[madcat_ss]

Hey all, For some time now my '00 Cat has been running real rough on start-up and won't shift or want to run if you shift into gear and try to drive right away. Eventually the car settles down and will drive normally but it takes a little patience to let it settle down.
On to my current crisis. On saturday, I went to Autozone to pick up a headlight bulb and a gallon of coolant. While there I asked them if they could scan my trouble codes. The guy did so and this is what came up: P0171, P0174 which are lean bank one and lean bank two, and about 8 of P30X which were all codes for misfiring on the various cylinders. I'm pretty sure all cylinders were reported misfires on the scanner. After we were done looking at all the various DTC's he asked me if I wanted him to erase all of the codes. I said sure, why not? Well, on my way home from the parts store, the car was bucking and misfiring and didn't want to shift into second. Eventually I managed to get it home. Later that night, I was supposed to meet up w/ some friends. So I got in the car and started it up. When I fired it up, it went up to about 1500 rpm and then dropped to like 200 rpm, sputtered alot and then died out. I thought this was just a fluke but when I tried to start it again it did the same thing. I tried to start it numerous times and each and every time it did exactly the same thing, just sputtered and then died out. I need help bad. This is my only form of transport to get to work since my SS truck is down. I don't know where to begin to look. Any help would be most appreciated. Especially from anyone in Chicago, maybe? Thanks everyone.

MADCAT

 

[Supercrew632]

The lean codes are telling you there is a vacuum leak--either the upper intake manifold or one of the four that attach at the back of the upper intake are off. Also check the vacuum brake booster grommet for leaking---more than likely a hose is off. Hope this helps----

Supercrew632

 

[bengsxr]

well there are several things that could be doing this like the normal oil in the spark plug holes due to a leaky valve cover gasket, maybe just your spark plugs are old, fuel filter could be pluged, but I will tell you this one to try I was having alot of the same problems but mine was the mass air flow sensor $187 bucks from the dealer, alot cheaper online though. just unplug it next time your car is running bad and mis-firing and see if it runs alittle better, if it does that is your problem. your mass air flow sensor is on the inlet air tube after your filter housing. Ben

 

[madcat_ss]

Well, had it towed to the dealer today. Not happy about that. This will ultimately force one of two situations. A) It's time to find a factory service manual on E-bay or B) I'm gonna start looking around for a more reliable vehicle to get me from day to day. Right now i'm leaning towards the second. Either way, i'll post what went wrong when I hear from the dealer.

MADCAT

 

[madcat_ss]

Ok, so I had to call the dealer today because I could swear they never called me even though they claimed to have done so. Well here's what was wrong with my Cat: Failed MAF, recommend replace spark plugs and wires(?, aren't they coil on plug, oh well, never mind). The faulty MAF apparently was what kept the car from running after starting it up. Cost to replace you ask? about $560. You've got to be kidding me. And yes, I almost said this to the service advisor. Anyways, I get on the phone to AAA to get a towtruck to pick up my car. Obviously i'm not gonna let the stealer rip me off once again so I refused the work and got the car towed home. Cost for diagnosing problem: $135. Call up another Cadi dealer... er, I mean stealer and price for MAF is $187. No friggin' way! I think back to my days working for Saturn. The L-series has basically the same engine, why not see if the MAF is the same? One call placed to my old friend at Saturn dealer and he confirms my hunch. The MAF on L-cars is the same as the one on the Cat. One MAF from Saturn: $96.

Of course I still have to put it on once I get home from work tonight. But if this works, At least I know I saved myself about $300 give or take a few bucks. And hopefully, this will save others the time and money they otherwise would've ponied up at the dealer... er, stealer.

MADCAT

 

[bengsxr]

well I said mass air flow sensor and even told you how much one will cost if you buy it from the dealer. but if you buy the saturn part they are both GM yes I know but you should check the part number on these to see if they match because the saturn part might be a little different and have a different style of plug.