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2000 Oldsmobile Alero V6 cyl 3.4L Two Wheel Drive Automatic 140K miles
Today when I drove on the free way at about 75mph, engine rpm was about 2200rpm. the engine suddenly shut off, at first the engine rpm shaken between 1000-1500 rpm for 1-2 seconds, then shut down to zero.
It happened last Dec. when I drove on the free way, exactly the same way. but after I tried to start several time, about 20 minutes later, it can run and and I drove it well while nothing wrong with it until today.
Today, I tried to start again, it seemed that the ignition worked and engine run to 200-500 rpm, shaken and dropped to zero again. I tried several time. the engine still won't work. I asked AAA to tow it to a local shop, at the first shop( it is a junkyard), one person tried to start( about 1.5 hour later), won't work, he asked me to tow to their another shop. 20 minutes later, we reach another shop. this time the car can start!!(about 2 hours away from the time the engine shut down), amazing!. After diagnosed the car, the mechanics can't tell me the exact problem and his suggestion was to change a crankshaft position sensor.(He though maybe the sensor was over heated and shut down the engine. but after it cooled down, it will not affect the engine). Since I am in a hurry, I declined and paid him the diagnose fee. And drove all the way down home ( another 150 miles), Now it runs like nothing happen.
Btw. the mechanics has read 4 codes from engine which were: 1106,1189,1404 and0420. I knew that 1404 and 0420 were always there, and even 0420 was there for more than one year ( the engine light was on for about 1 year), The men tell me that 1106 and 1189 had also nothing to do with the engine shut down.
any idea? thanks
Like everybody else, the car will not start when the temperature is hot, put in new spark plugs, new coil, new fuel filter, no goal.
I notice that if I disconnect the battery cable, and put it back, I can start it right up.
Not sure if it is the PCM computer, or the something else.
I had an after market alarm system, when the car won't start, I could hear the horn chirped and doors unlocked. I thought it must be the alarm, I pulled the fuse to disable the alarm, but still getting the same problem.
Do you guys think that it is the alarm, or it is something else?
With the stalling I suspected some kind of sensor issue where it was getting too warm and killed the engine to prevent overheating. It does seem to be related to the heater/blower some how though. Whenever it seemed like it was going to stall, I'd kill the heater and it would run fine. I tested it by pulling over and parking and let the car idle. It was just fine but withing seconds of turning the heater back on full the car stalled out.
Firestone had recommended having the computer reflashed but when I took it to the local dealer (a Chevy dealer) they didn't seem convinced that would do it...and of course not...they can make so much more money off me by telling me it's this, that and the other thing!! I'm really leaning towards a reflash of the computer unit now. VERY FRUSTRATING as I know you can all relate!!
i think the pass lock system is in the manual if you have it, but remember the 10-15 minute rule if needed,
also, take car to dealer, or better yet, look up car in oldsmobile.com and check your vin # and see if u have a recall, no cost to you, good luck,
The interesting thing (okay, more "frustrating" than "interesting" maybe) is that I took it back to the dealer this morning to inquire about the recall. He brought up the recall list and I had actually had this done already back in May of 2004!! The car had 26,500 miles at that time (has 116,000+ miles now) and the Labor Operation is listed as "Y0002 - POWERTRAIN CONTROL MODULE - REPROGRAM". Looking back through my records I found that I first had the problem with the no-start issue about 2 yrs after that (in April 2006). At that time I had the Fuel Pump and fuel filter replaced. Total bill that time was over $900. Now here we are almost exactly another 2 years later and I'm having same issue. Hmmm... I asked the dealer to verify that the PCM has the most current version of software on it and, if so, told him to then park my car in the sun all day (supposed to hit 70 here today I think...wooo hooo) and around 4pm try to start it hoping they can re-create the no-start condition and then put a scanner on it to get a diagnostic code (or codes). Failing that (or depending what the diagnostic calls for) I believe my next step is straight back to Car Max to trade it in and get something new(er). I'm thinking Honda or Toyota. Possibly a Saturn because I'd like to stay with American-made and I've heard good things about them but I definitely purchased my last Oldsmobile. It's sad because, aside from this issue, it has been a very good car for me...and it was paid off last December...Ugh!!
Jeff (Bolingbrook, IL).
Are you sure your battery is not weak? It shouldn't go down "quite quickly". A weak battery in todays cars with dozens of processors can manifest itself in many ways. Even if you had starting problems before it sounds like your commute is more than adequate to charge up a low battery that is otherwise in good condition, so barring a charging system problem then your battery shouldn't be weak.
To add to this whole scenario now, I just got a call back from the dealership. They were able to re-create the no-start scenario but it didn't log any codes when they hooked it up to the scanner. Then the battery died on them too while they were testing it out. They put a charger on it and it started right up. So maybe it is something with the electrical?? I'm about ready to punt at this point. There were a couple things he told me they could check for relatively easily, one being the ignition switch and the other I was some connector under the hood but I can't remember what he called it. If those checks reveal nothing I am unloading this car as soon as possible. This has just been insane!!
