dewso1

The other night my 93 ES300 developed a problem.

I was driving fairly spirited, but then i settled down and was slowing down for a red light, and when the car shifted into first gear, the revs dropped to about 200-300, it started trying to rev itself and keep itself alive, but then stalled.

Being in the middle of a (thankfully empty) main road, with no phone or phonebox in sight, i had no choice but to try and limp it on.

I figured out that it wont start unless i rev it up to atleast 1500k and keep it there, and if it drops below that then it stalls pretty quickly. Then when i drive, its very stuttery and will stop/go/stop/go.

BUT, heres the thing. I would normally have attributed it to some little problem, (sensor, filter, whatever) but all of this only happens in first gear, and a little bit in second. Any higher than that and it runs as smoothly as ever. So anyone have any suggestions of what it could be?

Theres no CEL lit and nothing else to indicate a problem other than its behaviour.

Input would be great, because i dont have a trustworthy mechanic here, and have a bad feeling somewhere will try and install a new transmission or something similar for the extra labour.

Thanks everyone, as usual.

mdbrown

First impression sounds like it could be a pretty major vacuum leak. That's where I'd start.

dewso1

Reckon it could just be a hose come undone? or something requiring replacing.

And any chance you could explain why it would happen at low RPM and not high RPM? I dont know hardly anything about engines and have no idea how the vacuum in one works. Thanks for your input!


Anyone else have any ideas?

GS4_Fiend

iTrader: (22)

Try cleaning the Throttle body, make sure the PCV is not clogged or stuck open, and check for vacuum leaks.

dewso1

Thanks, 1:30pm here, Perfect time to start getting my hands dirty.

mdbrown

Pop the hood and listen for a hissing sound, if you hear it then try and localize it. It's possible too that the PCV valve is stuck open or that the oil fill cap is loose/missing. If your car has an EGR valve that could be stuck open as well. The 2000 model here in the US doesn't use one but I'm not familiar with your regs. If none of these produce any results then the next thing I would try is carb/choke cleaner. While the car is idling try spraying it around the intake/throttle body. If the speed picks up then you've found your leak. If the throttle body is extremely dirty or has never been cleaned that can cause issues but they usually clear up just off idle. Worth looking at though.

dewso1

Think I've found the problem.

I checked all the hoses, couldnt find anything wrong, so i went to clean the throttle body, i took off the tightening strap thingy, and lo and behold.




I put it back together as tight as i could, and started the car, it idled normally! and a loud hiss was coming from that break.


Would this be the right part? Rockauto.com

After watching a couple of videos and examining it, im pretty sure it should be easy to DIY, would i be right?

GS4_Fiend

iTrader: (22)

That's the intake. Good find, basically unmetered air was passing through causing the lean condition.

dewso1

Awesome, thanks for the explanation! I love learning.

Thanks for the help everyone, I almost was just going to let the mechanics take care of it, now i think i might save a hundred or two and do it myself

It can go towards my suspension setup!

dewso1

Its all fixed, thanks everyone!