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Not Sure Big Trouble

J

justwords916

New CEG'er
Joined
Mar 2, 2007
Messages
13
Alright so heres my story, i own a 99 merc mystique, just rolled over 100k. At 99 i replaced the timing belt and water pump, also the vaccum so the check engine light would go off. Now the light is back on, and sometimes when i take off the car goes sluggish, and other times it runs just fine. My concern is also the car sometimes jerks, and the check engine light flashes, when this happens i let off the gas and it stops. I thought it was the tranny but it still shifts just fine, doesnt run high rpms or anything and im not sure what it is, a tune up, engine goin what? if someone could offer some advice, my email is justwords916@gmail.com thanks

james
 
Welcome :) . Drive to the nearest Advance or Autozone and have them read the CEL codes (free service). Then post the exact codes here.
 
thanks

thanks

will do, cant do it til friday tho, they require a 150 deposit and i get paid thursday, i will defineatley repost though when i find out
 
Deposit is only if you want to borrow the tool. They will do it in the parking lot for free. Most people read the code hear "o2 sensor high or low" and decide to replace the sensor instead of finding out the cause. Makes about as much sense as looking at the gas gauge, seeing a 1/4 tank and deciding to replace the tank sensor instead of filling the tank.
 
justwords916 said:
i see so the machine wont help me out then? ..
Click to expand...
Yes, it will. If you are putting down a $150 deposit, get the one which will have "freeze frames or live data". If you are just getting the codes read (no deposit), post the exact codes here. While the codes in of itself may not solve the problem, (sometimes it could, as it could be as easy as a loose gas cap) it will definitely put you way ahead in the game.

Or you can spend $100 at a dealer to have them read the code for you, and then maybe another $200 to $400 to have them fix it for you. :shrug:
 
alright well thanks again for responding me and my buddy are gonna go and look at the place and do it tommorow, i got school all day today (college) thanks again tho
 
When it's sluggish is the car under 1/4? Most likely Fuel Pump since it's a later Contour. Wither that or plugs and wires. P&W should be changeds as prev. maintenance at that age anyway.
 
no its sluggish all the time, by that i mean it doesnt matter if its 1/4 or full, when it gets sluggish its yea anyway lol, ima do that check on the cels on fri
 
i got the code p0303 i believe it was, whichever one that says piston 3 misfire, im going to get a tune up and see if that works, thats the only code that came up, thanks all for ur help
 
justwords916 said:
Alright so heres my story, i own a 99 merc mystique, just rolled over 100k. At 99 i replaced the timing belt and water pump, also the vaccum so the check engine light would go off. Now the light is back on, and sometimes when i take off the car goes sluggish, and other times it runs just fine. My concern is also the car sometimes jerks, and the check engine light flashes, when this happens i let off the gas and it stops. I thought it was the tranny but it still shifts just fine, doesnt run high rpms or anything and im not sure what it is, a tune up, engine goin what? if someone could offer some advice, my email is justwords916@gmail.com thanks

james
Click to expand...

Flashing check engine light would be a missfire. Which could be the spark plugs if they haven't been done in some time, or a bad sparkwire.
 
justwords916 said:
i got the code p0303 i believe it was, whichever one that says piston 3 misfire, im going to get a tune up and see if that works, thats the only code that came up, thanks all for ur help
Click to expand...

opps didn't see this. Yup a miss on anyone of the 4 cyl would cause power problems for a 4 banga. :) plugs and wires would be a good call. Plugs alone first if you wana see if that takes care of it. Look at the plug when you pull it. Make sure it's not covered in oil.
 
problem solved, got a tune up and it was fixed, only thing is when i got the timing belt done, the damn place didnt do the seals or valves right and there was a bunch of oil in where the spark plugs were, got it fixed grand total of $176, damn double platinum spark plugs err and oil
 
jd2-98s said:
Flashing check engine light would be a missfire. Which could be the spark plugs if they haven't been done in some time, or a bad sparkwire.
Click to expand...


Flahing CEL actually means its a catylist damaging misfire.

Justwords916: congrats on getting it fixed.
 
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