96 buick park ave ... driving me up the wall... dies when put in gear

i have a 96 buick park ave that is a 3.8 v6 i took it to the shop for a small fuel leak while in the shop we found a few other problems.

so far we have had the:
Fuel line fixed
Coolant intake to the engine fixed (leaking coolant in to engine and oil)
Spark Plug WIRES repalced

But we still had the same problem if you were driving it would be fine but as soon as you take your foot off the gas and stop the car dies. if you restart the car it will run until the next stop.

So the repair shop:
replaced the batter (not it, same problem)
replaced the alternator - would stop charging while in shop when shifted in to a gear (no it, same problem)
replaced the computer (not it, same problem)

I have put $800 in repairs to this car just right now, and before I spend more i would like some ideas.

My question is, do you know what would cause a car to die when it gets shifted in to gear or would die when it comes to a stop?

Unplug the mass airflow sensor and see if it stays running.
If it does, then you have a bad MAF.
Also, check to see if the throttle plate is dirty. clean it if it is, as it will restrict air flow while at idle.

thanks for getting back to me.

I do not alot of my own car work but i dont want it in the shop any more so is the MAF something that
a) i can find & b) take off my self and put back on?
and then same question for the throttle plate?
a)where is it & b)how do i take if off to clean it.

You have taken your car to an unqualified repair shop. They are just throwing parts in the car hoping to find the solution to cars problem.Take it to another shop, have them scan the computer for codes which should lead them to the potential cause of the stalling.

I would look in the areas of the throttle position sensor or a weak or defective fuel pump based on past experience of your cars issues.

Good luck

jb

I am sorry. There are a lot of people that think there is a drivability issue with your car.
I have worked on GM cars for a lot of years. Every time that I have had a GM car that dies when put into gear, it is the torque converter lock-up solenoid that has failed. This solenoid blocks the escape of oil from the torque converter lock-up clutch assembly. If the fluid can not escape the lock-up, it will remain in the applied position and acts just like a car with a manual transmission when you dump the clutch with no additional throttle. It will KILL the engine. Of course, you will put it in park and start it up and it will run fine until you put it in gear again. REPLACE the LOCK-UP "torque converter clutch"(TCC) solenoid.

Have fun,
Kevin

Could you elaborate on that problem a little bit? For an example: if you re-fire the car in neutral or park then place the car in drive with your foot on the brake…. Does it die? If it does then Clutch nailed it. Is this a hot problem, a cold problem, or a warm problem. Does it die slowly or does it die right hear and right now. Can you feel the engine dieing or is it like a light switch. Do you hear and or feel a bang? Have you paid attention to things like the A/C on? I will say this that code readers are nice, scan tools cut out a lot of dancing with test equipment, Guessing may work with experience. And if you factory train an idiot and give them tons of qualifications…… you have a well educated idiot!


Come on twooten I need more info! Go after this with a methodical, critical eye and pay attention to things that may not seam to matter so closely that you notice that it only dies if going down hill or my 400Lb brother in law is in the front passenger seat. Or it only dies when you have two bodies in the trunk.

just remember even if clutch nailed it it could be a bad TCC or a bad tcc valve. one is DIY fix with a lot of work and the other is an R&R tranny fix