Bwwaaw! Help! My baby died today!
04-21-2006 | 04:08 AM
#1
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From: Cairns, FNQ, Australia and Macau SAR
Bwwaaw! Help! My baby died today!
I've been having some issues with cold starts lately, very low idle, stalling etc. Everything disappears after the car is warmed up, until today! Bugger.
History:
As above.
Today: No problems, it even idled a little better when I left home. Drove into town via the gas station. Because of current prices (approx $AUD1.40/lt, $AUD5.60/US Gal) I thought I would be chesp and put in a 1/2 tank of regular unleaded, instead of Premium unleaded, on top of the Premium already in the tank. No problems with driving the next 12km to my destination. No revving or power problems.
After sitting around and getting my latest lesson in marketing 101 from Charles he wanted to go for a drive to advise on my driving tecnique. This is OK with me as he has done all the Porsche Advanced driving courses and I haven't. I'll listen to anyone if they know more than me!
Quick run up the highway, again no discernable problems.
We get back to start and Charles wants to drive to see if he can show me more. First time he's ever driven a 944. He has a 2004 C4S.
100m from his workplace my engine dies!
WTF! This thing has not so much as coughed in the last 12 months.
After poking around under the hood and finding nothing loose the symptoms are:
The car starts with no problems, still slow idle, sits on about 600rpm.
The minute you touch the accelerator, the car dies, just like that!
We leave it to cool down in the street as Charles has had a similar problem in the C4s and it corrected itself after the car cooled down.
45min later same thing. We push the car into the driveway of his factory and eventually I call the Auto Club. The serviceman from the RACQ is as stumped as us which is no great surprise as it is probably the first time he's ever had his head under the hood of a Porsche!
He did determine that the battery was low, 11.3V I think. Other than that it's just the engine dying thing.
I eventually got the car towed home, no cost because I hold an RACQ Gold card. It's sitting in the carport, tow hitch screwed in to the front.
I'm thinking, because the car starts, that it is a sensor of some sort.
O2 Sensor?
Dying Chip?
Bad Fuel?
Help would be appreciated. There is no dealership up here who service Porsces and I dont want my baby sitting in the garage until the mechanics come up from Brisbane late June.
Please remember that my mechanical expertise is limited to tyre changes and the odd tightening of a screw!
Pics to make you cry;
History:
As above.
Today: No problems, it even idled a little better when I left home. Drove into town via the gas station. Because of current prices (approx $AUD1.40/lt, $AUD5.60/US Gal) I thought I would be chesp and put in a 1/2 tank of regular unleaded, instead of Premium unleaded, on top of the Premium already in the tank. No problems with driving the next 12km to my destination. No revving or power problems.
After sitting around and getting my latest lesson in marketing 101 from Charles he wanted to go for a drive to advise on my driving tecnique. This is OK with me as he has done all the Porsche Advanced driving courses and I haven't. I'll listen to anyone if they know more than me!
Quick run up the highway, again no discernable problems.
We get back to start and Charles wants to drive to see if he can show me more. First time he's ever driven a 944. He has a 2004 C4S.
100m from his workplace my engine dies!
WTF! This thing has not so much as coughed in the last 12 months.
After poking around under the hood and finding nothing loose the symptoms are:
The car starts with no problems, still slow idle, sits on about 600rpm.
The minute you touch the accelerator, the car dies, just like that!
We leave it to cool down in the street as Charles has had a similar problem in the C4s and it corrected itself after the car cooled down.
45min later same thing. We push the car into the driveway of his factory and eventually I call the Auto Club. The serviceman from the RACQ is as stumped as us which is no great surprise as it is probably the first time he's ever had his head under the hood of a Porsche!
He did determine that the battery was low, 11.3V I think. Other than that it's just the engine dying thing.
I eventually got the car towed home, no cost because I hold an RACQ Gold card. It's sitting in the carport, tow hitch screwed in to the front.
I'm thinking, because the car starts, that it is a sensor of some sort.
O2 Sensor?
Dying Chip?
Bad Fuel?
Help would be appreciated. There is no dealership up here who service Porsces and I dont want my baby sitting in the garage until the mechanics come up from Brisbane late June.
Please remember that my mechanical expertise is limited to tyre changes and the odd tightening of a screw!
Pics to make you cry;
04-21-2006 | 04:47 AM
#3
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From: Cairns, FNQ, Australia and Macau SAR
Originally Posted by Eyal 951
I don't know what to tell you if all you can do is tighten a screw.
Probably not the best anaolgy. Also exaggerated for effect.
I am not capable of pulling the engine apart and reassembling. I do not have the equipment for major repairs.
If the job is just a unscrew/replace/screw then OK.
There are no disconeccted plugs. I know that much about engines.
Always made my old man sad that I wasn't mechanically mindede. He was an engineering tradesman and could tell what was wrong with something just by listening. Used to **** me off big time, but I secretly admired his skills. Never told him but, sadly.
04-21-2006 | 04:57 AM
#4
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From: Los Angeles
Well, check the AFM (maybe start with voltages?) Check for huge vacuum leaks, check the TPS (I geuss the voltages, and check for the click)
Report back. Consult Clarks if you need a write up.
