2001 Ultra just stops and shuts off while driving

[tjmccullough]

Hi,

I have a 2001 Untra (supercharged) PA. While driving, it appears as though the electical system shuts off and the whole car dies. After a bit, it can start up again and works fine for a while until it happens again.

I brought it to my neigborhood mechanic, and he replaced the battery, but it soon happened again.

Fearfull of playing 'change that part' at my expense, I brought it to a dealer. The dealer had it for about two weeks, but could not duplicate the problem,and returned it to me.

I saw the posting for the 199X PA with this problem, but no postings for the 01 supercharged engine.

Any ideas would be appreciated!

[HotZ28]

When it shuts off, do you still have power to the lights and other accessories and do they appear to have full voltage to them?
Also, you say after a bit, it starts up fine and runs until the next time.
How many times do you try to start it before it will start? When you are trying to start it, do you here any clicking or starter noise at all?
Do you show any voltage on the meter during starting attempts or is there no voltage?

[bigryan]

Originally Posted by tjmccullough

Hi,

I have a 2001 Untra (supercharged) PA. While driving, it appears as though the electical system shuts off and the whole car dies. After a bit, it can start up again and works fine for a while until it happens again.

I brought it to my neigborhood mechanic, and he replaced the battery, but it soon happened again.

Fearfull of playing 'change that part' at my expense, I brought it to a dealer. The dealer had it for about two weeks, but could not duplicate the problem,and returned it to me.

I saw the posting for the 199X PA with this problem, but no postings for the 01 supercharged engine.

Any ideas would be appreciated!

If your engine sputters before it shuts down have the supercharger checked, sometimes too much air is allowed into the combustion chamber and your car may sputter and die.

[tjmccullough]

Originally Posted by HotZ28

When it shuts off, do you still have power to the lights and other accessories and do they appear to have full voltage to them?
Also, you say after a bit, it starts up fine and runs until the next time.
How many times do you try to start it before it will start? When you are trying to start it, do you here any clicking or starter noise at all?
Do you show any voltage on the meter during starting attempts or is there no voltage?

Hi, sorry for the delayed response, I haven't felt safe driving the car too much lately. I wanted to check your questions while it happened again. Well, going home New Years Eve, it happened again!

I do have full power when the engine shuts off. The lights, radio, heater fan, and dash all have full power. I have to turn the key off to attempt to restart it, then, of course, all accessories turn off.

If I try to start it back up right away, the starter turns the engine over bit it never really 'catches' or starts. The first time this happened I was on the highway and turned the starter over immediatly so many times the battery went dead. Now, all I do is wait calmly for 5 minutes and it starts up fine the first try. Voltage is normal at that point.

There are no clicking or starter noises out of the ordinary.

It may seem to be happening less in the cold weather, but it's still frustrating.

Any ideas would be appreciated!

Tom

[tjmccullough]

Originally Posted by bigryan

If your engine sputters before it shuts down have the supercharger checked, sometimes too much air is allowed into the combustion chamber and your car may sputter and die.

Hi, thanks for the tip. It's not really a 'sputter,' but more like it dies suddenly with no warning.

What do I tell the dealer to check? Being a newbie, I want to be able to ask specifically what to look for.

Tom

[HotZ28]

I would start with the crank sensor then the ignition module. If it were the PCM, it would not start and run normally after five minutes.

[bigb1177]

Had the same problem with my '97 ultra. It was the fuel pump. Try putting a fuel pressure tester on and tape it to the windshield. When it dies on you check the pressure.

[HotZ28]

I guess it could be a fuel pump or relay, however, the symptoms described above do not coincide with a fuel related problem. I assume the dealer checked that during the two weeks they had it. Loosing the RPM signal (crank sensor) seems more likely. Warmer weather seems to aggravate the CS problem and the symptoms will be more prevalent. While it is cool, it is less of a problem, but still frustrating!

[tjmccullough]

Just to follow up, the dealer finally agreed to work on it. He replaced a part and it's been running well without the stalling!

The replacement part on the invoice/paper work says:

QNTY FP-NUMBER DESCRIPTION PRICE
1 10456161 SEN ASM 2.383 51.58

With labor and all other fees the cost was $423

[HotZ28]

Just wanted to let you know what you got for $423.00. Not trying to make you feel bad, but the sensor cost the "stealer"
less than 25 bucks and takes about an hour to install. You can do the math.

GM PART # 10456161 CRANK SENSOR ASSY
CATEGORY: Chassis Wiring & Computer Controls
GM LIST: $51.58