I am seeking help from Buick or GM experts...

Elmo187 · February 4th, 2008, 06:10 AM

ok, about a month ago, me and my fiancee bought a 2003 Buick Century with the 3100 V6 with 62,xxx miles because we already have a kid and we have one coming on the way. so pretty much the Cobalt, Mustang, Yaris (which was traded in by the way), and Corolla aren't really family cars.

so anyway, on with the problem.....

coming back from a SuperBowl party just about an hour ago the first few minutes it was working fine. once i went over a steep incline that included railroad tracks, the car starting acting real weird. it seemed to have just lost alot of power. so i hit the gas and all i hear is this rumbling and then the car starts to shutter. about 30 seconds later, on comes the "Service Engine Soon" light and continues to blink. came to a red light to a complete stop and the car sounded like it was about to die. i limped it the rest of the way home. i went in, grabbed my high intensity flashlight and checked the oil (about the only thing i could really do at midnight:30). it was absolutely fine. it was the right color, it was at the right level.

what could this be? fuel system? ECU?

Crazyjeeper · February 4th, 2008, 06:31 AM

That sounds like fuel starvation. I wish I could be more helpful, but I can't think of what might be causing it.

BerserkerCatSplat · February 4th, 2008, 07:01 AM

Well, stuttering/loss of power usually means it's either fuel or spark. Electrons are rarely affected by inclines, so I would look into the fuel system first, perhaps the fuel pump itself.

Crazyjeeper · February 4th, 2008, 07:03 AM

Oh, how much gas was in the tank at the time? I had a similar problem as your are describing in my Jeep at one point because of all of the crap in the gas. Also, because of the ethanol in gas now, it can cause water to separate into the gas which will then cause the engine to run very poorly. One cheap fix to try, is put a bottle of stp gas treatment in.

73GMCSprint · February 4th, 2008, 09:40 PM

That engine is (in)famous for intake manifold gasket problems (both lower and upper), among other things. It's hard to say from your description, but this is one of the known problems with the engine.

Night_Hawk · February 5th, 2008, 12:53 AM

I dont know what to tell you,

Ive driven up some steep bumpy hills with almost no gas and Ive never had any problems, Ive got the same engine too

Crazyjeeper · February 5th, 2008, 03:08 AM

I've also had similar stumbling problems in old cars that had junk blocking the fuel line. Its possible that the railroad crossing dislodged some crap in the tank and caused it to get sucked into the line.

73GMCSprint · February 5th, 2008, 06:14 PM

It does *sound* like a fuel system problem now that I think about it more. The easiest and cheapest thing for you to try yourself is to change the fuel filter and see if that clears it up. If not, you'll probably have to have someone look it over for you.

Elmo187 · February 5th, 2008, 06:43 PM

well its in the shop right now. i'm still waiting for a phone call from them.

C53A_4G63T · February 5th, 2008, 09:12 PM

If I am not mistaken, flashing CEL means mis-fire. Most likely a fueling issue.

Elmo187 · February 5th, 2008, 11:02 PM

got a call back from the shop.....

all it needs is a regular tune-up plus a new coilpack. never knew it would be that simple lol.

alright, well......

it didn't just need a tune up. the shop called me and informed that it still ran like crap after they did the tune up. they're taking the engine apart to see what's wrong with the internals of the engine.

SWEET! a stripped rocker arm. that is just fucking AWESOME!

HardwareBoB · February 8th, 2008, 04:01 AM

that's what you get for having pushrods images/smilies/wink.gif

IceBone · February 8th, 2008, 04:03 AM

MY LINE!

