2002 Protege5 Sudden power loss, rough idle, light knock…Please help!

[JustinNCP5]

Ran GREAT but had connection issues with battery that started few months before. Would not turn sometimes!

Everybody: IT'S YOUR ALTERNATOR

ME: CAN'T BE!

Of course it wasn’t! Battery was fully charged! Usually connection got loose. Scared to turn it off. First happens when I put a turn signal on! Had to chain it home! Cranks up soon as we get home. That’s the backstory!

Happened few more times but started corroding on terminals. Driving fine. I pull off from the store after getting gas. Soon as I hit the road it loses power and cuts off! Won’t jump! My dad gets there we jump it with heavy duty cables. Cranks like a champ! Won’t start. Put 15 in gas in Still cranking but no start!! Dad taps on fuel tank and it starts! Was low on oil but we put 4 QTs in today. 1st start seemed to fix everything. But 10 miles it cuts off at the light.

Noticing if I shift manually I can get her up to speed and good power on flat ground. Uphill loses power at 40 mph if Im going over that. Ran ALOT better after Oil , cleaned battery posts. New terminals, gauge says it’s running good Temp. Smells of Overheat when I parked. Motor has a tick when revving to keep from stalling! 02 sensor is bad. The CEL started blinking. No smoking. Lights are good. But oddly my interior light came back on when I parked it. Coolant seems to not be circulating correctly. Electrical issues I’m sure.

I can’t afford a lot. Will go to autozone and test it. All this happens at 1 time so maybe I’m ok! Need help!

 

[smetzger]

You put 4qts of oil in? It only holds 3.7 qts after draining. Either you overfilled it a lot or it didn't have any oil at all. Either way, it may need some internal engine work.

We can't help until you tell us what codes the OBDII scan shows.

For future posts it would be appreciated if you could break up your pot into paragraphs. That wall of text is very difficult to read.

 

[Antoine]

Side note...

For future posts it would be appreciated if you could break up your pot into paragraphs. That wall of text is very difficult to read.

Agreed...I think when you see this people are sometimes using voice to text. I went ahead and added some spacing, hope it's a bit easier to read now...Back to the topic, thanks.

 

[JustinNCP5]

You put 4qts of oil in? It only holds 3.7 qts after draining. Either you overfilled it a lot or it didn't have any oil at all. Either way, it may need some internal engine work.

We can't help until you tell us what codes the OBDII scan shows.

For future posts it would be appreciated if you could break up your pot into paragraphs. That wall of text is very difficult to read.

I didn’t mean to say 4, I meant 3 and a half full bottle. Yeah I was low on oil. Not bone dry.

Side note...


Agreed...I think when you see this people are using voice to text. I went ahead and added some spacing, hope it's a bit easier to read now...Back to the topic, thanks.

well my paragraph knowledge/punctuation was overcome by the anxiety I’m having! Literally had a guy wanting the car for a good number!

Anyway I put 3 Whole Quarts and a quarter of 1 maybe. I said 4. Excuse me. I was definitely very low on oil. No oil is leaking! No smoking! Seen a thread where a guy said if going up hill and rpms go down and engine just slowly loses power it’s a fuel distribution issue.

It was fine! Never a mechanical issue. Just a connection issue. Which may have caused everything to happen at once! Just would think I would have definitely noticed a sign of overheating or something! I did accidentally have my parking brake up when I reversed out of parking space after being in store 30 seconds-45 seconds! So I thought it was stalling because of that! What it felt like! Immediately released it! 5 seconds total!

I don’t use talk to text! The 2002 Protege 5 has been great! All the sudden it cuts off! When battery was adjusted it jumped fine! But only would crank! Very strong crank! Without cables! My dad tapped the fuel tank with a hammer! Boom! Cranked up I made it home! Put the oil in next night! It started and I felt the oil’s difference! I thought putting 2 more Quarts would do the trick (1.25 Qts initially) . Transmission will shift itself but seems out of sync when I hit good speed in 4th/5th and a hill is ascending! I manually drop it down to get enough power to stay near speed limit! (10 mile trip) accelerates fine once on flat ground or downhill! Motor isn’t blown I’m thinking Fuel Pump, Fuel distribution! I’ll get codes tomorrow! (interior light been down for a while) it suddenly cuts on when I get to my destination!

Thanks guys

 

[pcb]

A few things to consider,..

The Only code that blinks the CEL is engine misfire.
When that happens the ECU sends the car into limp mode, where the engine is flooded with gas (to help protect the engine), the timing advance is reduced, and a few other things.

If the ECU manages to stop the misfiring, then the CEL stops blinking and turns on solid. Then you are stuck in limp mode until the ECU is satisfied that the misfiring has stopped.

While you're in Limp Mode, the engine is completely gutless, and wastes gas.

Another thing to consider is the Crank Sensor. The Instant the ECU doesn't get a crank signal, it shuts down engine. There is a code for that, but it never gets thrown, because it happens so fast the code never registers.

There have been cases where the Crank Sensor wire was worn through and shorting out to the engine which would kill the engine immediately, but then the car would start after the grounding stopped.
Vibration caused the wire to wear through, and intermittent engine shut down.
When the car has no crank sensor information, you'll get two sparks then nothing every time you try to start the car.
The ECU allows two rotations of the engine looking for crank sensor data, then shuts down the engine.

The engine can run without Cam Sensor information, but a code will be present.

A faulty FPR (fuel pressure regulator) solenoid valve can cause the engine to not start when it's hot.
The fuel pressure needs to be increased for a hot start, and a sticky solenoid valve prevents the increase in pressure.
It's the same solenoid valve as the VTCS and VICS valve, it's just got the vacuum lines connected differently.

Another possibility is the Fuel Pump Relay.
One member had a sticky fuel pump relay that would only stick when the engine had a full heat soak, so it was very difficult to diagnose and dangerous when his car would suddenly die out of nowhere.

Another possibility is the ignition switch, that is screwed on to the backside of the ignition key tumbler.
The switch is Full of little switches that get worn out after 20 years of operation.
Any one of the little switches failing can shut down the car.

Electrical Gremlins are a PITA to diagnose, and just replacing a few relatively inexpensive components can save a lot of headaches, especially when the problem is intermittent and not failing while you happen to be testing it.

I had a code for FPR Solenoid Valve.
I applied 12V to the valve and it clicked!!?? Then tried again and a click. Then I tapped the 12V to it quickly about a dozen times and it stopped clicking.

Intermittent Electrical problems are a real PITA !!!

If I were you, I'd start with replacing your ignition starter switch.
It's a relatively inexpensive part and it's a good idea to replace it anyway because when it fails, it fails in a dangerous way. (The car with shut down out of nowhere).

It should be considered a maintenance item.