Low rpm stall after engine is warm, Alt. Battery, fuselink replaced, issue persists.
1992 Oldsmobile Cutless Ciera 3.3 V6 - 86,000 miles
Initially, low rpm stalls every month or so, sporadic check engine, fuel economy
unchanged. Progressing to low rpm stalls once a week or when raining hard and at low
rpm. Neutral and gas solved issue each time for at least a week at a time. Recently
unable to keep idle at all given the age and how little money I have in the car I decided
to start with the obvious that likely needed to be done to keep this car for years.
*replaced the alternator-some electronics had dimmed from time to time. First
alternator did not fit, and gas guage was around E but this car has no light and I have
never run out so weather it was out of gas or not I cannot be sure. Returned from a
second store and replaced the alternator again. This time everything worked, idle
sounded a bit rough but didnt stall, winding out the motor there is no hesitation and it is
quite fast and smooth, there was a noise coming from the bearing on the new alternator
from startup, confirmed by removing the belt and running the engine for about three
seconds and shutting off. Planned to remove and drive another car swap out with a new
one, having been up for over 14 hrs after a long shift in the factory it was hot and I was
rushed, so I skipped disconnecting the battery. True to why you should, the weight of
the alternator compressed the rubber insulator enough to cause and arc to ground.
Opted to drive car to shop in case they asked to here the noise, still ran good about 10
miles to store. Replaced alternator in the parking lot, ran fine afterwards till late that
night when it stalled with the kids in the car. Tried jumping, worked briefly, stalled.
Bought battery, installed, found Ign/Starter fuse and radio fuse burnt out, replaced, ran
well for another day. Inspected wiring harnesses, battery light now on, traced alternator
wire to starter where the fuse link was bad, replaced with the correct gauge wire. Ran
good for two days. Low rpm stall now happens after running for only five minutes, can
be mitigated by keeping foot on gas in gear, must use neutral and light pedal to keep
running on downhill as I dont wish to put an extra load on the tranny. I get 12.6 volts at
the battery and 14.6 with engine running at the battery, tested the remaining fuse link
wires, all in good shape.
*I plan on keeping this paid off gem till the wheels fall off, I'm a single widowed father of
three and can't fathom a car payment, and truth be told, it was a one owner garaged
and maintained, has all new tires and brakes, all options on the car work including
cruise.
*So I'm going to replace as much as I can till the problem is eliminated.
*fuel pump on order
*If unplugging the TCC fixes the problem how long can I drive with it disconnected
without damage? Should I just go ahead and replace this since it seems to be a
common problem in these vehichles?
*Fuel pressure regulator, just go ahead and replace due to age?
*I was told the voltage regulator was internal to the alternator, so if the PCM doesn't
have to "turn on" the alternator and voltage is sufficient, should I replace the PCM just
because, seems to be one of the more expensive and time consuming items? there are
still no other warning lights, and they all work as they flash on briefly when starting as
they should do.
*I've read fuel injector replacement, but wouldn't faulty or dirty ones give some kind of
hesitation when winding out the motor, its as smooth as any engine I've ever had during
acceleration.
The transmission fluid is clear and free of any visible particles, never leaked, level never
gone down, have only put 9K on car since purchase three years ago, it is now the daily
driver since I was recently run off the road and rolled my Grand Caravan 3 times. With
the kids in tow, not sure how we walked away, but grateful to be hear.
I've read the Hanes manual cover to cover, poorly written junk in my opinion.
If anyone one can tell me which order is best to trouble shoot, which items I should
maybe do preventively anyway, it would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you.
**please note I was told my car is an "S" model, but it has "3300" on the engine, so I'm
going with 3.3L, vs the 3.1 that is listed for the "S" model.
*