Sputtering

[94 formula]

I got stuck in traffic today and my car went up to about 230 degress. It didn't overheat but when the traffic let up when I would get on the gas my car would horribly stutter till I got over 2000rpms. What would cause this? I'm getting near 100,000 miles could the plugs be the cause?

[mbigd73]

opti

have your opti checked .my car is doing the same thing .also check fuel presure or coil .look under your hood at nite check for arking you will see it real good at nite. just dont touch like i did let go real quick more than likly its your opti .good luck

[Jeff_in_Atl]

Take a look at this. Maybe this is it. http://shbox.com/1/4th_gen_tech2.html#ICM_cooling

[Injuneer]

With 100K miles, virtually any part in the ignition system could be giving you problems. Many of these parts are susceptible to weakened performance on heat soak. Probably best to look at the most cost-effective fixes first:

-coil and coil wire. Also look for corrosion in terminals. Heat can cause breakdown of insulation.

-plug wires, again look for arcing, corrosion at both ends. Heat/insulation issues.

-spark plugs. The stock platinum plugs tend to lose the platinum pucks. Lose one you have a .070" gap, loose both and you have close to 0.100" plug gap.

-ignition control module (ICM). Heat soak, as noted in earlier post.

-Optispark distributor. Heat can affect the optical module. At 100K, could have some blinding of the optical sensor, and burned rotor and wire contacts. The "2K stutter" is often traced directly to the Opti.

I would also consider why it got so hot, if this is unusual. In actuality, the stock fan settings don't turn the first fan on until 226degF and the second fan to 235degF, so the temperatures you saw should not be harmful. However, the heat soak on the ignition components might have been an issue due to the high mileage.

Did the stuttering clear up at all? When there is extreme heat soak, the inlet air temperature (IAT) sensor can get very hot, and this causes the PCM to pull a little timing, which will give the engine a slightly "sluggish" feel.

[94 formula]

It wasn't just a stutter it cut out. Its gone now its got me confused no codes and acting normal. I just got plugs and wires was planning on doing it soon so I just figure I'll eliminate one thing. I'm hoping not opti I had a thing like this before happen but clear up but more than likely opti is cause of it. Why did they have to make those things so dang expensive.

[Kev70]

My car stutters some when it hits 1500-2000 rpm. It only does it when the motor is cold though. Worse yet, I just bought the car. The water pump is shiney, the plug wires are new, but the opti is old. Guess I can figure out what happened. Oh yeah, the antifreeze is pretty and green too

[ZMAN_DIEHL!!!]

you guessed it new water pump old opti
hope you didnt buy from a friend
mine looked the same too I could obviously tell the pump was leaking for some time before it actually went TU

[Kev70]

I guess that the real question is how long will it last? It does have some oil on it, so may that will help repel the water