BerserkerCatSplat · February 8th, 2008, 04:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HardwareBoB

that's what you get for having pushrods images/smilies/wink.gif

You know, I was really close to making that joke, but it made me feel dirty. images/smilies/lol.gif

February 4th, 2008, 06:10 AM	#1
Elmo187 Banned Joined: Oct 6th, 2006 Last Online: April 11th, 2008 Location: Brandon, FL, USA Age: 26 Posts: 1,055 Car: Cobalt SS/SC-SN95 5.0 Stang-Toyota Corolla AE86 Rep Power: 0	I am seeking help from Buick or GM experts... ok, about a month ago, me and my fiancee bought a 2003 Buick Century with the 3100 V6 with 62,xxx miles because we already have a kid and we have one coming on the way. so pretty much the Cobalt, Mustang, Yaris (which was traded in by the way), and Corolla aren't really family cars. so anyway, on with the problem..... coming back from a SuperBowl party just about an hour ago the first few minutes it was working fine. once i went over a steep incline that included railroad tracks, the car starting acting real weird. it seemed to have just lost alot of power. so i hit the gas and all i hear is this rumbling and then the car starts to shutter. about 30 seconds later, on comes the "Service Engine Soon" light and continues to blink. came to a red light to a complete stop and the car sounded like it was about to die. i limped it the rest of the way home. i went in, grabbed my high intensity flashlight and checked the oil (about the only thing i could really do at midnight:30). it was absolutely fine. it was the right color, it was at the right level. what could this be? fuel system? ECU?

February 4th, 2008, 06:31 AM	#2
Crazyjeeper Joined: Nov 29th, 2006 Last Online: 04:26 AM Location: Texas Age: 19 Posts: 2,497 Car: 1985 Jeep CJ7, 1997 Ford F150 Rep Power: 50	That sounds like fuel starvation. I wish I could be more helpful, but I can't think of what might be causing it. __________________ Toy: 1985 Jeep CJ7 Lifted and Locked Daily Driver: 1997 Ford F150 4.6L with a massive 220hp MSI P6N Diamond 680i, E8400 @ 3.15ghz, CM Hyper 212 Cooler, XFX 8800GT 512mb Extreme, MSI 8400GS, Creative X-FI, 2x1gb Corsair XMS2 DDR2 800, PC Power & Cooling 610w EPS12v, 1.6tb of HDD, CM Centurion 690.

February 4th, 2008, 07:01 AM	#3
BerserkerCatSplat Hormone Induced Joined: Jun 21st, 2005 Last Online: 07:25 AM Location: Calgary, Alberta, Canada Posts: 5,784 Car: Pimpmobile Rep Power: 68	Well, stuttering/loss of power usually means it's either fuel or spark. Electrons are rarely affected by inclines, so I would look into the fuel system first, perhaps the fuel pump itself. __________________ OSPhoto

February 4th, 2008, 07:03 AM	#4
Crazyjeeper Joined: Nov 29th, 2006 Last Online: 04:26 AM Location: Texas Age: 19 Posts: 2,497 Car: 1985 Jeep CJ7, 1997 Ford F150 Rep Power: 50	Oh, how much gas was in the tank at the time? I had a similar problem as your are describing in my Jeep at one point because of all of the crap in the gas. Also, because of the ethanol in gas now, it can cause water to separate into the gas which will then cause the engine to run very poorly. One cheap fix to try, is put a bottle of stp gas treatment in. __________________ Toy: 1985 Jeep CJ7 Lifted and Locked Daily Driver: 1997 Ford F150 4.6L with a massive 220hp MSI P6N Diamond 680i, E8400 @ 3.15ghz, CM Hyper 212 Cooler, XFX 8800GT 512mb Extreme, MSI 8400GS, Creative X-FI, 2x1gb Corsair XMS2 DDR2 800, PC Power & Cooling 610w EPS12v, 1.6tb of HDD, CM Centurion 690. Last edited by Crazyjeeper; February 4th, 2008 at 07:06 AM..

February 5th, 2008, 12:53 AM	#6
Night_Hawk Joined: Oct 5th, 2006 Last Online: November 28th, 2008 Location: Somewhere small and far away Age: 18 Posts: 480 Car: 94 Buick Century - 86 Pontiac Grand Prix Rep Power: 11	I dont know what to tell you, Ive driven up some steep bumpy hills with almost no gas and Ive never had any problems, Ive got the same engine too __________________

February 4th, 2008, 09:40 PM	#5
73GMCSprint Joined: Jun 20th, 2007 Last Online: 05:49 AM Location: UT, USA Posts: 418 Car: 1973 GMC Sprint, Buick 455, TH400 Rep Power: 13	That engine is (in)famous for intake manifold gasket problems (both lower and upper), among other things. It's hard to say from your description, but this is one of the known problems with the engine.