The PCM box is what I suspected went bad.
It is under neat the passenger side glove box right next to the heater duct vent.
What a great idea to put your computer box next to the heater (it could be AC during summer time) vent?~!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Next time if your car won't start, try disconnect the negative cable for 10 seconds and put it back, for me it starts right up.
Let me know, since GM won't help us, I guess we have to help each other who bough :lemon:
I just found an eBay Powerseller with 100% positive feedback that sells PCM for our Aleros on eBay for around $80-100 dollars.
He will also use the same program GM used to reprogram/flush the PCM before he mails it to us.
Ebay ID: spareecm
I will look through my repair manual (yes, I bought that from Autozone) tonight and see if I can handle the PCM swap, if it is not that hard to do, I will buy from this eBay seller and put it in to see what happens.
At the mean time, has anyone tries to discount the negative battery cable and connect it back to see if their cars can start backup?
My car is actually back at the Chevy Dealer this week. They are charging me for only 1 hour of labor no matter how long it takes them to diagnose the problem. This is day #2. A couple interesting side notes also:
1) I had this problem last Sunday again when it was sunny and warm. Saturday was cloudy and cool and it started like a champ several time throughout the day. On Sunday, I was able to get the car started (on 2 different occasions) by first putting it in Neutral. That was one of the suggestions I got from this forum.
2) I brought the car to work on Monday and Tuesday (being a little more confident now that I have a portable jump starter in the trunk). I also did not lock my doors either day and it started both days. I was secretly hoping the car would get stolen but it actually starting for me was a nice consolation I guess. Tuesday was a typical sunny warm day where I expected it not to start. However, it did stall out on me once on the way home. Luckily I was able to get it going right away...from neutral...and it didn't happen again.
As for the battery cable, that was going to be my next thing to try if I couldn't get the car started because when I think back to a couple weeks ago when my car wouldn't start...I killed my battery in my attempts to start the car and then it started right up with a jump start. This was also the case at the dealership. I'm guessing that killing or disconnecting the battery actually resets something in one of those modules that is keeping the car from starting.
Good luck with the PCM swap!!
I have finally solved the mystery & you will be amazed at how simple (and inexpensive!) the solution turns out to be.
Simply detach your car key from all other keys. That's it! For some reason, having additional keys attached somehow interferes with ignition.
This also explains why the damn car would always start for the mechanics--I only left them the single key! (I'd begun to think that the towing process somehow fixed the problem...)
So, give it a try! I sincerely hope that this trick works for all you Alero owners out there--
Michael
I am still hesitate to replace the PCM box, even though it is not that hard to replace, but I am not sure if it is the answer.
Everyone has the same symptom, but different causes.
GM is more looking like Ford now, Fix Or Repair Daily.
i dont have that many keys on my keyring maybe 3 or 4, so i dont think that would be my problem, good luck.
I want to bypass the system but I cannot figure out how. Is there a fuse for it, or is it not that simple? Please let me know if you have figured out how to bypass the system with out taking you car to a dealership. All I see is people talking about how to leave the key in and yes, it worked for me last night, but it took a while and I would rather just bypass the system if possible.
Same problems...intermittently, the car just won't start. I went through the 10 minute waiting period several times until I just got fed up. I've owned a 2003 Alero since August of 2007. This "malfunction" occured the first time March, 2008. Since then, it has happened 5 times. I love the car, but the security is a major flaw.
I'll update if this fix does not work.
Remove the radio/AC/heater covers. Pop them off with a screwdriver. Remove the radio. You shouldn't have to disconnect anything. Behind the radio and to the left are three thin wires wrapped together: black, white, and yellow. Turn the car on, cut the YELLOW wire, and turn the car off. I taped the ends of the yellow wire out of habit, mostly. This took about 10 minutes, including time to get over the fear of tearing up the faceplate of the AC/Heater. We'll see...
Thanks again,
Chris
The hall effect sensor is nothing more than a magnetic sensor on the ignition switch that operates a set of contacts when you put the key in and start the car. If you try to start it without the key, the switch remains open and the BCM disables the fuel injectors so it won't run.
It's actually more complicated than this. There's an excellent write up on the web about how it works and how you can fix it yourself, but the URL escapes me right now.
I'm on my third Grand Am, and out of the three I've only had the problem once, and when I did I didn't have the time to fuss with it myself so I just had it fixed at the dealer ($375). I used to have an excellent Pontiac/GMC dealer close to me, but now they have changed hands and I'm not sure it's the same.
Thanks
If your engine turns over but won't start, it could have a faulty fuel pump (assuming it's not the electrical issue). Take a can of carburetor cleaner and spray a little in the canister that houses the air filter. If, right after you've sprayed, the engine trys to "catch" but still won't completely start or stay running, it's probably the fuel pump.