hey

i have a 96 eclipse rs 5sp that hasnt been cooperating as of late... recently it has been hesitating (massively) while driving for around 30 minutes at highway speed. i figured i had a spark problem of some kind, so i replaced my plugs, wires, and coil.

the problem seemed to go away for a while, but came back a few days later. Once the car stalls, i have to park for a few minutes, and then it starts right back up...

the other day when i went to pull my car out of the garage to get a friends s10 in there for an oil change and basic tune-up, the car started, sputtered a bit, and then shut off.

It did this 3 more times in a row. I was frustrated, so I unplugged both terminals on the battery to be sure the ecu would be reset, and called it a day after working on the s10.

Came back the next day. Put the cables back on the battery. Tried starting 5 more times, the first two a few seconds apart, the last three a minute apart each... still starts, sputters, shuts off. Checked the plugs... not fouled at all... checked the oil... no water in it... had a friend check the wires while cranking the motor... definitely getting sufficient spark.

Today I went out to the garage, she fired right up. Best idle i ever saw out of her too... a near perfect 900 rpm... drove her around the block... not a problem at all... parked in the garage, left it idle in neutral, then revved it up to 7000. No problems here... acting like a brand new 420a...

i shut it off, started right back up three times in a row... no hesitation, perfect idle, etc...

i came back to it five minutes later... stutter and stall again... came back 1 hour later... same thing... stalls right out...

the last time i tried, it started to stall again, and i just kept pumping the gas pedal, and it finally started idling fine again... revved up to the red again fine too...

Nothing changed this entire time with the exception of me unplugging the battery... no ecu error codes or anything...

So I'm hoping this is a fuel problem? I bought a new filter, which I will be installing later tonight... Any ideas anyone?

What spark plugs/wires did you buy?

Are all your hoses connected? Did you look for problems near the throttle body?

I had a similar problem and found that my hose from the intake manifold to the VC came off somehow.

1998 Eclipse GS

GS-T Axleback|CAI|OBX 4-1 Header|AF/X UDP|

the only hoses i saw from the valve cover were the one going to the pcv and the one that goes to the air intake. am i overlooking any? ive been over the thing a million times and noticed nothing out of place, made no changes, nothing... and what gets me is that it's not throwing any codes out at all... my CEL used to look for reasons to go on. if there was a code for "hey, you need new wiper blades" the thing wouldve used it. but now when i need it... :-/

i went out this morning and it wont start at all again... :-/ i dont want to give in and take it to a local garage, but im running out of time here...

thanks for the help.

yes does the cam sensor leaking oil have to do with it stalling out, as mine leaks as well.

better than some... Greater than most

1995 Eagle Talon ESI
5-spd
K&N

2005 Ford Mustang GT
5-spd
K&N
Diablosport Predator
Ford Racing Axle-back GTAs

2003 Nissan 350Z
6-spd
NISMO LMGT4 Silver wheels
NISMO Cat-back
NISMO CAI



http://www.cardomain.com/ride/528103

So after the new fuel filter was installed, the car ran beautifully again, so I thought I had solved my problem. Later that night, as previously stated, the car wouldnt start again, giving the flashing CEL code of 11 (crankle angle sensor or ecu problem).

This morning, the car started perfectly... so i took it for a drive to run a few local errands... no problems. Took it for an hour drive with no problems whatsoever. On the way home from this drive, the car started to do something I'm going to refer to as a hiccup. The rpms dropped down to almost zero and then came back up to where the rpms had been before, while cruising in 4th. It eventually did it so much that the engine stalled... and wouldnt start again... i sat there for a few minutes, and then it started right back up and drove home again like nothing had happened...

I'm going to order a new CAS tomorrow and put it in the next day... (seeing as how the ECU uses what the CAS reports to decide how to control the timing, fuel, and rpms, you know, nothing majorly important ) if i still have the problems... new ecu... i'll let everyone know how this goes... someone has to have this same problem at some point?

ok, so after the fuel filter and pcv replacement, i no longer have problems starting the car. Starts and idles beautifully. However, after driving for around an hour or so, the problems start and the motor stalls...

And I'm getting frustrated. I can't find a new ECU for this thing anywhere... anyone know where i can get one? ebay doesnt have one to match, nor do the local junkyards...

I know many guys get a new ECU from the dealer, but if you want check out car-part.com It's a national search of junkyards, and some of them ship. (this does, of course, involve some risk). It does sound like the cam or crank sensor(s). You might also when you're replacing them check for the continuity of the wire from the sensor to the ecu (wiggle the wire while you test the continuity to make sure the wire is intact). If you live near any other 2gnt's, you could drop another ECU in to see if it works for an extended period of time so you don't drop a lot of money into something that wasn't the original problem. Try the sensors first.

The other possiblity is with fuel. You said you had a new filter in there, maybe there's crap in the tank (easy to check) or a fuel pump going bad. Although, it's so intermittent, I would check the sensors first.


Good luck, and let us know what you find.

Brian

Red 97 Eclipse GS (420a) MTX
Custom Garrett T3 Turbo system
Megasquirt w/52 lb/hr injectors & a Walbro 255
Kicker/Alpine Audio (3 amps, 2 subs)
90 Cav 2.2 TBI auto (winter) <- yeah, it's fast

Back when I bought my car brand new (Dec of 98), I had this problem after only two weeks. The dealer had it for almost a month. They replaced the fuel relay...nothing, the ECU...nothing, cam position sensor...nothing, ended up being the crank angle sensor. While up on the lift while the car was running, they wiggled the sensor and the car would die. They replace the sensor and the problem never came back again. Hope this helps.

http://www.cardomain.com/ride/3130861

Sigh, I have the same problem, I even rebuilded the engine. And worst thin i still love the car....

Btw : this hell started when my battery shorted with my engine hood , and the ground wire between the body and the intake got on fire.

My PCM died that day , but i got a new one inside

CLUTCH

Hey man... check your MAP sensor. What you are describing sounds EXACTLY like my first issue with the 420A. Took me forever to trace in down, but it was a faulty MAP sensor. It wouldn't stall all the time, just randomly. The RPMs would drop to zero for a second, then right back up to where it was. Check it out.

when you say the car wont star up will it start if you give it gas? cause I had a similar problem and a new computer fixed all.

Awesome. Good to see this antique thread finally came up with some results for someone.