Another Pontiac no start

Sep 24, 2004 10 Replies
M

Guess I have to join the no-start crowd as well. I have a 1990 Pontiac



6000 SE AWD (3.1 V6). I thought it was a nice car, but now I think I got ripped off on it. It has died on me twice within days of just buying it from a private party.

First time was due to a worn out solenoid that wouldn't unlock the tranny lockup torque convertor once the trans fluid warmed up. Result it would stall the engine in drive. $C480.00 later and the car runs for about 200 miles.



Two days later, it stalls out completely after I come to a stop sign and try and engage the a/c circuit. Never restarts again. It now sits like a giant paperweight. I'm back to driving my trusty but tired 88 Mazda.



I know the jerk who had it before may have been fiddling around with the throttle position sensor, but I'm not certain. Anything I can try before I end up at a GM dealership and end up looking at big bucks? I just want to get rid of it now. TIA.



Matt


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M

Seized AC Compressor clutch? Take off the serpentine belt and try to start it.

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M

D'oh. Forgot to mention, I like the 90-91 6000 STE. The AWD system has been known for a few bugs, but the cars are *cool* IMO.

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J

That's pretty high for that particular job, but you could have just unplugged it. But then mechanics gotta eat, don't they? I'm telling you this just so you can consider, if money is an issue, whether you should be dealing with this particular repair place/dealer/garage. They might have some high overhead.

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M

Thanks, I'll try that, although wouldn't it disengage if I have the A/C circuit off? Also the engine turns over no problem.

Matt

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M

Yeah it's actually a neat car. The AWD feature actually works great on it too, just won't stay running for more than a couple of days.

Matt

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M

You might be right but I was on my way back home so I got stuck with this guy. He said I would risk overheating my tranny by disconnecting the solenoid. Definitely won't be using him again.

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G

If the engine turns, the AC is not the problem. If it died at the exact moment you hit the AC on, check all your fuses.

After that it's a basic troubleshoot to find out whether you are missing; A. spark B. fuel C. injector pulse GW

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M

Oh...that's different. Could be a bad crank sensor or Ignition module.

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J

You are correct, Matt, on both counts. Don't bother taking your belt off. If the engine turns over then it's not the A/C compressor keeping it from starting.

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N

The risk of overheating with the lockup disconnected IS REAL, by the way. All the "slippage" in a converter is converted to heat in the fluid, and locking the converter reduces the heat produced by the tranny to considerably less than 25%, IIRC.

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