car jerking at high speed

oldneon95 · 02-13-2004, 07:00 PM

As I am cruising between 55-60 mph in my '95 neon, it'll tug back and forth as if it wants to stop running. This tugging back and forth is kinda scary as I'm not sure if I would lose power on the expressway. I also noticed that my engine light comes on and off during this tugging process. Also, as I am pulling into park, the engine will die but I have no problem starting up again. This also happens if I am slowly turning. Any advice would be appreciated.

NJH_Habitatpro · 02-14-2004, 02:07 PM

yeah man My car is doing that same thing i have a 95 to it will do it in all my gears though. but on the highway it will tug back and loose power and you hit the gas and it dont go anywere my rpms dont go to. I think that its the throttle sensor or the throttle body its self. Try having your car running and then shut the hood by a slight drop and see if your car stals.

pegasus757 · 02-14-2004, 09:29 PM

sit in the drivers seat with pen and paper.... do not start car...turn ignition switch on and off 3 times in 5 seconds, without cranking the engine ....the "check engine" light will start to flash a code....count the flashes ie ( flash, pause, flash,flash means code 12 ) and so on . then post results

oldneon95 · 02-14-2004, 11:47 PM

Thanks, Pegasus

I had taken it to decent mechanic when the engine light came on. He quickly plugged in for the DTC and it came up " park/neutral switch". He replaced it. However, per my earlier post, that did not solve the tugging/jerking/pulling and the engine light came on and off. I talked to the mechanic again and he was sure that no other DTC came up. He charged me a reasonable rate of $45 (Parts and labor---the guy's Asian and he gets a lot of business, so I trust him). I did mentioned to him the possibility of a bad fuel pump or O2 sensor---he suggested that I tried a bottle of fuel injector first before spending more money (you gotta like this guy---a dealer would probably replace everything possible). And again today as I made a slow right hand turn, the car died--no problem starting up again. From everything that I read on this forum, this problem seems to persist and no one who had the problem came back and provided details on what they did to cure the problem. I'll be on the highway again this Monday---hope the fuel injector is the fix but I doubt it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by pegasus757

sit in the drivers seat with pen and paper.... do not start car...turn ignition switch on and off 3 times in 5 seconds, without cranking the engine ....the "check engine" light will start to flash a code....count the flashes ie ( flash, pause, flash,flash means code 12 ) and so on . then post results

oldneon95 · 02-15-2004, 12:06 AM

Did you replaced the throttle sensor? Did it solve the problem? It's kinda freaky to see that rpm needle rapidly moving up and down--you would think an alien ship is hovering over your car and causing the electrical to go beserk. When you're cruising along at 60 -65 mph and that first tug- -and-jerk occurs, it wakes you up fast because it feels that you are standing still while everyone passes you by. By the way, I'm not sure if I understand your last sentence about shutting the hood? Thanks

Quote:

Originally Posted by NJH_Habitatpro

yeah man My car is doing that same thing i have a 95 to it will do it in all my gears though. but on the highway it will tug back and loose power and you hit the gas and it dont go anywere my rpms dont go to. I think that its the throttle sensor or the throttle body its self. Try having your car running and then shut the hood by a slight drop and see if your car stals.

Scatch! · 02-15-2004, 03:35 AM

I don't know about the RH turn problem, as I've never seen what people did to fix it. But your problem sounds to me like an O2 sensor, or loose/corroded battery connection. I had the same trouble, and a downstream O2 sensor fixed 'er right up. Good luck!

NJH_Habitatpro · 02-15-2004, 09:21 AM

while your car is running pop your hood and then close it by dropping it shut like about a foot up and see if your car stalls. One thing about your turn that is usually a sign of the fuel pump going bad that is a common problem the car will loose power up hills and sometimes stall around corners.

oldneon95 · 02-15-2004, 11:39 AM

Thanks Scatch---I never thought about the loose/corroded battery connection...I did put in a new battery a few months ago. I definitely think its the O2 sensor...I had a similar thing about five years after owning the car and the Firestone mechanic replaced 4 or 5 parts (one of which was the sensor, I believe)---hell, I think he got lucky with all the parts he replaced. Well, I'll let everyone know what happens in a week or two.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scatch!

I don't know about the RH turn problem, as I've never seen what people did to fix it. But your problem sounds to me like an O2 sensor, or loose/corroded battery connection. I had the same trouble, and a downstream O2 sensor fixed 'er right up. Good luck!

pegasus757 · 02-15-2004, 07:39 PM

"the guy's Asian and he gets a lot of business, so I trust him".....sounds like your in good hands. I worked for a THAI family for close to 14 years as a mechanic, trust and not losing face is very important to Asians , must be something in their upbringing

NJH_Habitatpro · 02-16-2004, 10:06 PM

Yeah Me agian I replaced the TPS (Throttle Postion Sensor), and my car is doing much better now. I was getting bad gas milage to and now im not. You can try that if you want to my car dont jerk anymore.

oldneon95 · 02-17-2004, 09:40 AM

Sounds great! But let's not get too euphoric too soon---let's give it a couple of weeks and if I don't hear back from you, I will assume that the tug-and-jerk problem did not come back and I will have my mechanic check it out. I will post afterwards. Thanks again.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NJH_Habitatpro

Yeah Me agian I replaced the TPS (Throttle Postion Sensor), and my car is doing much better now. I was getting bad gas milage to and now im not. You can try that if you want to my car dont jerk anymore.

rolnaldo33 · 02-17-2004, 09:52 PM

yeah, that o2 sensor thing prolly was/is the problem, i have ann o2 sensor problem and my engine revs like im punching the gas (which im not) everytime i shift, i gotta get a new one soon

Scatch! · 02-17-2004, 10:08 PM

rolnaldo, I think in your case it might be a TPS. Have it checked before you go replacing O2 sensors. Those suckers are kinda pricey...

rolnaldo33 · 02-18-2004, 03:22 PM

iight, cool, thx for the advice

NJH_Habitatpro · 02-19-2004, 03:05 PM

im replacing my o2 sensors today if not today tomorrow but ill write back as soon as they are in and let you guys know whats up. The TPS i guess wasnt the problem but it did help a lot i did the obd thing today and got code 12 21 55 21 is the o2 sensors. My car started to rev when i had my clutch in today as well like it wouldnt go back down after the clutch was in. hope the o2's help ill get back to you

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