my 1995 lumina van has the 3.8 engine why does it stall and de charge? at 70mph or stopped?
the amm meter will drop to a decharge some times even stalling the engine no matter what the rpm's some days it will run like a champ then some days it will dye 5 times before i get out the driveway ive changed the obvious and had it to a dealer the computer cant find any problems it ALWAYS starts right back up what in the world could cause this and where do i start if its some kind of short? im lost!!
By "the obvious" i suppose you mean the alternator? That is the first place i would look. If the alternator has been changed, and the problem is not any different, then I would look in 2 other places. First, check to see that the battery cables are clean and tight. Chevrolet uses a side-post battery that hides corrosion pretty well. Take the cables off the terminals, clean the contact points, and firmly tighten the cables. Make sure that there is NO powdery white or green residue between the battery and the cables. Next, I would check the wiring harness under the hood for damaged wires. The best way to do this is to start the engine, then methodically work your way around the engine compartment wiggling all the wires and lightly tugging on all wiring connectors. This will help you find a bad wire or faulty connection. Since you stated that the problem is intermittent, it sounds like a loose connection somewhere in the wiring. Try to find ANYTHING that ties the stalling episodes together. Rain? Engine temp? Bumps in the road? Anything that you can find that makes the problem more repeatable will make it easier to find and fix.
the 3.8 wasn't the best.
id like to take a minute first and laugh at the person that said 3.8 isnt the best. where you high when u wrote that? lol check for a wire that may have the rubber stripped off maybe its rubbing against something and shorting out. and by obvious do u mean alternator?
you have to check the master sensor this always happened to my car too.
As a former owner who had a similar problem this is what happened to mine. First, it doesn't explain the alternator other than when the engine dies it might seem like the alternator is causing it, but when the engine doesn't turn over (dies) the alternator isn't charging. Here is ohw mine got fixed: The engine control module mounted on top of the engine has an aluminum case, which is mounted to steel brackets. Dissimilar metals corrode, and they sure did at the mounting location. And, they corroded enough to break the ground causing the engine to die. It seemed to take a while, and then it would restart. I guess the current found another path. Anyway. remove the module clean the area thoroughly, including bolts and your 3.8 will probably run great - until you kid decides to show his buddies what a Riviera can do, and drops a valve.
