oldsmobile 88 dies at lights

We are borrowing my mothers car while we are having some work done on our 2nd vehicle and yesterday my husband and the kids were out and the car started to die at lights. He said it would still run if he gave it gas even when stopped. We know it's had problems and would die if you went from reverse to drive too fast or drive to reverse but it's never just died at a light on my mother or us. If anyone has any suggestions for him to look at I'd greatly appreciate them! Thanks in advance!

I take it there are no codes.

Take a screwdriver handle and tap the MAF sensor. If the engine stumbles “there ya go”, it’s bad. The MAF does not toss codes unless it has completely failed. when the maf is semi bad some times you can find a sweat gas pedl spot at idle that will keep it running. Then there is a host of things that can cause this; many of them are old school things like vacuum leak, low compression, bad coil, then there is the new school stuff, low fuel pressure, bad fuel pump, plugged fuel filter, bad EGR, bad coil drive board. You did not say what year it was. And some times it’s hard to find the problem without a seat of the pants feel even if it does toss codes and the engine is tight.

Good luck and don’t give up. Just keep on looking

Don't forget the old throttle body clean up. IAC passages etc. Seems to be a common cure for a majority of the post's wth this symtom.