Engine is Programmed to Stall
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Engine is Programmed to Stall
Hello everyone. First post here.
I have a 1996 Dodge Neon (SOHC, A/T) that suffers from a stalling issue. I have been driving the car with this condition for the past 6 months or so.
As if it's programmed to stall at a predetermined distance/time, the engine would stall with little to no warning while driving. It will happen under all types of engine loads. Typically, I can expect the car to stall after driving for 20-25mins or 13-15km (city or highway).
How does the car stall? The majority of the time the motor would stumble once (that'll signal me that the CEL is going to come on (usually within 5 seconds)), but sometimes the CEL will just pop up without any warning. When the CEL light comes on, I can let go of the throttle or try to drive it in preparation to pull-over, but within a minute, the engine will just stall.
What happens next? If I crank the starter right away, I can hear the starter turning, but it does not fire up. If I'm not causing major traffic delays I'd just wait for at least 4 mins or so, at which point the car starts without any issue. If I'm causing traffic backup, I cannot get the car to start for at least a minute.
The more I wait, after the car stalls, the longer the distance/time the motor will run before it stalls again.
In a trip that takes 40kms in distance, the motor will stall no less than 4 times.
FWIW, it feels like the engine stalls quicker as the summer temps rises. Also, coming back from a "long" drive, when taking it into reverse, the engine will sometimes stall. The motor will not restart for at least a minute.
It's almost guaranteed to stall on a trip that takes 20-23 minutes of driving. On a few occasions, doing the same trip from point A to B, only different days, the car stalls roughly in the same location of eachother! Sounds crazy (it is) but it almost makes me think it's programmed by distance/time.
SO, what do you guys have to say about this....what could be the cause of this?
I have a 1996 Dodge Neon (SOHC, A/T) that suffers from a stalling issue. I have been driving the car with this condition for the past 6 months or so.
As if it's programmed to stall at a predetermined distance/time, the engine would stall with little to no warning while driving. It will happen under all types of engine loads. Typically, I can expect the car to stall after driving for 20-25mins or 13-15km (city or highway).
How does the car stall? The majority of the time the motor would stumble once (that'll signal me that the CEL is going to come on (usually within 5 seconds)), but sometimes the CEL will just pop up without any warning. When the CEL light comes on, I can let go of the throttle or try to drive it in preparation to pull-over, but within a minute, the engine will just stall.
What happens next? If I crank the starter right away, I can hear the starter turning, but it does not fire up. If I'm not causing major traffic delays I'd just wait for at least 4 mins or so, at which point the car starts without any issue. If I'm causing traffic backup, I cannot get the car to start for at least a minute.
The more I wait, after the car stalls, the longer the distance/time the motor will run before it stalls again.
In a trip that takes 40kms in distance, the motor will stall no less than 4 times.
FWIW, it feels like the engine stalls quicker as the summer temps rises. Also, coming back from a "long" drive, when taking it into reverse, the engine will sometimes stall. The motor will not restart for at least a minute.
It's almost guaranteed to stall on a trip that takes 20-23 minutes of driving. On a few occasions, doing the same trip from point A to B, only different days, the car stalls roughly in the same location of eachother! Sounds crazy (it is) but it almost makes me think it's programmed by distance/time.
SO, what do you guys have to say about this....what could be the cause of this?
Legend
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 9,112
Likes: 1
From: Spring, TX
Have you noticed if your fuel level is low when this happens? Sometimes on the 95 and early 96 neons, the fuel pump would overheat and shut down after about 10-15 minutes of driving. With a full tank of gas, it would run longer due to the fuel keeping the pump slightly cooler.
Either way, it sounds like some type of fuel issue. Whether its a faulty fuel pump, bad wiring, fuel pump fuse, relay or something along those lines.
Either way, it sounds like some type of fuel issue. Whether its a faulty fuel pump, bad wiring, fuel pump fuse, relay or something along those lines.
