mx3 problem (excuse the long post) "am i in wrong threa

[BSinnest]

k guys, need help... my mx3 is dieing haha, just got done putting another engine in, everything worked good, resignator broke off, and was dragging on ground, got that fixed (put 2"pipe on)....seemed to run better..

here is where i got lost... was talking to a friend at tim hortons, with car running and in neutral with brake held... when i went to leave. put it in reverse and when i started to move, the car shut off without any warning or noise. headlights were still working but nothing interior wise would function. no cluster lights, car wouldn't start... after a few minutes of getting angry and being confused the lights came back on and i was able to drive.

It happened again the next day coming back into town town at the lights, but it just shut off for a few seconds and i was able to drive it... happened a few times while driving. stopped to talk to friend on side of road in neutral cut out again. no warning....

here is where i got really pissed... was going back to tims the third day with my cousin (thank god) got to the lights to turn left.. went past the line a little, put it in reverse so i wasn't in the intersection as there was two cops coming the other way, car dies... i wasn't on the detector so the lights kept cycling, car would not start or come back to life... so, cousin got out and pushed me through and we parked the car.. checked all fuses and everything was fine.. 30 minutes later, car turns on...

I then got it home and removed every piece of the autostart, as well as changed the key ignition module.... took it out again, and got stuck behind a parade scared to death it was going to die, but it didn't... and i drove it out of town and back with no problem.. but has anyone ever had a problem like this?

Thanks and sorry for the long story.. but scared to take my car out town anymore. and i live in town!

Brian

[Mnemonic]

sounds like your autostart was causing your car to short itself out, or you could of spliced something wrong

[PATDIESEL]

No... Sounds like the disty is getting hot when there is no air passing through (sitting at lights or parked with the car running) and it quits working until the engine bay cools off some. This is common. The HEI mod will make it stop, but you may have started damaging the disty and might need a new one, plus the HEI mod.

[jschrauwen]

Brian, it's good to give a lengthy description of the symptoms of you r problems. The return feedback will be that much better when that occurs. A few points you've neglected to mention....engine swap???? to what engine??? I got the impression you've got an ATX V6...correct? I'm curious that perhaps one of the lock-out devices/interupt devices may be engaging with that auto start system. Too many members have encountered all sorts of nightmares when trying to save a buck or two by wiring in these alarms and security and auto start systems. It's sometimes best to have a professional do it. And that doesn't mean your bud down the road because he owns a soldering iron either...LOL. After answering the previous questions the following should also be included when you post back - which ECU?, which VAF?, which IM? and which TB? I'm kind of leaning to Pats suggestion about the disty and the heat related issues with it. Although conjecture at this point, I would also look at other heat related aspects to remove from the equation. Perhaps the swapped in engine and it's associated ECU is not compatible with specific signals being sent from the engine and/or the ATX tranny.

[BSinnest]

hey, sorry for the lack of description. Engine i put in was just another k8 from another mx3. tranny is actually manual. and the autostart was already in the car when i had bought it. i'm not to sure what vaf, or tb i have. but i noticed when i put it in the car, they had both had different disty's.. the one that was on the engine had a different numbering on the cap, but wouldn't fire in the other car, so i changed the disty's fort he one that was already in my car to begin with and it started right up, drove it for 2 weeks after swap no problems till now. went out this morning and fired it up, let it sit in the yard. took maybe 15 minutes then it cut out. so definitly agree on something heating up.... should i maybe attempt the hei mod before i take the car out again just to save any possible problem if it works?

Thanks, i have to go to work, will check back tonight.
Brian

[ho bag]

Hey, i think its dizzy too brian, Ill be on msn later tonight if you wanna talk about doing the hei mod. I plan on doing it my self as well and using a blaster 3 coil and ordering the premodded dizzy cap off of PRD on prob talk.

[Mnemonic]

I then got it home and removed every piece of the autostart, as well as changed the key ignition module.... took it out again, and got stuck behind a parade scared to death it was going to die, but it didn't... and i drove it out of town and back with no problem.. but has anyone ever had a problem like this?

If its the distributor getting to hot, how is it that when he removed the autostart the problem went away?

[BSinnest]

nah, the problem is still there, thought i had it fixed when i removed the autostart. but it never died cause the car was in motion.. but like i said, i started it in the morning and left it in neutral. cut out on me a little while after.
Am going to attempt the hei mod soon i think. hopefully this helps... also, if it is just a cooling problem for the disty, could i wire up the fan on my own and just leave it turned on to keep the air flowing in?

Brian

[jschrauwen]

if it is just a cooling problem for the disty, could i wire up the fan on my own and just leave it turned on to keep the air flowing in?
Brian

You're not solving the real problem that way but just temporarily putting off the inevitable. Have you checked all of your plug wires including the insulators that are recessed in the valve covers. Have you tried the nightime check for arcs or breaks in the integrity of the plug wires/insulators. A water mister sprayed onto a running engine at night could reveal most with the exception of the manual pulling of the insulators and doing a one by one check for grounding by the valve cover. Since the subject about heat has surfaced so much, you've made no mention as to the actual temp gauge in the dash. What's it telling you when this happens? When was the last time the cooling system was flushed ???? If it's been more than 2 years or if you can't remember or don't know than guess what............ it's time. A pressurized flush and fill can do wonders not to mention the integration of using Red Line's Water Wetter will also improve cooling capabilities. Have you already mentioned if you've already confirmed the integrity of the water thermosensors (3)?

[BSinnest]

changed distys in the car. then changed the ecus... nothing happened. car doesn't even start. still have battery power cause headlights and the hazard lights work. power windows don't. ignition doesn't either. am thinking there is a shorted out wire going from the ignition to a relay maybe. can anyone source the trail these wires lead to? i looked in the wiring diagram section, but page 125 doesn't work. 124 does, but doesn't seem to really help me as i am just trying to find the proper relay for the ignition switch. any info would be awesome. thanks.

Brian

[BSinnest]

hey guys, well. needless to say problem is solved. one of the first things i should have checked, and thought about checking. turns out all this was caused by a damned relay under the dash. put another relay in and VOILA. Working car. (after changing disty's and ecu) Going to leave the autostart out for good though. as that may have been shorting out burning up the relay maybe. maybe not, but a possiblity. Thanks for the help though guys. Was a journey.

Brian