Help! Acceleration Problems!
08-15-2008, 01:33 AM
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To begin let me give you guys the background information on my car.
If you click the link below it will take you to my first forum post. I know its long, but its relevant to my problem right now.
http://www.rdtiburon.com/index.php?showtopic=28476
I've had numerous problems as of late with my car. When I first picked up the car it had a CEL that would stay on constantly. The code was for "Oxygen Sensor: Bank 2 Sensor 1." I replaced that not realizing that the code was probably being tripped by my aftermarket headers. I got a local performance shop to replace it with an OEM one and had them reset the code. It came back almost immediately (less than 20 miles). After having my sensor tested it turned out the sensor had failed and was now useless, so I had it replaced a second time with a universal sensor (low funds). About that time I started to have horrible problems with my car. It would stutter and buck constantly and the exhaust even sounded like it was "gargling" or even "thumping" at idle like a bigger V8 would. We found the problem to be the MAF and I replaced that. That cleared up the problems there.
My recent problem that has plagued me happened after I filled up on base with premium fuel (I use nothing less). As soon as I filled up, my car started running really rough. The car would shake and hunt for an idle. Also when I would step on the accelerator my car would go nowhere. Oddly enough as soon as I let off the accelerater it felt as if the car would take off for a short period. I could relieve the problem by pumping my accelerator multiple times, which seemed to bring back my acceleration. The "thumping" sound also returned but would only happen rarely, when it did go into "thumping" mode it would persist until I turned off the car then turn it back on. I initially suspected bad fuel so I ran the fuel tank to near empty and filled it back up with premium from Chevron and used some HEET to evaporate any possible water. This did very little to alleviate my problem.
My mechanic suspected a dirty fuel filter but was unable at the time to get the "in-tank" fuel filter and had to order it. After a little bit of investigation it turned out my air filter was clogged and needed to be replaced. After replacing it, my car started to run significantly better however the acceleration problem still persisted. A short time after, my car started to stall on me when I would come to a stop, but only when my car's acceleration/performance would act up (again, this problem is intermittent, my car runs perfectly a lot of the time). I decided to get some MAF cleaner and to make sure my intake was sealed good (I'm still using a makeshift intake from my supercharger kit). After I cleaned my MAF my performance seemed to increase even more, and the intermittent acceleration/stalling problems seemed to become more rare and were shorter in duration.
About this time I decided to go get my OBDII read and it came back with some interesting codes. They are: P0031 (Low Volt Bank1 Sensor1 Oxygen Sensor), P0132 (High Volt Bank1 Sensor1 Oxygen Sensor), and P0150 (Bank2 Sensor1 Oxygen Sensor Circuit Malfunction). P0031 and P0132 both have duplicate codes in the OBDII making it a total of 5 codes. This is interesting because I have not touched or replaced Bank1 Sensor1, and now: Bank2 Sensor1's circuit is malfunctioning altogether. I do not know if these codes coincided with me filling up or even if they were the cause of or were caused by me filling up my tank. I'm starting to think this may be an electrical problem?
What is really odd is that I have a fuel pressure gauge attached to my Fuel Management Unit, and it says I have adequate fuel pressure even when my car goes into that "thumping" mode (I've pulled over and checked). We also checked my TPS and it is functioning properly. I am really stumped at this point and have no idea what it could be. It should also be noted that the RIPP Black Box piggy back ECU is supposedly still attached to the car.
I found a link last week on youtube that closely mimics the "thumping" sound I get and will be posting that a little later once I find it. Also pictures will be posted in this thread in the next few days, and hopefully some video/audio for you guys to check out. At this moment in time I am in the process of switching shops/mechanics and have found a very reputable shop that works on high end tuner cars exclusively. I'll be paying them a visit tomorrow. Anyways, if you guys have an idea of what this most likely could be, please leave me a reply. If I think of any other symptoms or pertinent information I'll be sure to include it.
I know this post has been long, but I made sure to be as accurate and as detailed as possible so you guys could get a better picture of what I'm dealing with right now. Any help is greatly appreciated.
A Recap of symptons:
1). Problem is intermittent, a lot of the times the car will run perfectly.
