’98 Corolla - engine sudden stopped while driving

Mar 05, 2007 3 Replies

Please help! My 1998 corolla suddenly stopped while on the road driving. It happened when I was turning into freeway. It was 20-25mph when turning. The car engine stopped without any warning and the car spun. When it came to a stop, I was able to restart and drive. Another time was the rpm suddenly dropped to almost stop when I was at a traffic light. I went Toyota dealer, they could not find any problem! Would appreciate any suggestions/help. Thanks.


Do you have an automatic transmission or a manual transmission?

When you say that the car "spun" do you mean that the car continued to roll forward or do you man that you lost control of the vehicle and it spun like a top?

Do you have any aftermarket accessories installed like a radio, 2-way radio, remote starter or security system, GPS, etc?

It?s an automatic transmission.

It stopped and I had no control of the car. The can spun like a top. When the car came to a stop. I noticed all lights on the control panel were on.

There is a 5-disc CD player installed in the trunk by the previous owner. The CD player is still installed but I don?t use it because it?s not working.

Thank you for replying.

The engine, brakes, or transmission are stopping suddenly, which is what is causing the car to spin. Since the engine will re-start and the car is driveable after the incident, I would look to see if one of the front brake caliper bolts is loose and hitting the wheel.

The problem is serious, and I would ask the dealer to get technical assistance from the factory if they cannot find a cause.

The low idle could be caused by an EGR valve that is sticking in the open position. Temporariliy disconnect and plug the vacuum hoses from the EGR valve and see if the low idle problem goes away. If it does, the EGR valve may be clogged and need cleaning or replacement.

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