The starter went, so I had a local mechanic install a new starter for me.
I picked the car up this morning on the way to work. I was rushed for time. I started it and noticed the check engine light on right away. My office is only a few blocks from the mechanic, but it did feel like the car was running rough and down on power.
On the way home tonight, the check engine light again came on right at startup. The car is WAY down on power and I had severe trouble merging onto the highway and making it up a hill near my house. Furthermore, if you hit the gas hard while it’s rolling, it stumbles and the RPMs drop for a second. Also, if you floor it, the RPMs rise to about 4000 then SLOWLY climb higher, while the car barely accelerates and feels so, so weak (…not like the car has much to begin with…but right now I’m sure a 3 cylinder Metro could take it hard).
The car feels normal if you’re driving slowly at low RPMs and not uphill.
What could the mechanic have done while replacing the starter to cause this?
yeah check to see if any sensors are unplugged or wires broken.
else try seein what the codes are. diagnostic port, you can jump two of the terminals and get it to flash the codes and look those up. i have a tester and code book.
if you dont have a tester or the 30-40 bucks it cost to buy one, then use a paper clip to jump terminals. not sure which ones is which tho… i’ll have to look at my tester to see which ones it actually connects. thats all it is, is a plastic piece that connects pins on the diagnostic port.
Only reason I didn’t suspect that is that on Fords the 02 sensors are disregarded at full throttle, I’m so used to Fords and I didn’t know that GMs were different…
Fixed it…there was a wire running out of the main engine wire group right next to the starter with some one-pin connector on it that connects to something near the starter (I have no idea what it is, some box). The mechanic didn’t re-connect it. I connected it back up and the car is good as new.