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Grand Am Engine Shakes, Flashing SES lights, Poor Acceleration
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jbrown77
New User
Oct 11, 2011, 11:38 AM
Post #1 of 5
(4792 views)
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Grand Am Engine Shakes, Flashing SES lights, Poor Acceleration
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Specs:
1999 Pontiac Grand AM
130,000 Miles
V4 engine
So I wake up, and my car is screwing up. All of these problems are entirely new
1. I turn the ignition, SES turns on, and the car begins shaking violently. It continues to do this while idle.
2. I go in reverse, the shaking calms.
3. I go forward, the shaking is almost stable.
4. I accelerate, and the car won't shift gears until I depress the gas slightly. Acceleration is extremely slow, and practically non-existent going uphill. At this point, the Trac Off light appears (I'm guessing it's just a side-effect), and the SES light begins flashing. Shaking stops while driving.
5. With the car running idle, I open the hood. The whole engine and the things connected to it are rocking back and worth.
Previous conditions:
1. I have a major coolant leak (I lost a whole gallon of coolant overnight). The car's temperature has remained entirely stable, however, and this has never affected performance.
2. There is also a gas leak when the tank is roughly 80% full. Again, this has never been a functional problem before.
3. SES light has been on, not flashing. I assumed this was due to the coolant leak.
I recently had an oil change, and just returned from a trip that put 600 miles on the car, though it seemed to have no problems during the trip.
Any idea what could be the problem?
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Discretesignals
Ultimate Carjunky
/ Moderator
Oct 11, 2011, 11:53 AM
Post #2 of 5
(4776 views)
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Re: Grand Am Engine Shakes, Flashing SES lights, Poor Acceleration
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Which engine?
You have a misfire(s) going on. You shouldn't drive it anymore until you resolve your misfire problem or else your catalyst is going to turn into a a burnt meteorite that will end up clogging your exhaust (if it already hasn't already).
You also need to have the coolant and fuel leak locations determined. No since in burning up the engine or catching the whole car on fire.
Time for the car to head to the shop.
Since we volunteer our time and knowledge, we ask for you to please follow up when a problem is resolved.
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jbrown77
New User
Oct 11, 2011, 12:00 PM
Post #3 of 5
(4771 views)
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Re: Grand Am Engine Shakes, Flashing SES lights, Poor Acceleration
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Engine is 2.4L. Depending on the shop, of course, is there a ball-park estimate on what this would cost me? I'm a poor college student, and I bought the car for 1,000 a few months ago. Money is tight (I had an estimate on the gas leak and Firestone wanted to charge me $540).
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Tom Greenleaf
Ultimate Carjunky
/ Moderator
Oct 11, 2011, 1:17 PM
Post #4 of 5
(4759 views)
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Re: Grand Am Engine Shakes, Flashing SES lights, Poor Acceleration
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Trust me "J" I know what broke and college is all about. Lost two mint T-Birds to get me thru! Truth is a car is a privilege not a right. If you really can't afford it then that's the rule.
If not going to DIY the fix then get help. Cost goes up with waiting,
T
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Hammer Time
Ultimate Carjunky
/ Moderator
Oct 11, 2011, 3:12 PM
Post #5 of 5
(4753 views)
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Re: Grand Am Engine Shakes, Flashing SES lights, Poor Acceleration
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You have the quad 4 engine. You need to replace the plugs, plug boots and the white plastic coil housing. The housing is the major contributor to the problem.
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We offer help in answering questions, clarifying things or giving advice but we are not a substitute for an on-site inspection by a professional.
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