OT: We have any car mechanics out there?

I'm in need of some help... I have a 2001 Kia Sportage that I can't trust to get to the store and back right now. It's idling rough and sputters badly when you try to give it gas. It will lose power and die when up to speed, or just sitting idly. Also, the fuel gauge doesn't work at all (would could be a symptom of the whole problem.) Any ideas...?

Fried oxygen sensor!

Muffy

The fact that Korean can't build cars for shit?

Run down (better yet, drive the Kia) down to your local AutoZone (looks like you got 4 of them close by). They should be able to test your car for free with an electronic tester (OBD II) and give you a wealth of information.

Muffy

Possibly out of timing (slipped timing belt)? But without hearing it firsthand no way of telling ... qualified (and trusted) mechanic locally could listen and tell ya more.

We plan on renting one from Autozone this week... I don't even trust it to go down the street right now. I didn't even think of the O2 sensor... could that also cause the messed up fuel gauge problem?

ycartf wrote:Possibly out of timing (slipped timing belt)? But without hearing it firsthand no way of telling ... qualified (and trusted) mechanic locally could listen and tell ya more.

I believe Kia has a cogged timing belt so it can't slip (just snap).

Muffy

Sounds like oxygen sensor or mass air sensor to me also. It's been awhile, but I believe if you can find the sensor and unplug it, the computer should fall back to a default fuel map. It will probably still run rough and poor mileage, but should get you where you need to go until it can be replaced. YMMV, I'm not a trained car mechanic.

How did the car pass emissions ? If the O2 sensor was going there is NO WAY the car passed.

I would say 1) Put gas in the car. ( without a working gauge .. hmm obvious .. ) 2) Fuel pump or filter.

Cygnusia wrote:We plan on renting one from Autozone this week... I don't even trust it to go down the street right now. I didn't even think of the O2 sensor... could that also cause the messed up fuel gauge problem?

No, but if there are no error codes on OBD II then you might look for bad gas. Or the fuel pump.

Muffy

Or pull the spark plug wires off one at a time and see if there's a difference (if there's a bad wire or plug (maybe fouled) when you pull the wire it won't get any worse).

Muffy

Some further 0.2 cent contributions

- water in the fuel ? - if that happens it tends to show up when fuel level is low but with no guage that will be hard to
say. The symptoms you are describing do fit this scenario. If it is water - by adding in a couple of gallons of fuel, that
should shift the water away from the fuel intake point & hopefully the car runs better. If that does fix it, then the water
needs to be cleaned out.

- Fuel pump failing.

- Mixture horribly out of whack - a possibility. I did have a very similar problem recently on an engine that
behaved exactly like you describe. Turned out it was the temp sensor on the engine block that had a faulty
connection & the onboard computer was setting the mixture far to rich for the engine to keep running. This can
sometimes be detected if you smell petrol under the bonnet when the problem happens (engine being flooded).

And of course the other suggestions already made. (I did like the O2 deprivation suggestion - great thought allowing
for the nature of this forum )

Cheers

DSM

It passed emissions with its previous owner. This all started about a week after purchasing it (big surprise.) We've been trying to diagnose the fuel pump assembly (since the fuel gauge sender is built right into it) because apparently these models are notorious for grounds getting corroded. I've already ruled that out. I also need to get the relays checked just in case.

It's already been to my mechanic (he's worked on all our cars and is very reliable and trustworthy) and he gave up on it. It got a complete tune-up and overhaul but it's still doing it.

I know that these models have two different O2 sensors... over $100 a pop.

The plug wire test may be a little difficult. Apparently it's a two wire system and you have to remove a lot of things just to get to them.

Oh... and it's much worse during a cold start. Once it warms up, it's not as back, but will still sputter and die if you give it gas.

How many miles?

Muffy