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Aug 2 11 6:06 PM

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Hello,

Does anyone have some ideas as to why my 95 Aspire, manual xmission, sputters under load when the weather is humid/damp? I know the usual suspects, and have ruled out spark plug wires (replaced with same results), but not sure what tests I can do to find if it is somehow related to the fuel system or the ignition system. Being that it runs well once warm with no sputters at steady road/highway speed it makes me wonder if somehow there is water getting in the fuel line/tank or possibly condensation affecting the distributor/coil. Since the condition improves with driving 5-10 mins I pretty much have ruled out a mechanical issue or plugs (replaced not too long ago).
Has anyone isolated a similar problem with your Aspire? I added some fuel dry to the gas to see if that does much, but I'm beginning to believe it may be something more to do with the distributor/related components as the plug wire cap is pretty new and sealed with dielectric grease decently.
Thanks for any tips/advice in advance!
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#1 [url]

Aug 3 11 12:19 PM

Heres some more ideas. ALWAYS BE SAFE and CAUTIOUS
Do your cap and rotor first..

Wait for night time pop the hood and start car. Lightly mist the ignition components and look for archs.

EGR valves can become plugged and give warm or cold only symptoms. On most models using a cold start, you can move the EGR plunger ( located on the bottom side of the EGR bonnet) and note how easy or hard the plunger moves (some resistance should be felt but you should not have to hurt your fingers to move the valve plunger).

With the engine running at idle, moving the plunger should result in the engine stumbeling preaty dramatically nearly to a stall. EGRs can be cleaned when removed if carbon buildup is the issue (Warning cleaning EGR s don't always fix them).

Good luck and remember VACUUM LEAKS can also cause funny idle issues at awkward times. You can use throdle body cleaner and spray the vaccuum lines and listen for idle changes, I like an unlit propane torch for this job, CAUTION MUST BE USED EVERY TIME ALL THE TIME!!!!

95 Korean built Ford Aspire
manual everything 145,000 +

95 Toyota Tacoma 303,000 +

91 Toyota Corolla 189,000+

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#2 [url]

Aug 3 11 12:32 PM

When you clean the EGR valve make sure to clean the engine side of it too. You may want to get some long handled really really small wire brushes to help clean the engine part because it turns direction inside the engine and that was where mine clogged really bad. Also use a cleaner that does not leave a residue, just tell the person at the parts place that you are cleaning the EGR and they should know what to use. And dont lose that gasket.

If you think there is something in the tank there is a door under the back seat that you can open to see inside it. Mine was acting like this especially when down around 1/4 tank and I changed to using Shell gas. Now I can run it all the way past 1/4 w/o any problems, also a little mpg increase. I recommend it to any vehicle.

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#3 [url]

Aug 5 11 2:53 PM

Thanks for the help. I have ordered a new cap and rotor (on markdown/wholesale cost at Rockauto.com). -Never used these guys before, but with $6 for a rotor and $6 for a cap, I figure why not? Also caused me to buy Raybestos Pro brake shoes $15 and a few other things I could probably do without!
The weather got considerably less humid the past day or so and I have noticed no sputtering at all lately. With that said, I now recall that I did not replace the cap in the past as I thought I did earlier. I am quite confident this is where the issue lies.
I took her in for a couple tires today (about $135 for the whole job). The left rear picked up a nice shiny screw a couple weeks back-surprisingly no leak (explains the ticking sound I suspected was just road tar sticking to wheel on 95 deg days!). I also told the guy behind the counter to try not to spend too much time admiring my "custom" exhaust. (It consists of 5ft of straight pipe coming off the header, 4-5 more ft of flexible pipe and a cheap as I could find muffler @ fleet farm.
>Ford Aspire exhaust new cat back: $350, my po' boy: $55....and annual flex pipe replacement: $15 (and a few f bombs and some blood in the process)<
Have a nice weekend!

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#4 [url]

Aug 19 11 6:36 PM

The sputtering has stopped under all conditions. The new cap and rotor did the job. I guess I didn't think that the cap/rotor were "that bad" when I last had the car apart, but obviously looks can be deceiving (or I didn't know what to look for). When in doubt, just replace the low cost parts. Best $12 I've spent in a while. Thanks guys! Next stop is damn squealing belt on cold start-up....I'll be contorting my body around the engine compartment to tighten the alternator tomorrow, hopefully no broken hold down bolt this time!!

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