I need a little help with a new project that I have. I just got a 2001 Cavalier 2.2 non-Eco that had a blown head gasket. I replaced the head gasket no problem. I started it and it idles fine. I get it up to operating temp. and take it for a spin and the rpm's seem to go way down when I let off the gas for a stop sign or cornering sometimes to the point of stalling. It will start right back up. When I open the oil filler there is a lot (what I think is a lot) of smoke that comes out. I've read that it is just "blow-by" and is normal. Also, when I get on the accelerator when it's in drive, and not warm, it down shifts fine, but when I accelerate and it's been running for a while the engine will just bog down, and sometimes stall. I just got this car so I don't know much about it. The engine light is not on, but the airbag/seat belt light is. Any suggestions? I've done searches, but can't find anything that sounds like the problems I'm having with this car. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Does it have trouble going into reverse? Seems like strange issues you're having but I know the throttle position sensor tends to go bad on these motors and causes weird stuff to happen; maybe see if you can find one cheap at a junk yard to try? Does it seem to have decent power at least most of the time?



"In Oldskool we trust"

Thanks for answering. It goes into reverse fine. Power is good as long as I don't make it downshift. I forgot to mention in the original post, it's an automatic.

Also maybe take it to advance auto or something and have them scan it for codes anyway? There may be something pre-existing that can help point you in the right direction.



"In Oldskool we trust"

Is it a 3 speed or 4 speed automatic?




"A car just isn't a car without a little blood, sweat, and beers." -- Shadowfire

Matt,
It's a four speed auto. Drive, 3,2,1

Y3llowCav,
I will probably do that, just in case.

I would check all your connections to be sure they're good. Tps is a tricky one (and doesn't need to throw a code to cause problems).

The iac is also kinda hard to connect completely (this screwed me up for a WHILE one night)

The white smoke I wouldn't worry about, blow by is common especially if you get into higher miles.

There isn't a whole lot on that motor that can cause issues. My guess is a faulty connection or maybe a sensor went bad at the same time.

I also suggest running a scanner on it to see what pops up. You might get lucky.




"A car just isn't a car without a little blood, sweat, and beers." -- Shadowfire

I'd agree that it seems to be some sort of sensor issue, whether it's the sensor itself or the wiring.



"In Oldskool we trust"

Thanks for the responses, guys. I'm going to get it scanned tomorrow. I'll let you know what happens.

My sunfire did the same thing. It was the wiring and connector that was just too much corroded. You're on the right track if you check those sensors.

Thanks, sunfire007. No scan today, it's been raining all day.

I took the car to AutoZone. They plugged the scan tool in, and it can't read anything. They said the fuse to the OBD must be blown. Anybody know where that is?

Ok. I took it to Auto Zone, and it didn't detect the car. Turns out the cigarette lighter fuse was blown, and that was the culprit there. They ran the scan and the only codes that came up were transmission shift issues, and an ABS code. My question is, could a transmission shift solenoid cause idling issues?

No answers? Nobody has had this problem before? Hard to believe.