[Anonymous]

Where should I start… For about 3-4 months now I have been having to add oil and coolant to my car at least 1 to 2 times a month as the dash lights would indicate they are low, when in reality they should have said EMPTY because when I popped the hood that’s where the fluid level was at!
– There was no leaking under the vehicle

– No noticeable puddles under the hood anywhere

– Smoked for short time and smell of coolant- but mysteriously subsided.
Then if I would idle at a stop light for too long without putting car in Neutral it would hesitate and act as if it would stall until I tapped the gas.
Next: It then it got to the point past week or so where it wouldnt start unless I would give the gas a small tap.
Now: I was driving on the highway yesterday 3-16-12 and my car.
– lost power and pressure behind the gas pedal

– dash lights: service engine soon, change oil, trac off, the oil

symbol, and the battery light came on

– RPM’s went down and wheel tightened up
I had the car towed to my moms where My brother in law and friend looked at it. I could have sworn it to be the alternator (note: I put a brand new battery in this car almost 2 months ago).

– The head lights, radio, indoor lights, ect will still come on.

– The car sounds as if it wants to turn over but you hear a click

click click sound

– they say its not alternator, we scanned it and got 2 codes:

* po171 fuel trim system lean

* po440 evaporative emission (evap) system
This is what we have done so far:
– removed the intake hose on top (dirty and had oil in it, with a

piece broken off around the rim

– removed the spark plugs (they were dripping with oil)

– bought new park plugs and replaced them with the old!
Still same thing, car wants to turn and wont start! Please tell me this is a easy, cheap fix!!!

[Anonymous]

Engine fan keep running and the temp gauge doesn’t move at all. When i go and start the car in -20 weather the fan comes on after 5 seconds and doesn’t stop. Engine can’t be hot. Fan stops when i shut the car off.

[Anonymous]

REPLY:

You’ve got a stuck thermostat and the coolant temp sensor keeps seeing a low operating temperature and sets the fan on since it can’t really tell what the temp is exactly of the engine. The temp gauge usually stays on full cold when this happens. Replace your thermostat and clear any trouble codes that have set such as a P0128, and you’ll be back to normal

[Anonymous]

REPLY:

Um yeah, NOT an easy or cheap fix. You’ve ruined your engine to the point where it locked up. You should have known there was an internal problem since you were adding oil and coolant for months! Where did you think it was going? If there are no puddles on the ground then the engine is burning it away. You probably started out with a bad cylinder head gasket, which would have been repairable, but now you need a new engine. The reason you’re only hearing a click, click, click noise is because the starter cannot turn the engine over since it’s locked up. Say goodbye to about $2000-$3000 if you want this fixed. Next time, handle the problem before it gets this bad!

[Anonymous]

I had many people looking at it in the mean time and NO ONE certified and non could diagnosis all they kept saying was, well its going somewhere! REALLY!!!! Wow they must have been genius’s….but I think because it isnt easy fix and people around here are lazy they didnt wanna get their hands dirty and do it! so now my repairs are more then the cars worth! what do you suggest I do? Junk it obviously, but where would I get the most for it, junk yard or car lot that buys cars or lets you use running or not running cars as downpayment on new one?

[Author]

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