So I'm driving to work yesterday...

and as i approach my work place, i'm in first gear & rolling towards my parking location... i push the clutch in, leave it in first, and as i come to a stop my car died very slowly. As the rpm's went down from 2 grand, they slowly went down to zero and the car shut off very quietly.

I was like "WTF" so i pulled out of my spot and decided to go for a cruise around the block. As I came to a stop sign, pushed in the clutch, and came to a stop, the car had died again.

Alternator problem? Is this a possibility?

My gauge lights flicker like crazy, not sure if anyone else has had this problem? When i turn the car on, and its idling under 2,000 or so, it looks like the gauge cluster is having a party with the lightings going dim and brighter again.

Could this have any relation to the car dying or what else can I do without taking it to the dealer? Thanks!

 

This could be a number of issues, bad earths to blocked breathers, i would say its more like your vaccume hose has come loose

 

^ he's right. could be alot of things.

does the car startup fine? cranks strong when starting? if so, that probably rules out battery or alternator. just for the hell of it, id go to an auto parts store and have the charging system checked. most will do it for free. other than that, you could try calling a dealer and ask for the service manager. ive had pretty good luck getting advice from dealers over the phone. good luck!

james

 

Most of the time when the clusters flickering like that its the alternator... I think autozone checks them for free you might wanna start there. Have them check your battery while your there too just in case.

 

Replace your MAP sensor (or try the MAP whack). Clean your throttle body...on the back side of the tb there is an air passage that feeds the MAP. Clean your idle control valve.

These are all easy to do your self. Look in the FAQ for DIY instructions.

 

thanks that all will help too. i have a k&n filter on there, that is a little dirty i should try that as well. The car starts up perfectly, no problems at all. sometimes i go to gas it, and its like its just not getting enough fuel or smething, it bogs for a second.

 

My car tends to act like this every time the seasons change. I attribute this to the ecu being a "learning" ecu. I usually just reset the ecu to speed the process along.

 

are you throwing a CEL? Cause I had similar problems, then a running rich cel popped and then the infamous P0411, but then i started having misfires. It was the coil packs and plugs. So just be careful out there. Good Luck.

 

My 03ap1 is doing the same. It died on me 4 times this morning while decelerating when I pushed in the clutch around 2k rpms disengaging 2nd. I actually didnt think the car was going to crank on the 4th time; but she did.

I'm going out to do a map whack, ck idle cont, tps, etc.. to see if that fixes my problem.

No bogging and my obd 2 reader showed no codes....

 

i dont have any check engine lights either. if you figure out your problem please let me know. mines not dying anymore but lights are still flickering like a san francisco rave.