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RESOLVED-1991 Mitsubishi Mighty Max/ Loses power while driving, dies, won't restart
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sb213
New User
Jun 12, 2012, 6:01 PM
Post #1 of 6
(9091 views)
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RESOLVED-1991 Mitsubishi Mighty Max/ Loses power while driving, dies, won't restart
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1991
Mitsubishi
Mighty Max
2.4 L
250,000 miles
Before i bought this truck, the previous owner (friend of mine) put it into the shop because he thought the alternator was going out. So the alternator was replaced a week prior. (I am checking to see if it was a new alt or a refurbished one, just waiting on response)
I drove the truck the first day and had no problems. That night i drove it to a taco bell, then a gas station (Distance of about 4 miles) while it was dark. I had the lights on, the radio on, and my dash back light lit. When i got to the gas station, i ran in and out in literally less than two minutes. The truck would not start. I checked, and i did not leave anything on. We had to leave the truck and come back the next morning.
The next morning, i replaced the battery with a new battery, and it started fine. However, while i was driving it back home i noticed that the radio kept turning off. Also, while stopped i noticed that the idle would "surge" or fluctuate noticeably. I stopped by a friends to have it looked at, at which point we turned it off and on a few times and it started and ran fine. We even turned on everything (Radio, lights, A/C, etc) to see if it would die. It ran fine, so i figured the new battery was working and that was the problem.
That night i drove it to a friends house and when i left i got stopped at some train tracks, and after about 20 seconds of idling in neutral the truck died on me and would not restart. We pushed it off the road and opened the hood. When we tried to jump it nothing happened and i noticed a spark plug was undone, so we reconnected it and it jumped fine and drove fine back to the house. I had to stop by and drop the friend off, but when i restarted the truck it started fine. As i was driving, about a mile down the road, i stopped at a light. When i tried to go, the engine started losing power and spluttering. I noticed the radio shut off and the dash clock was so dim i could barely see it. I gave it a lot of gas and it spluttered for a block or two. Each turn (3 turns) i made to get back home the truck surged or spluttered and didn't want to go. When i parked it i jumped out to see if that spark plug had come undone again but it was still good. I tried to restart the truck and it didn't start at all after that.
The next morning it started once a few times as i was checking things out, then stopped starting. Today, it started one time. I turned the radio on and the a/c on, but when i turned the headlights on the radio turned off. I turned the truck off to see if it would restart, which it did not.
The truck has never had any problems and even drove fine for a few days after the alternator got replaced/fixed. I have a full tank of gas in it. New battery. Any help would greatly be appreciated. Also, if i was not thorough enough, just let me know what information i need to supply in order to give a clearer picture.
***RESOLVED***
Thanks for all the help guys, i finally got it fixed. Turns out that everybody was right with their first guess (The alternator). The alternator itself is good, but the mechanic who put it on did not tighten up the bolt enough, so the alternator was slipping which in turn made the belt loose. So when the alternator was spinning the belt was not spinning (or not enough). I can't believe it was something so simple and basic, and something that i should have known by checking simple stuff. But thanks to everyone who gave me instructions and information, because that is what led to me finding out that the belt was not spinning correctly.
(This post was edited by sb213 on Jun 16, 2012, 4:33 PM)
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Discretesignals
Ultimate Carjunky
/ Moderator
Jun 12, 2012, 6:10 PM
Post #2 of 6
(9068 views)
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Re: 1991 Mitsubishi Mighty Max/ Loses power while driving, dies, won't restart
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Now, you mean it doesn't crank (starter turns the crank) after it stalls out? Starting and cranking are two different things to an automotive tech.
How many spark plugs does it have?
Since we volunteer our time and knowledge, we ask for you to please follow up when a problem is resolved.
(This post was edited by Discretesignals on Jun 12, 2012, 6:11 PM)
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sb213
New User
Jun 12, 2012, 6:20 PM
Post #3 of 6
(9060 views)
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Re: 1991 Mitsubishi Mighty Max/ Loses power while driving, dies, won't restart
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I'm not sure of the difference (i'm an automotive moron). When it doesn't start, i will turn the key and hear the engine try one time to turn over. Sometimes when i hold the key in i will hear repetitive clicking.
Here is a picture of the spark plugs. There are five in the lower left, plus one on the top right. The one on the top right is the one that fell out when i stalled at the railroad tracks.
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nickwarner
Veteran
/ Moderator
Jun 12, 2012, 6:32 PM
Post #4 of 6
(9045 views)
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Re: 1991 Mitsubishi Mighty Max/ Loses power while driving, dies, won't restart
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That one is your coil wire. It sends the spark energy from the coil to the distributor. If it won't hold on properly I'd replace it with a new set of wires, and most likely the spark plugs, distributor cap and rotor too. This doesn't sound like its charging up but you need to look at a few things first. Check all battery connections both at the battery and where the wires bolt up. The connections at the alternator too. They must all be shiny clean and tight when unbolted and looked at along with the surface they contact when attached. Then you need to verify that the alternator is indeed producing a charge. If so it must be a good enough alternator to produce the proper amperage. You can have one that only makes half of what it should. If there is no output from the alternator you'll be testing the wiring. It must have battery voltage to the field coil terminal and no more than .3v drop on the main power wire to the battery positive.
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Discretesignals
Ultimate Carjunky
/ Moderator
Jun 12, 2012, 6:34 PM
Post #5 of 6
(9044 views)
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Re: 1991 Mitsubishi Mighty Max/ Loses power while driving, dies, won't restart
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The rapid clicking is the sound from the solenoid when it doesn't get enough voltage. When something like that isn't getting enough voltage it will make a chattering noise.
That is usually caused by either a discharged battery or a bad electrical connection that has high resistance.
What you want to do is check your battery cables and make sure your terminals are free of corrosion and have a tight connection to the battery posts. You also want to make sure that your ground connections are clean and tight. If the cables look good from the battery to the alternator, fuse block, starter, and engine block, make sure your body grounds are clean and tight.
If it looks good visually, your going to have to do some voltage drop testing with a volt meter to see if you have any excessive resistances in your cables.
Oh. you have a 2.4L engine.
edit: Nick got this piece of meat before I could get my jaws on it...LOL
Since we volunteer our time and knowledge, we ask for you to please follow up when a problem is resolved.
(This post was edited by Discretesignals on Jun 12, 2012, 6:36 PM)
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sb213
New User
Jun 12, 2012, 6:38 PM
Post #6 of 6
(9036 views)
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Re: 1991 Mitsubishi Mighty Max/ Loses power while driving, dies, won't restart
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Thanks for the advice and help. I'll reply with the results and details as soon as i can get them done (Hopefully tomorrow evening, and Friday by the latest). Again, i really appreciate your guy's time and knowledge.
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