88 Park Ave having problems with acceleration.

Before a couple weeks ago my car never hesitated as bad and as often as it is now. i normally would drive it across town to school every morning then back home, and them from home to work(about 50 miles back and forth) every night. the car always ran smooth and picked up speed and maintaned it fairly easy.school is done with for the semester and my job laid us off so i don't drive it as often anymore. now about three or four weeks ago my car has just completely changed up. when i put the car in drive its really jerky, and seems to be stuck. i'll press the pedal down hard enough to be going 35 or 40 miles and hour yet only be doing 15 to 20, and then all of a sudden the speed jumps and then goes back to being slow. stopping at red lights is the worse. i'll have my foot on the brake yet it feels like im riding a bull. the car won't stay still and seems to edge up forward without me wanting it too. the other day i was dropping somebody off to get something and sat outside in my car for like five minutes and when i went to take my foot off the brake the car cutoff.

Have you checked the fuel pressure?

Have you checked the fuel pressure?

no. Is there some tool specifically for this? Once i check it, and i found out its either high, low, or normal would would be next if its too low(what im guessing)?

You could have a bad fuel pressure regulator, hence one of the reasons for checking the fuel pressure. If fuel pressure is OK, I would check the TPS & IAC next.

crap. i took it to a mechanic shop to get looked and found out that it had nothing to do with the gas tank or fuel pump.

the electronic control module and coil pack has to be replaced because it melted(:eek7:) and started messing up other parts. they say my engine is only running on a few cylinders and not to drive it until i get it fixed. for a basic part including labor they are charging 850 dollars and for a longer lasting part and warranty they are charging 1300 dollars. only way im spending that money is if the engine or transmission is messed up. hopefully i can find a personal mechanic that can put the part on for cheaper. do you guys think that's a reasonable price?

I presume you have the '3800' series motor.
The ignition coil pack is bolted to the ignition module. They are sold as seperate pieces but are usually replaced both at the same time.

Both pieces can be bought from rockauto.com for a total of about $200.
You could probably get used ones from an auto dismantling yard for less, or from a local auto parts store for slightly more money.

A mechanic can change them both in about 10 minutes. It's a very easy job.

So, yes, charging you $850 - 1300 is a big rip-off, imo.

Of course, this assumes the mechanics diagnosis is correct, of course. If its wrong, you may swap the parts and still have the same problem. :)

I presume you have the '3800' series motor.
The ignition coil pack is bolted to the ignition module. They are sold as seperate pieces but are usually replaced both at the same time.

Both pieces can be bought from rockauto.com for a total of about $200.
You could probably get used ones from an auto dismantling yard for less, or from a local auto parts store for slightly more money.

A mechanic can change them both in about 10 minutes. It's a very easy job.

So, yes, charging you $850 - 1300 is a big rip-off, imo.

Of course, this assumes the mechanics diagnosis is correct, of course. If its wrong, you may swap the parts and still have the same problem. :)


Thanks for the quick reply. I just wasn't sure of the price of the parts. they gave me a print out of labor and parts, and i saw 571 dollars next to ecm. i wasn't sure if the part costed that much, or if that was the labor. Since i've taken the car home, the shop keeps calling and asking me when i want to schedule an appointment for the work. i guess they really want that 850 dollars since it would only be ten minutes of work :rofl: