'97 Sebring Conv. Starts then dies

[Jessie324]

Hi! I tried starting my car today and it starts real quick then dies real quick. The more i try to start it the worse it sounds! Any ideas on what the problem could be?
I had my front brakes done, my oil changed, and my transmission oil leak taken care of on Wednesday morning. I drove my car the rest of that day and on Thursday and everything seemed normal, could they have messed something up that would cause this problem?
Also my steering wheel makes noise when I turn it, only when i first start my car though, after i make a few turns it doesn't make noise. The fluid is full and is looking good. I had the belt tightened a couple years ago and maybe that's my problem again. Could the power steering cause my car to start then die?

Any ideas?

[HeadlessHorseman1]

How many miles? Any codes? Your engine starting and stopping could be due to a bad crankshaft position sensor or camshaft position sensor (which may be built into the top-end of your distributor). I had the same problem with my '98 Sebring JXI. I replaced camshaft and crankshaft sensors at the same time because I had to take off a lot of stuff to get to the parts mounted onto the engine, including the EGR pipe connected between the EGR and intake manifold -- the pipe was plugged at the manifold end, so this was one of the few times I didn't mind disassembly so much.

In the absence of diagnostic codes, I wouldn't think your power steering and starting problems are related. Btw, your belt is held tight with a spring-loaded idler pulley, it's not tightened in the traditional way, with a wrench and nut.

If you replace the crankshaft position sensor, it'll cost you about $500 to have a dealer do it -- if you do it yourself, it'll cost you about $60 for the part -- you'll also have to buy 2 replacement EGR pipe gaskets, about $3.50 each. If it's the camshaft position sensor, it's built into the top-end of the distributor and that'll cost about $200 for the part.

Good luck!