Having car trouble, who can provide insight?

Question

I currently drive a 2000 Volvo S40 (automatic) and I've been having some issues concerning it stalling and shutting itself off. About a week ago, while I was coming to a stop at a stop sign, my car shuddered, several dash lights went on, then shut off. I restarted it and had no problem. It has happened once since then. I just had the oil changed today and no improvement. The car has about 123,000 miles, the timing belt was changed at 90,000.

Any help would be appreciated!

Answer 1

Has any other normal maintenance been done recently? I am referring to a tune-up. With the mileage it has it would be well due for new plugs , wires, fuel filter and such. It doesn't sound like you are too "mechanical" so I suggest going to a reputable shop for an estimate on what is needed. Don't waste time or money by adding a liquid "cleaner" to the gas. They don't work and can cause more problems than you have already.ADDED-------Please disregard the comment that there "is no such thing as a tune-up for a fuel injected" vehicle. They need to have the spark plugs inspected and re-gapped or replaced as necessary along with other ignition components. This is what a "tune-up" is. The components have changed slightly over the years but the need for regular maintenance has not.

Answer 2

Your engine may have a vacuum leak. Usually, all the air entering the engine goes through the throttle body/ or carburetor. The air then travels through the intake manifold on the way to the cylinders. There are various vacuum hoses connected to the intake manifold, among them is the vacuum booster from the power brakes.

If the brake vacuum booster is leaking, it could be letting in extra air, which then goes into the intake manifold and dilutes the air/fuel mix. The result is an engine getting too much air and not enough fuel.

If the power brakes are hard to press, that may be the problem.



You can check the brake vacuum booster by hooking up a vacuum pump to the hose and wait and see if the vacuum holds, or leaks.

The brake vacuum booster is the large drum that is connected to the brake fluid reservoir on the firewall (usually in line with the steering wheel). There is probably a Half-Inch-Wide Hose coming out of it that goes to the top part of the engine. Also, there is probably a check-valve at the hose connection on the vacuum booster; that could be bad, too.

Answer 3

Yeah, you need a tune up. Except there is no "tune up" for a electronic ignition fuel injected vehicle. Where do people come up with this advice?



A tune up used to mean change the spark plugs, adjust the carburetor (which your car doesn't have) and adjust the distributor cap to adjust the timing (which your car also doesn't have). Your spark plugs should be fine and there's no way dirty spark plugs could cause your car to stall at a stop sign.



There are two likely culprits for what you described.



1. fuel pump

2. oxygen sensor



The oxygen sensor should trigger a Service Engine Soon light. If that light isn't on I'd bet on the fuel pump. Should be about $300 to replace as long as you stay away from the shop with the volvo sign out front.

Answer 4

Could be spark gaps are too big (unless it's diesel).

These tent to get eroded after a time - and the gaps get larger - needing higher voltages to spark. This is not noticable at cruising - or even starting as it sets to fast idle, but at low speeds you can get a misfire and rough idle.

Try running a fuel cleaner - and change fuel filter, check or replace plugs. Should cure it.

Answer 5

take it to a mechanic if you even thought the slightest that an oil change could fix anything then you obviously have no clue what your doing under the hood and are not going to be able to fix this problem

Answer 6

an oil change is not a substitute for a tune up