gas in the tank, occasionally started to keep the battery charged.
When started, it idles fine, but after it warms up it will sputter and
die unless I keep the idle over 2,000 rpm. Any thoughts on what
the problem might be?
__________________________________________________ ____________________

Sounds like a balky Idle Air Controller.

Rodan.

"ShempBob" > wrote in message
news:f386a7bb-88a6-47e0-8d78-
Whoops! It's a 1994 Ford Probe GT, manual 5-Speed. Sorry I didn't
mention that up front. Was an oversight, to be sure.

***
Dont worry. It is a common issue. Sorry for my somewhat venomous post. A
bad day on my part.

"Tegger" > wrote in message
...

>
> The OP has an effing Probe GT.

Thanks, Tegger.. And that is just about enough.

"HLS" > wrote in news:UZcnl.13223$D32.5279
@flpi146.ffdc.sbc.com:

>
> "Tegger" > wrote in message
> ...
>
>>
>> The OP has an effing Probe GT.
>
> Thanks, Tegger.. And that is just about enough.
>



Guess I overdid it, didn't I?


--
Tegger

On 2009-02-18, ShempBob > wrote:

> Here?s the problem. Upon initial start up the engine idles fine. But
> after warming up, and my first rev of the gas pedal, the engine
> sputters and usually dies unless I can manually pump pedal to keep the
> idle higher than normal. The car can drive, but again, I have to
> manually keep the idle high (at least at 2,000 rpms) to ensure it
> won?t sputter down and die. Needless to say, driving on the street
> gets pretty tricky.

Try cleaning the idle air control valve. That's probably the best place
to start. It sounds as if it works fine cold and then when warm sticks
closed, although you should be able to hold it under 2000 rpm, but that
could be because of some hand off in how air is metered in the control
system. Just a little throttle body cleaner and couple of screws to
remove the IAC.

"Tegger" > wrote in message
...
> Guess I overdid it, didn't I?
>
>
> --
> Tegger


You did, but so did I . I got in late on an international flight, was
tired, and should have just
gone to bed.

Let's just shake hands and go on from here.

"HLS" > wrote in news:Fnmnl.18227$c45.1665
@nlpi065.nbdc.sbc.com:

>
> "Tegger" > wrote in message
> ...
>> Guess I overdid it, didn't I?
>>
>>
>> --
>> Tegger
>
>
> You did, but so did I . I got in late on an international flight, was
> tired, and should have just
> gone to bed.
>
> Let's just shake hands and go on from here.
>
>


Deal.


--
Tegger

On Feb 18, 3:11*pm, ShempBob > wrote:
> Hello There,
>
> This is probably an easy question to answer, but being not all that
> mechanical, I have a problem that might need a more expert answer. I
> have a 94 GT 5-Speed manual with a little over 156,000, in good to
> excellent condition, plus amazingly well-preserved (virtually no rust)
> for never being garage kept in a heavily snowy region during winter.
> Needless to say, I love this car.
>
> Having another primary car now, the Probe has been off the street for
> over 2 years. It’s rarely driven, but with stabilized gas in the tank,
> I run the engine on a regular basis to keep it active. The battery
> doesn't really have any juice left to crank the engine up on its own,
> but with a jump, the motor fires right up.
>
> Here’s the problem. Upon initial start up the engine idles fine. But
> after warming up, and my first rev of the gas pedal, the engine
> sputters and usually dies unless I can manually pump pedal to keep the
> idle higher than normal. The car can drive, but again, I have to
> manually keep the idle high (at least at 2,000 rpms) to ensure it
> won’t sputter down and die. Needless to say, driving on the street
> gets pretty tricky.
>
> I replaced the battery last fall, but even with a new one, I get the
> same sputtering after the engine warms up. Any thoughts on what the
> problem might be? Could this be the alternator? Or is it something
> more complicated? *Thanks in advance for the comments.

I know you used a fuel stabilizer but I'd try some fresh fuel too.
Stabil doesn't your fuel last forever.. do you hear any pinging in the
motor??

On Feb 18, 3:11*pm, ShempBob > wrote:
> Hello There,
>
> This is probably an easy question to answer, but being not all that
> mechanical, I have a problem that might need a more expert answer. I
> have a 94 GT 5-Speed manual with a little over 156,000, in good to
> excellent condition, plus amazingly well-preserved (virtually no rust)
> for never being garage kept in a heavily snowy region during winter.
> Needless to say, I love this car.
>
> Having another primary car now, the Probe has been off the street for
> over 2 years. It’s rarely driven, but with stabilized gas in the tank,
> I run the engine on a regular basis to keep it active. The battery
> doesn't really have any juice left to crank the engine up on its own,
> but with a jump, the motor fires right up.
>
> Here’s the problem. Upon initial start up the engine idles fine. But
> after warming up, and my first rev of the gas pedal, the engine
> sputters and usually dies unless I can manually pump pedal to keep the
> idle higher than normal. The car can drive, but again, I have to
> manually keep the idle high (at least at 2,000 rpms) to ensure it
> won’t sputter down and die. Needless to say, driving on the street
> gets pretty tricky.
>
> I replaced the battery last fall, but even with a new one, I get the
> same sputtering after the engine warms up. Any thoughts on what the
> problem might be? Could this be the alternator? Or is it something
> more complicated? *Thanks in advance for the comments.

I know you used a fuel stabilizer but I'd try some fresh fuel too.
Stabil doesn't your fuel last forever.. do you hear any pinging in the
motor??