February 5th, 2008, 03:08 AM	#7
Crazyjeeper Joined: Nov 29th, 2006 Last Online: 04:26 AM Location: Texas Age: 19 Posts: 2,497 Car: 1985 Jeep CJ7, 1997 Ford F150 Rep Power: 50	I've also had similar stumbling problems in old cars that had junk blocking the fuel line. Its possible that the railroad crossing dislodged some crap in the tank and caused it to get sucked into the line. __________________ Toy: 1985 Jeep CJ7 Lifted and Locked Daily Driver: 1997 Ford F150 4.6L with a massive 220hp MSI P6N Diamond 680i, E8400 @ 3.15ghz, CM Hyper 212 Cooler, XFX 8800GT 512mb Extreme, MSI 8400GS, Creative X-FI, 2x1gb Corsair XMS2 DDR2 800, PC Power & Cooling 610w EPS12v, 1.6tb of HDD, CM Centurion 690.

February 5th, 2008, 06:14 PM	#8
73GMCSprint Joined: Jun 20th, 2007 Last Online: 05:49 AM Location: UT, USA Posts: 418 Car: 1973 GMC Sprint, Buick 455, TH400 Rep Power: 13	It does sound like a fuel system problem now that I think about it more. The easiest and cheapest thing for you to try yourself is to change the fuel filter and see if that clears it up. If not, you'll probably have to have someone look it over for you.

February 5th, 2008, 06:43 PM	#9
Elmo187 Banned Joined: Oct 6th, 2006 Last Online: April 11th, 2008 Location: Brandon, FL, USA Age: 26 Posts: 1,055 Car: Cobalt SS/SC-SN95 5.0 Stang-Toyota Corolla AE86 Rep Power: 0	well its in the shop right now. i'm still waiting for a phone call from them.

February 5th, 2008, 09:12 PM	#10
C53A_4G63T Not A Dude Joined: Jun 30th, 2005 Last Online: 04:41 AM Location: Farmington, Connecticut Age: 22 Posts: 514 Car: 99' Infiniti Q45t, 89 Mitsubishi Mirage Turbo Rep Power: 15	If I am not mistaken, flashing CEL means mis-fire. Most likely a fueling issue. __________________ 1989 Mitsu Mirage Turbo Hatch, 4G63T swap and more goodies to make it a low 12 sec car. Better to own a Volvo, than be owned by one. I work for Buick....... and it's not nearly as fun as it sounds.

February 5th, 2008, 11:02 PM	#11
Elmo187 Banned Joined: Oct 6th, 2006 Last Online: April 11th, 2008 Location: Brandon, FL, USA Age: 26 Posts: 1,055 Car: Cobalt SS/SC-SN95 5.0 Stang-Toyota Corolla AE86 Rep Power: 0	got a call back from the shop..... all it needs is a regular tune-up plus a new coilpack. never knew it would be that simple lol. alright, well...... it didn't just need a tune up. the shop called me and informed that it still ran like crap after they did the tune up. they're taking the engine apart to see what's wrong with the internals of the engine. SWEET! a stripped rocker arm. that is just fucking AWESOME! Last edited by Quiky; February 8th, 2008 at 05:05 AM.. Reason: Merged posts.

February 8th, 2008, 04:01 AM	#12
HardwareBoB Joined: Nov 30th, 2005 Last Online: March 5th, 2008 Posts: 33 Car: 2003 Astra SRi Turbo Rep Power: 13	that's what you get for having pushrods

February 8th, 2008, 04:03 AM	#13
IceBone Gulf Livery Rules Joined: Jan 14th, 2007 Last Online: 12:29 AM Location: Slovenistan Age: 24 Posts: 6,650 Car: Mitsubishi Carisma GDI Rep Power: 70	MY LINE! __________________ The Mitsubishop of Natural Aspiraton

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