Report back. Consult Clarks if you need a write up.
04-21-2006 | 05:20 AM
#5
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Joined: Dec 2002
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From: Los Angeles, Ca
$hit I thought your kid literally died today. Phew. AFM being unplugged will definitely do what you are describing. A vacuum leak will still allow your car to run under throttle. O2 sensor is not necessary for the car to run.
If its not the AFM plug, check the fuel pressure since it always start but dies when you open the throttle. It could be the pump, check valve, fuel pressure regulator or damper. You know if you need parts, I got em here.
If its not the AFM plug, check the fuel pressure since it always start but dies when you open the throttle. It could be the pump, check valve, fuel pressure regulator or damper. You know if you need parts, I got em here.
04-21-2006 | 05:31 AM
#6
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From: connecticut
What does chris say"start with the basics" Clarks garage is also a very good place to get a plan. I use it often. Look up trouble shooting. Then find your symptom. IE "car cranks but won't run" Or your actual trouble which sounds like"car stalls" I agree with the tps, but start with basics first.
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04-21-2006 | 07:05 AM
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From: Cairns, FNQ, Australia and Macau SAR
Sorry about the baby tag. But he is! The real ones are over 21 so dont count any more! 
Gunna do some research over the next couple of days. Have all the manuals on cd. Anything above plug and play is way beyond me. I will contact the service manager at Porsche Brisbane on Monday (it's Fri Night here, not open w/ends). Keep suggestions coming, bearing in mind I have no idea what the acronyms mean and have to search through all the threads to find a match!
Gunna do some research over the next couple of days. Have all the manuals on cd. Anything above plug and play is way beyond me. I will contact the service manager at Porsche Brisbane on Monday (it's Fri Night here, not open w/ends). Keep suggestions coming, bearing in mind I have no idea what the acronyms mean and have to search through all the threads to find a match!
04-21-2006 | 10:00 AM
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From: Loveland, Colorado USA
Hi Brian,
TPS - Throttle Position Switch. Black plastic devise with wires connected, attached to left side of throttle body.
AFM - Air Flow Meter. Also known as 'Flapper Door' & 'Barn Door'. Metal devise attached to right side of airbox (well, on a 951 anyway) with wires connected to it.
Clark's has a good troubleshooting section on these. My guess is the TPS since it idles ok but dies as soon as you get on the throttle.
May the Rennlist force be with you!
TPS - Throttle Position Switch. Black plastic devise with wires connected, attached to left side of throttle body.
AFM - Air Flow Meter. Also known as 'Flapper Door' & 'Barn Door'. Metal devise attached to right side of airbox (well, on a 951 anyway) with wires connected to it.
Clark's has a good troubleshooting section on these. My guess is the TPS since it idles ok but dies as soon as you get on the throttle.
May the Rennlist force be with you!
04-21-2006 | 01:29 PM
#13
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From: 5280 ft above the sea
Definately. I'm an echo...
Sorry to hear it man, that's never fun. never ever. ever.
So... best of luck to ya mate! you can fix it! but yes, vacuum lines, J-boot (the black rubber thingy between the air box and throttle body) and throttle position sensor... check all. if that doesn't work, do you have a spare DME relay?
Sorry to hear it man, that's never fun. never ever. ever.
So... best of luck to ya mate! you can fix it! but yes, vacuum lines, J-boot (the black rubber thingy between the air box and throttle body) and throttle position sensor... check all. if that doesn't work, do you have a spare DME relay?
04-21-2006 | 01:44 PM
#14
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I don't understand why everyone is overlooking a critical piece of data he did provide - the 11.3 v battery voltage.
I would think that a battery whose steady-state voltage is that low would wreak havoc on the charging system when the car is running, dragging down the whole system below the normal operating voltage.
Nearly the exact same thing happened to my car about 3 years ago. Car would start, have a _very_ low idle, depressing the accellerator did nothing, car would stall out. Turns out it was the battery. My car, like beeg's, was in a warm climate where signs of a worn-out battery are less evident.
You need to connect a voltmeter across the battery once the car is started, tell us what the voltage across the battery terminals is.
...
BTW, beeg, sorry I didn't get time to hang out when I was in Cairns. I got "tied up" with this girl from the Netherlands for the entire time I was there.
I did have time to get turned away from your casino over there - they accused me of being drunk and trying to enter the casino, when I literally had 1 beer in the 8 hours before I tried to walk in there.
I would think that a battery whose steady-state voltage is that low would wreak havoc on the charging system when the car is running, dragging down the whole system below the normal operating voltage.
Nearly the exact same thing happened to my car about 3 years ago. Car would start, have a _very_ low idle, depressing the accellerator did nothing, car would stall out. Turns out it was the battery. My car, like beeg's, was in a warm climate where signs of a worn-out battery are less evident.
You need to connect a voltmeter across the battery once the car is started, tell us what the voltage across the battery terminals is.
...
BTW, beeg, sorry I didn't get time to hang out when I was in Cairns. I got "tied up" with this girl from the Netherlands for the entire time I was there.
I did have time to get turned away from your casino over there - they accused me of being drunk and trying to enter the casino, when I literally had 1 beer in the 8 hours before I tried to walk in there.
