How do you know when its malfunctioning? What are some signs. Mine has been doing some spratic out of the blue weird @!#$ sometimes.. Like when i am doing about 45 ish and i decide to punch it, the car drops into a lower gear and then gets going and then does this weird backfire/misfire kind of deal like it dosn't know what the @!#$ its doing then goes back to normal. Now i am not paying attention to the speedo when this occurs because its sooo random and few and far between when it occurs. It also had done it while i have been starting out in first a few times aswell.. Only thing that leads me to belive this its related to the VSS is i have watch the needle hang one time while sloweing down for a good 5 mph and then just drop like a rock to where its suppose to be. I have never touched the needles eithers. SO yea... any ideas?
Mod please delete this please? I have an alternative way to word this and relate it to performance... thanks.
VSS not working your speedo wouldnt be working.
Now your Transmission Range Sensor, sometimes called Transmission Range Selector will cause the problems you described. If that sensor doesnt know what gear the trans is in, how is the computer gonna know.
- 2004 Cavalier - 124k, owned since new
i wish it would through a CEL so i could figure it out... But also last night it turned on the ETS light.
Do you have any pointers as what i should no next? I've been running through my haynes manual for the past hr looking at possibilites and diagnostic symptonms. Nothing really stood out..
ok i dont want to cross post, but in the other one that got locked, rodimus said that it goes into limp mode? is this true? does it happen if its just cut or if u unplug it in general. im going to the track this summer and i really dont wanna hit the fuel cut off running boost.. i like my eninge being intact and functional..
the VSS inmy durango went out, different vehicle so maybe not pertinent, and all that happened was the speedo worked for @!#$ and was erratic at best when it did work. no other problems whatsoever aside from the CEL because of it.
good luck whatever it is.
so does it go into limp mode? or affect anything besides the speedo?
Reacently is has been occuring more than evar. Today i was puttering around and was doing about 30 ish and i punched it, the car dropped into 1st and started to really wind out and It bounces off the rev limiter like its not shifting and does a nice loud backfire pop like when you hit it in neutral. This has got me stumped. I will have the pedal to the floor and out of no where it will act like its bounceing off the rev limiter and lunge the car foward and then act normal... When i drive like a normal human being and keep it under prolly 3k rpms, its runs fine. Hmm... only thing i haven't looked into was the plugs. It use to miss fire on me 2 winters ago and thats what its feeling like.. But it only does it once and not several repeating times. To my knowledge the plugs have never been changed on the car since i have had it 10/29/02 till now.. Maybe i'll try those. My exhaust has been seeming to run a little smelly reacently..
doesnt sound like your vss. mine went out on my cav. i remember i was driving an all of a sudden the car shut off. i had to force the wheel to turn so i could pull over. i started it back up and it seemed fine. started to drive and i noticed that speedo was barely working. it would work then, just quit and drop to zero. the car drove fine but the speedo was juming around like crazy.
