Am having big problems with the Cavalier.
Was running really lumpy today and not idling well at all - put it down to the bane of every Vauxhall owner's life, the idle control valve.
Not so I think - I thought I'd clean up the electrics etc with some WD40 - took the car out and thought I'd run the engine hard. Now, if I take the engine up to 5000 rpm, let the throttle off then press it back down again - nothing - the car doesn't fire at all. Once the engine gets down to about 1500 rpm it picks up again if I'm lucky. Idling very bad and the engine keeps cutting out, thought it was going to be an AA job at one point.
I'm still going to go over the electrics when the car's cooled sufficiently but if anyone can offer any helpful suggestions as to what could be up I'd be VERY grateful - I need the car for work tomorrow!
Thanks in advance
Dan
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Could be a fuel problem? Air leak when the engine is warmed up causing weak mixture. Is it injection or carb? If injection check that the air intake from the throttle body is fastened up tightly and no air leaks can get in. I once had a similar problem on a 405 injection which ran terribly as the engine was drawing in air from around the throttle body and not via the air filter inlet.
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Dan
I think this car probably has overrun fuel shut off, and that normally starts fueling again below about 1500 revs. Is this system malfunctioning - not responding to the throttle opening? I'm sure the experts may be able to comment on this.
Regards
JS
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Looks like today's not been a happy day for us Cavalier owners - I've just discovered that my Cav convertible's suffered a water leak and a flat battery since I last used it a fortnight ago. Anyway, I wouldn't normally put links to other motoring forums on here, but since your problem's urgent, try posting it on the Cavweb forum at:
homepage.ntlworld.com/cavweb2000/4rum.htm
Chances are someone on there will have come across the same thing, and you'll get a swift reply.
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Could be the airflow meter - I am told these fail quite regularly on Cavaliers and Astras. Needs a proper diagnostic check to confirm it.
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Thanks for the comments:
Car is booked in at my local Vauxhall outfit which I could well have done without at this time of year. I spoke to the head mechanic there who said he wasn't sure off-hand but 2 possible suggestions are the camshaft sensors, which I'd thought were only on the 16v and are renound for being problematic, and perhaps though less likely the airflow meter.
We'll see! I'll post back what was up with it and whether my Christmas will be spent with bread and water as opposed to turkey and wine as a result...
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Don't use WD 40 on electrics. WD40 works in the short term because it's acidic. The free ions allow a circuit to be made and hey presto things improve. However in the long term the phosphoric acid in WD40 corrodes the copper turning it that nasty green colour (Copper oxide) and making things greatly worse.
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The other thing to check on Vauxhall engines is every connector. These are prone to water ingress from condensation at this time of year.
HJ
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Sounds like throttle position sensor going intermittent. Disconnect it and see if all the problems go away. May put up the EM light but don't worry also the idle speed may be a little higher. Usual fault with the idle speed controller is either high idle speed or more usually cutting out.
Replacement is straightforward.
HTH
Andrew
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Sounds like the air-flow meter to me, they are very easy to swop over if you can borrow a known good one from some one.
Steve..
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So, what was it Dan ?
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God knows - I tried Andrew Moorey's suggestion and it doesn't look like it is, or is all due to, the throttle position sensor unfortunately. Could still be the airflow meter or maybe EGR valve.
The car is now idling at 3000 rpm and I am just being thankful it is not an auto.
I see a very bleak Christmas ahead after the Vauxhall/GM garage have finished emptying my bank account. Unless a miracle happens between now and Friday I'll let you know what it was once they've found it.
Cheers for asking!
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