So my Grand Prix has this weird intermittent problem. It will stall out when pulling away from a stop sign or red light. The car usually only gets up to like 5 mph before it shuts down on me, usually leaving me half way in an intersection or with a line of cars behind me about to run into me. It will restart and run fine after about ten seconds or more of cranking. I've searched the internet and can't find anything. I have heard rumors of it being a wheel speed sensor problem. Was wondering if anyone here has had any experience with this. Would like to get fixed before I get T-boned by an 18 wheeler LOL. Thanks
Can you provide some details on the powerplan in the car?
Does it throw and SES lights? I would lean towards an ignition issue such as a ignition module or coil going south but not quite gone yet. Secondly after that I would possible think fuel pump...that would be simple to test with a pressure gauge.
My car has the series 2 3800 na motor with the 4t65e trans. I do get an abs light and my trac off light comes on but resets once the ignition is turned off then back to start. If I just twist the key to start after it happens (after i crap my pants and put it in nuetral first) without turning the ignition off first the lights will stay on and I cannot turn my traction control back on until I shut it all the way down.
One or both of your front hubs is bad. VERY common problem on these cars. You have 2 options: 1.- Do nothing and live with it or 2.- Replace the hubs with high quality Timken units. The ABS sensors have failed and are integrated into the hub, making sensor replacement impossible. I doubt you want to dump $400-$600 into this old car (even more if you have to pay for labor), but that's the only fix. Cheaper hubs are available anywhere, but they have a spectacularly high failure rate.
Been there, done that, got rid of the freakin' car and never looked back.
------------------ 1986 SE Aero coupe.
3.4 DOHC swap is complete and running, now just have to finish the rest of the car...
If you replace them yourself, do not use impact tools. The axle nut and the hub mounting bolts must be torqued by hand. They are so fragile that impact tools will ruin the sensors.
It just happened to me again today in the parking lot at work. Just shut off not abs or trac light this time. I have autozone front wheel bearings on it now. They are probably toast. Would bad rear bearing/speed sensor cause this as well? The rears are oem with 235K on them.
I better clarify my statements. Bad ABS sensors will cause the trac off, abs off check tire pressure lights to come on with the disabling of ABS and traction control (same system). I don't know what is causing the stalling. Do you know if its ignition or fuel related? Check all fuel related electrical connections as well as all ignition connections. You may have to get your ICM tested (Oreilly's can do that for free). Make sure they run the test 3 or 4 times in quick succession to get the module up to temp.
It just happened to me again today in the parking lot at work. Just shut off not abs or trac light this time. I have autozone front wheel bearings on it now. They are probably toast. Would bad rear bearing/speed sensor cause this as well? The rears are oem with 235K on them.
I agree with everyone on the point about the Maf sensor. However, if that fails to fix your problem I have a short story to tell you...
I had a blazer come into the shop one time with the exact same problem that you're experiencing and it turned out that one of the baffles inside the gas tank had broken off and lodged itself against the fuel pump in such a way that when sitting at idle, it restricted fuel from being able to make its way to the pump then when he hit the gas it would such the fuel line dry until the vehicle came to an abrupt halt which moved the broken baffle long enough for the fuel to make its way back to the pump again.
I know its a long shot, but don't rule it out. It took me a whole week to figure that one out and a hell of a lot of frustration...
These cars are also known for the ABS wires going to the wheel speed sensor to break and cause intermittent ABS/TRAC light to come on. Had a Buick Rendezvous and a Grand Prix break both right and left sides. You can get replacement wires from an auto parts store. Dorman makes them.
On some GM cars, the water pump will drip right on the timeing sensor (not good). Check to see if your car is dripping coolant from the water pump. If your car has over 160,000 miles on it, you should get the fuel pressure tested.
