as of right now my service engine light is coming on and my coolant light.

The coolant light has been coming on for awhile now but the coolant is full and i have checked it many times. The light isn't always on though it comes and goes but once its on it stays on. Some times it might not pop up for a couple days or weeks. Which i hear is a common problem for our cars, something about some sensor near the radiator cap?

Now for the part that really is the problem is the service engine light.

How it started was I let my sister drive my car to her work since she locked her keys in her car. When I got to my work and got my car ( we work right next to each other) I got it and immediately noticed something different, but i thought maybe it was just because I have been driver her hyndia accent . It was also raining that morning, and was water on the road. Then about a day later i drive it to school in the morning (still the same feeling) and there is no light on. Now when i get out of school i go to leave i notice the light.

Now for the problem it feels like I’ve lost a lot of power and its driving kind of sluggish. Kind of like it's driving with the brake on or something, but when i hit the gas or floor it kind of feels like it gained power because it seems like it jerks you back in your seat a little bit harder then normal, so your probably thinking how the hell is that a problem if it feels like its got more power though lol.
It sometimes feels like the tranny if shifting a little different but I’m defiantly not sure about that could just be me.

Now before this like 3 days before i let my sister drive my car to her work, i raced a bit me and some friends, and I hit the rev limiter a couple times do to not paying attention . Yea i know stupid me. I don't think that would have caused any problems that i can think of though but thought i would throw it in here. Also what setting should I have for my shift points right now it's set at shift at 6k and rev limiter at 6k, which i think the shift RPMS should be lower.. right..

As for the service light if that is on the only think it should affect is the computer right? Also its been awhile since i 1st fueled up my tank all the ways and i did that saterday i beleive and in the manuel it says something about changing gas stations and dealer and such and i went to a gas station i never get gas at before ( but its a NICE gas station) so i don't see how that would affect anything. BTW also have 160 stat in my car with the hypertech programming.

Thanks for any help guys,
Brian

 

Well I can help with the coolant light.
You can drain about 1/3 of your coolant out and check the sensor (take out the battery, remove the retaining clip, pull it out).
Clean the end thing. this "Might" fix it. If it doesnt, buy a new sensor. Should work perfectly Had the exact same problem and fixed it.

Also, double check the antifreeze-water ratio. Mine was a WAY low (like 1:10 or something!)and so i added more antifreeze to compensate. This was at the same time i replaced the sensor. I'm guessing it was just the sensor, but because i changed them both i cant say for sure

Mines been working fine for a month now. No problems at all.

Check engine light - get it scanned and save yourself a lot of time.

 

dont let bitches drive your car. good lesson learned. second who gives a **** if it feels wierd, its a bad *** engine. take it to a real mechanic and have him scan it and tell u whats up that way u are more comfortble with ur car and what needs to be done.

 

i got another question do you guess think changing the therma stat and reprogramming the computer will void a warrenty?? 160 stat in it right now.

Also is there anyway of telling that i have reprogrammed it or changed the thermastat after they scan it?

 

The moment they scan it while it's warmed up, they will see the lower operating temperature. I'm curious, what kind of warranty do you have on a 97 ?

 

since its a 97, and that means its OBDII, you can take it to Autozone and they should be able to scan it for free for you. Don't even try to start diagnosing this one until you have it scanned by someone though...if your Autozone won't do it, find an independant auto repair place (I.E. not a dealer) that will.

 

It's a 3 year/1xx,000 mile warrenty from i think autonations, parents were the ones that wanted it.:blah:

Anyways got it scanned today and it came up with this.

141
Heater circuit malfunction
(bank 1 sensor 2)

No idea what this means, so does anyone have an idea and what it might affect?

 

Okay don't take this to the bank but my car did the same thing one time last year. It was raining REAL hard and i was already worried that the opti would **** up, and it did. I parked it for about 10 minutes and when i came back, it was acting just like you say. No power, couldn't break the tires loose under WOT in the rain. Next morning, I took a hairdryer to the opti (recommendation from people on the board) and it went away. Stupid ****in opti...

 

I'm pretty sure its not the opti. I mean it has power at WOT but just feels like a v6 like it lost alot of power when your driving around normally.

 

P0141 Heated Oxygen Sensor (HO2S) heater circuit Bank 1 Sensor 2

That means the O2 sensor on the drivers side after the cat has a problem with it's heater circuit. The PCM does not normally use the after cat O2 for fuel calculations, so it may not be related to your drivability problem. It is apparently the cause of your SES, though.

 

Thanks shoebox , it gave me the same error twice which is pretty much the same thing right? Also how much will that cost to repair and how hard is it to do?

 

There's no way of knowing the cost to repair. It could be as simple as replacing the O2 for $50.00 or it could be a wiring problem or it could be a PCM problem. Since O2s lead a hard life and the car was used when you bought it, it may be a good idea to change them. The heater circuit can be tested easily to see if the problem is in the O2 or not.

 

Thanks for the person that e-mailed me about the problem.

I was wundering if you could send it again, I don't really remember the e-mail address of the name he used in this board but i deleted it on accident.

He said he worked at a Chevy dealership and the problem wasn't just the sensor but something about the cat. and if i replaced the 02 it would just burn out again and i would have to go to the junkyard and see if i could find a (cat. i think he was talking about) and get a muffler shop to weld one in.

He siad it was a common problem that they have had with the LT1's that come in.

If anyone has any information about this or what i need to do, or if the guy reads this please send it again.

Thanks

 

Regarding Autotap (just bought it).....one of my rear o2's is stuck at 430-440's. I'm throwing up a p0141. What does that mean. Bad 02? I was thinking if it was fried out that it would be at zero or something. So whats a bad 02 suppose to show, a stuck reading as how I see it now? I see my other 02's jumping around, so thats normal. I appreciate the help cuz I'm still learning here.....thankx