2). Car will hunt for an idle when sitting still for a short period.
3). When putting the car into neutral as I come to a complete stop, the RPMs will dive then recover, sometimes stalling.
4). When the car does act up, the car will not accelerate or barely accelerate when pushing the pedal.
5). When it is acting up, the car's acceleration will pick up if I let off the pedal or if I floor it. But nothing in between.
6). By pumping the pedal or flooring it, the problem will alleviate itself quickly.
7). Very rarely the car will stall when coming to a complete stop.
8). Very rarely the car will go into a "thump" mode where the exhaust sounds remarkably different, almost like I'm running a V8 engine.
9). The problems will often disappear if I pull over and turn the car off and turn it back on.
10). The car will occasionally misfire when decelerating.
11). I have good fuel pressure when read at the FMU (right before it heads to the injectors).
12). TPS was tested and is functioning.
If you click the link below it will take you to my first forum post. I know its long, but its relevant to my problem right now.
http://www.rdtiburon.com/index.php?showtopic=28476
I've had numerous problems as of late with my car. When I first picked up the car it had a CEL that would stay on constantly. The code was for "Oxygen Sensor: Bank 2 Sensor 1." I replaced that not realizing that the code was probably being tripped by my aftermarket headers. I got a local performance shop to replace it with an OEM one and had them reset the code. It came back almost immediately (less than 20 miles). After having my sensor tested it turned out the sensor had failed and was now useless, so I had it replaced a second time with a universal sensor (low funds). About that time I started to have horrible problems with my car. It would stutter and buck constantly and the exhaust even sounded like it was "gargling" or even "thumping" at idle like a bigger V8 would. We found the problem to be the MAF and I replaced that. That cleared up the problems there.
My recent problem that has plagued me happened after I filled up on base with premium fuel (I use nothing less). As soon as I filled up, my car started running really rough. The car would shake and hunt for an idle. Also when I would step on the accelerator my car would go nowhere. Oddly enough as soon as I let off the accelerater it felt as if the car would take off for a short period. I could relieve the problem by pumping my accelerator multiple times, which seemed to bring back my acceleration. The "thumping" sound also returned but would only happen rarely, when it did go into "thumping" mode it would persist until I turned off the car then turn it back on. I initially suspected bad fuel so I ran the fuel tank to near empty and filled it back up with premium from Chevron and used some HEET to evaporate any possible water. This did very little to alleviate my problem.
My mechanic suspected a dirty fuel filter but was unable at the time to get the "in-tank" fuel filter and had to order it. After a little bit of investigation it turned out my air filter was clogged and needed to be replaced. After replacing it, my car started to run significantly better however the acceleration problem still persisted. A short time after, my car started to stall on me when I would come to a stop, but only when my car's acceleration/performance would act up (again, this problem is intermittent, my car runs perfectly a lot of the time). I decided to get some MAF cleaner and to make sure my intake was sealed good (I'm still using a makeshift intake from my supercharger kit). After I cleaned my MAF my performance seemed to increase even more, and the intermittent acceleration/stalling problems seemed to become more rare and were shorter in duration.
About this time I decided to go get my OBDII read and it came back with some interesting codes. They are: P0031 (Low Volt Bank1 Sensor1 Oxygen Sensor), P0132 (High Volt Bank1 Sensor1 Oxygen Sensor), and P0150 (Bank2 Sensor1 Oxygen Sensor Circuit Malfunction). P0031 and P0132 both have duplicate codes in the OBDII making it a total of 5 codes. This is interesting because I have not touched or replaced Bank1 Sensor1, and now: Bank2 Sensor1's circuit is malfunctioning altogether. I do not know if these codes coincided with me filling up or even if they were the cause of or were caused by me filling up my tank. I'm starting to think this may be an electrical problem?
What is really odd is that I have a fuel pressure gauge attached to my Fuel Management Unit, and it says I have adequate fuel pressure even when my car goes into that "thumping" mode (I've pulled over and checked). We also checked my TPS and it is functioning properly. I am really stumped at this point and have no idea what it could be. It should also be noted that the RIPP Black Box piggy back ECU is supposedly still attached to the car.
