trouble getting going

This used to happen very infrequently but is no happenning just about every time i start my car. I will turn the key, and the engine will crank and catch, and so i hear the difference and let off the key. then the rpms will quickly fall from just above 1000 (normal i guess?) to nothing and the car will stall. it looks like the engine makes an effort to keep it going at about 600 rpms but its hardly noticeable. the strange thing is, if i turn the key and start the engine, and as soon as it catches i hold the gas down bringing the rpms above 2 for maybe 5-10 seconds, when i let off again it settles into idle. sometimes low maybe 600 rpms, or sometimes high maybe 9 or 10 hundred.(most of the time it'll drop some spead but the engine actually catches it and kicks it back up to idle instead of letting it fall) anyway, regardless of where its at or how it starts after i drive around for a little it will always come to rest at or a little over 1000 rpms. seams a little high for a warm engine but then again i haven't had to car long enough to know what it should be. last oil change i got was from a mechanic because i stripped the oil plug trying to get it off. is it possible they put an oil in that was too thick because im pretty sure it first started around or just after that oil change but i can't see how it would have gotten progressively worse since then if it was just the oil's thickness. sorry for the long post but im trying to be as detailed as possible, anyone have any ideas? thanks in advance

check your MAS. the damn oil change ppl could have unplugged for reasons unbeknownst to humanity when changing/check your air filter. if your MAS is unplugged it will cause idle to fluctuate then die. in the pic below, the MAS is the black square computer located between the air filter and the shiny intake pipe.

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g236/Linebckr49/3000GT/intakepipe.jpg

Doesn't have a thing to do with your oil level or plug. Check to make sure your MAS is plugged in. 2nd, tell us what model car you have, I'm guessing an SL based on your username, but it makes a difference. Sounds like an intake issue.

Can you start hte car without it stalling...without giving it extra gas?

If so, does hte idle fluctuate on it's own? What does it do?

does it only do this when its cold? Does it start any better when its at operating temp?

its a 94 SL, and well the MAS (mass air sensor?) was plugged in. the weird thing is when i look at the plug's connections there are 8 holes and 7 have metal connectors. but the 2nd one from the right is a different color and pushed back a little. looks copper instead of whatever the other silver ones are and like it got jammed when someone unplugged it and plugged it back in. not pushed bad far but def more that the other 6. at first i thought it might be corrosion but the prongs that go into the connectors are all the same color and not corroded. possible bad connection there? anyway as for starting in different temperatures. i'd say it stalled more cold than warm though i haven't been keeping close track. today however i did and it started this morning cold to my surprize and again warm at the bank but just now when i tried it (warm but not hot, maybe 2+ hours after driving) it stalled twice and i didn't try again. i'll keep some paper and a pen in the car so i can tally when it stalls and when it starts at different temperatures and report back. in the mean time thanks for the help everyone, what do u guys think? would a bad MAS connection do it? the weird thing is it only ever stalls when im starting the car, its never stalled in the middle of a drive, at a stopsign, at any destination, only just after i've turned the key.

thats same thing would happen to me also, but it id it only when warm, as in i drove it let it rest and a hour later it wouldnt want so start, it never did it cold with me
the problem just went away eventually and has never done it again, but what i would do to get it going is one it starts up a lil bit, then i'd hit the gas, about half way down, and you could hear the exhaust putt putting for just a bit and then the rpms would start jumping up and i'd let go.

as far as the problem, i have no idea

ok, there are 2 problems here: 1) no start 2) stalling.

for the no-start problem, our cars have a common problem where sometimes when you turn the key you get just a click. IIRC, this has something to do with poor grounding and a remedy is to put a relay from the starter to the battery. (i'll do some more searching). anyhow, i've had this problem recently, and one way to get it to start is to just turn the key to start, if no start, turn key back to off, then turn to start again. do this about 10 times and it should start.

as for the stalling problem, it could be a lot of things, but your observation about the plug connections on the MAS are noteworthy and make me curious. to clarify, was the connection that was pushed back on the plug connector side or the MAS side?

alright, trying to keep posts short. new job: hence late reply. also today: pulling out of parking lot, push in clutch and engine dies: sends me into curb b/c no pwr steering. bent rim and bubble in tire. as for connections: on the wire side that plugs in, not the sensor side. if i shake it, it'll make a rattling sound, normal? anyway the curb thing brought my interest back to fixing the prob. thanks for the help guys. also up the idle for temp fix while diagnosing? engine temp seems to have little to do with it btw, cold starting is only slightly more likely for it not to stall. but there was some miscommunication, there is no trouble starting the car. the starter never clicks and the engine always catches. sorry for that.

rattling sound = something is loose/broken = not normal.

can you take any pics for us of the MAS, connector side AND airbox side?

if you feel comfortable doing it, you might try to connect a jumper wire from the loose connector in the wiring harness to the pushed back plug (assuming the two are related). see if that helps at all.

ok got some pics, the second peice from the right is a different color and pushed back. it doesnt look as pushed back in the pics but it def is. i dont have any speaker wire to make individual connections with to see if thats the problem or not. should i look into that? i can def see how it would determine if that was the problem or not.

http://i115.photobucket.com/albums/n287/gismojames212212/mas/mas3.jpg

http://i115.photobucket.com/albums/n287/gismojames212212/mas/mas5.jpg

if it was the mas though wouldnt the rpms be jumping up and down all the time, because even though it doesnt seem to know how fast idle should be its not like the rpms rise and fall continually when idling, they only change from day to day or with engine temperature.

i highly doubt the MAS is the culprit. as you said, if the MAS was faulty, it would do it all the time, rpms jumping up and down.

first, focus on your throttle body, as Igovert500 suggested. take it off, take it apart and see if the butterfly valve operates properly in conjunction with the pulley that the throttle cable is attached to. WD40 is your friend. use plenty of it. some of those bolts look a bit rusty.

so umm, for clarification. the throttle body is the peice connected to the cord that goes to the peddle right? or the actual peice that cuts off air by blocking the intake. i guess i should just take off the intake and get a friend to pump the gas peddle and watch it open and close to make sure its doing so correctly. then a little wd40 in all the joints couldnt hurt. thats what ur sayin?

exactly what i'm saying.

you can either have a friend pump the gas pedal, or you can do it yourself from under the hood by just pulling the throttle cable upwards, or turning the metal pulley connected to the throttle body. the throttle body is the entire piece/unit that the intake hose connects to. then the throttle body is connected on the other side to the intake plenum.

Your Idle control servo may be shot. It's a common problem of all Mitsu cars.

just wondering but what are the symptoms of a shot idle control servo and how much would a new one cost me if i put it in myself? assuming i could do it without botching anything.

a fluctuating idle...which is why I asked if your warm idle was all over the place or if it was just high and steady, a month ago. Do a search on IAC and you will find plenty of info on it. You can clean it or get one on ebay for $50 and replace it yourself.