I have a 98 ford escort with 116K miles. I've kept up with all services and had the timing belt changed at 102K miles about 2 years ago. Its been running fine until today. I noticed that when I stop the car shakes and feel like its going to shut off, I also noticed a wet spot on the garage floor, and its more than likely coming from the hood.

I've experienced the shaking before (but not the apparent leaking), and I put in fuel injection cleaner and had the spark plugs changed. It corrected itself over time, but now its doing it again.

Any ideas?

 

I had a very similar issue with my previous car (although didn't notice leaking). It would only do this when coming to a stop. What do your RPMs do at that time? I noticed if I kicked it into Neutral, I could come to a stop normally without any symptoms. Found out the tranny was sticking in a higher gear, and so the car was trying to stall/couldn't handle slowing down to speeds that weren't appropriate for 4th. My regular routine became just putting it into Neutral when I was coming to a stop, then putting it back in Drive when I was stopped.

Not suggesting this is your problem for sure, but sounds similar to what I experienced. P.S. I later got rid of the car vs. fixing the tranny.

 

replace fuel filter and do a tune up again?

 

I would check fuel delivery (fuel filter, injectors)

...and try clean the intake manifold, you can use the spray can intake cleaners directly into the manifold with the car running (you'll need to rev the car a little bit to keep the rpms dropping too low and stalling)

 

you sure it isnt a prius?

 

Well my wife and I set out this morning to go to AAMCO to get the car looked at, and we didn't even make it out of the neighborhood without it shutting off multiple times. Instead of driving it to AAMCO over 7 miles away I took it to the shop right in front of my subdivision. I didn't want to go here since they are not well known, but they did my timing belt 2 years ago and without much issue.

After looking at the car, they said I needed a major tuneup, so I agreed. Long story short it seemed to work. The car stars up and doesn't shut off anymore and only minor shaking when stopping. (it's always kind of shaked, but not as bad as last night). The leaking was coming from the heating core from inside the car and they wanted $410.00 (on top of the tune up cost to replace/flush it). I declined the heating core for the time being because I was mainly worried about the driving issue.

My wife wasn't confident with what they said so I took it to AAMCO anyway for piece of mind for both of us. AAMCO said they saw nothing wrong (other than the leaking heater core). He said its not a MAJOR issue, but it would probably should be fixed soon. I'll probably get it fixed later on this month.

So here's hoping all is fine with this car. I always figured this 11 year old car was on its last leg, but its really not a good time for another car right now. It doesn't even quality as a "Clunker" so no $4500 rebate to trade it in. I'll keep it till it becomes no longer cost effective to fix it.

Thanks all.

 

check the trans fluid to make sure that it's still good....

 

What do they consider a "tune-up" these days?

 

oil change + a fancy car wash

 

spoke too soon. The car's doing the same thing again. I'm taking it somewhere else tomorrow morning. All fluid levels are fine. But the tranny fluid is no longer red, and more like a reddish brown. I guess I should have that changed as well, but not sure if it will fix the problem.

 

Yeah, as I said - mine had a similar issue. Had it not been for numerous other issues, age, and mileage of the car, it might have been worth fixing...but in my specific case, it just made more sense to get rid of it. Hopefully, since you don't seem to be having other probs, this'll be a one-time fix and the car will do you well for another few years.

 

^^ hopefully these new guys can fix it.

I'm shopping around for a replacement just in case. If I have to put too much more money into this thing, then I won't bother. I'll hate having to get another car, but at least it should be more reliable.

I'm looking for a cash car so I don't have to finance; so my price range is under $9,000 if possible and no more than $10,000.

I see a nice 05 accord for $8,500 with 71K miles. Mileage seems kind of high for an 05 though. (my 05 TL only has 39,000)

 

Shop around for an Accord.... Solid and you should find one for less.

 

The mechanic said it needs a new computer ($600 - $800) and I declined. I already dropped $600 in it for the past couple of days and I didn't want to put another dime into it. I went by and picked it up and while it drove home fine, but wife took it to the grocery store and called me 30 minutes later from the store saying it was backfiring and wouldn't really accelerate when pressing the gas. So my son and I had to walk up there to get her. I was able to get it home but barely. I decided I'm done with the car so I've been out all day shopping for cars and found a couple of good ones in my price range.

2004 Nissan Altima SL (World Toyota)
77,000 Miles
Loaded; leather, 6 disc Cd changer, Bose, Heated Seats, power driver seat, power windows, sun roof, etc
Asking price $10980 (walk out $12,230)

2000 Toyota Camry Solara (Carmax)
62,000 Miles
Power driver seat, power windows, power locks, Cd player, Cassette,
Asking price $9998 (walk out $10,830)

The carfax/autocheck reports on both came back clean, but the Altima has a "Transmission Overhauled" note on its report which kind of concerns me. But other wise I like the car, but I wish they could come down some on the price.

The Camry came back clean, my only concern is the age (2000 model), but the mileage is excellent. I'm guessing it was an old lady that never drove it that much (unless of course the odometer was rolled back).

My wife prefers the Altima because its a Sedan, but she is really leaning towards the Solara. Personally I kind of like the Altima better but the price is a little more than I wanted to spend, and the carfax (transmission overhaul)/77K miles kind of concern me.

Any suggestions?

 

Just checked the blue book retail on the the Camry, and its nearly $2000 less than was Carmax is charging. According to kbb I should be paying around $8100 for the Camry but carmax wants $9998 Is it possible to haggle with these guys, or is it a waste of time?

 

From what I understand, it's pretty much impossible to haggle with Carmax. Whether you get a Toyota, Nissan, or Honda/Acura, I'd spend a little bit extra and get a V6 instead of a 4-banger.

 

yeah the Solara was a V6; the Altima was a 4 cyl.

Solara
http://www.carmax.com/enUS/view-car/...6-73a826b92286

Altima
http://www.atlantatoyota.com/detail-...s-4464645.html

 

Is pulling the computer/ECU out of a junkyard Escort and installing it an option?

 

I considered that, but I really didn't want to spend another penny on this car. I'm not even confident it would work. How hard would it be to install the ECU myself?

 

I've never had to do it, but they don't look difficult generally: a few screws/bolts and a couple of plugs.
The Escort ECU is fewer bolts, but a little less accessible: http://www.ford-forums.com/ford-esco...e-cpu-ecu.html

If you don't want to get one from a junkyard Escort, E-bay has some Escort ECUs such as http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/98-99...20168006r22064

 

BTW, I ran across some references to rough idle being an IAC valve issue (like with certain Honda V6s) on the Escort, so that should be ruled out before changing out the ECU: http://www.ford-forums.com/ford-zx2/...r-control.html

 

I was about to suggest he IACV (intake air control valve). Just look on the intake, after the MAF and there should be a simple thing that is connected with an air line. Just get at it and clean it. That may help.

If not, do not overpay for a car. No need in this economy. With interest at all time lows, you might be able to afford payments on something new if financed right (XXX down, and 48 months at 0%) Car dealers want to reduce inventory any way they can. Try a true dealer and not that Carmax bullshit.

 

If you aren't 100% happy with the Solara (because it's a coupe/more $$) or the Altima (because of the overhaul), just keep looking, even if it's for the same models. It's not like you're forced to buy one of those specific cars, even if you ARE in a time crunch. I wouldn't spend $10,000 and not feel confident with what I bought.