I found a link last week on youtube that closely mimics the "thumping" sound I get and will be posting that a little later once I find it. Also pictures will be posted in this thread in the next few days, and hopefully some video/audio for you guys to check out. At this moment in time I am in the process of switching shops/mechanics and have found a very reputable shop that works on high end tuner cars exclusively. I'll be paying them a visit tomorrow. Anyways, if you guys have an idea of what this most likely could be, please leave me a reply. If I think of any other symptoms or pertinent information I'll be sure to include it.
I know this post has been long, but I made sure to be as accurate and as detailed as possible so you guys could get a better picture of what I'm dealing with right now. Any help is greatly appreciated.
A Recap of symptons:
1). Problem is intermittent, a lot of the times the car will run perfectly.
2). Car will hunt for an idle when sitting still for a short period.
3). When putting the car into neutral as I come to a complete stop, the RPMs will dive then recover, sometimes stalling.
4). When the car does act up, the car will not accelerate or barely accelerate when pushing the pedal.
5). When it is acting up, the car's acceleration will pick up if I let off the pedal or if I floor it. But nothing in between.
6). By pumping the pedal or flooring it, the problem will alleviate itself quickly.
7). Very rarely the car will stall when coming to a complete stop.
8). Very rarely the car will go into a "thump" mode where the exhaust sounds remarkably different, almost like I'm running a V8 engine.
9). The problems will often disappear if I pull over and turn the car off and turn it back on.
10). The car will occasionally misfire when decelerating.
11). I have good fuel pressure when read at the FMU (right before it heads to the injectors).
12). TPS was tested and is functioning.
08-15-2008, 05:20 AM
#2
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Vehicle: 2001 Tiburon
Welcome!
I remember when i sea foamed my engine i put my MAF sensor on backwards. There is an arrow on it pointing it in the right direction. I has hesitation, almost stalling at idle and crappy performance. I saw that you said you cleaned it. I did not throw a code for it though that was the odd thing.
As far as your bank 1 sensor 1. If you had aftermarket headers they would have to move the o2 sensor so just because you didn't touch it doesn't mean that something didn't get fouled when they switched from aftermarket to OEM.
I remember when i sea foamed my engine i put my MAF sensor on backwards. There is an arrow on it pointing it in the right direction. I has hesitation, almost stalling at idle and crappy performance. I saw that you said you cleaned it. I did not throw a code for it though that was the odd thing.
As far as your bank 1 sensor 1. If you had aftermarket headers they would have to move the o2 sensor so just because you didn't touch it doesn't mean that something didn't get fouled when they switched from aftermarket to OEM.
08-15-2008, 06:13 AM
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Yes, I placed the MAF back on the intake correctly laugh.gif . The reason I do not suspect the MAF is because it is less than 2 months old, and my problems started well before I cleaned my MAF. It started immediately after I filled up my gas tank on base. Infact as soon as I started the car back up at the pump, thats when it started. Also, I understand that the headers will throw an oxygen sensor code but what is wierd is that it changed. Instead of just throwing a code for bank2 sensor1 like it had when I got the car, its not throwing two codes for bank1 sensor1 and is now telling me that my bank2 sensor1's circuit is failing.
08-15-2008, 08:53 AM
#4
Senior Member
Could have gotten a really bad tank of gas. That happened to my parents brand new altima. The bad tank of fuel completely clogged their fuel system. They ended up replacing fuel pump, filters, and serviced all the injectors. If you say all your recent problems happened RIGHT after filling up on base, I'd say its possible you got some skunky gas.
Do you know the history of the car? What kind of owner had it before you? If they had a piggyback installed on the car, they may have done a shitty job installing/uninstalling it and the wires to your sensors could be compromised. Thats just a shot in the dark.
Not sure if replacing your ECM would help. If you can get your hands on one fairly in-expensively, you might try that as well.
Do you know the history of the car? What kind of owner had it before you? If they had a piggyback installed on the car, they may have done a shitty job installing/uninstalling it and the wires to your sensors could be compromised. Thats just a shot in the dark.
Not sure if replacing your ECM would help. If you can get your hands on one fairly in-expensively, you might try that as well.