Engine Stalls after hitting large bump? - no code

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BigEz
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Engine Stalls after hitting large bump? - no code

Postby BigEz » Tue Sep 23, 2014 11:33 am

I'm having an odd problem. Yesterday I was driving across a set of railroad tracks at a good pace when my engine stalled. Today it happened again. I am by no means crossing the tracks like the "Dukes of Hazard" , but it is a pretty good jolt when I cross.

This happened about a year ago, I hit a large pothole on the interstate while on cruse control and the vehicle shutdown. But until yesterday it hasn't happened since. When it shuts down the engine, I do not loose electrical...radio, AC, etc stay on. But the engine stalls. If I put in in natural and try to re-crank it while coasting it will start for a sec, then die again.

If I pull over, put it in park, turn the key off, then restart it, it starts. But seems to idle rough. After a few revs, it returns to normal. It almost seems like there is some kind of kill switch (like a fuel-pump cut-off) that is activating after the initial bumb? I have check it each time after the stall, and I am getting no lights or codes?

Anyone else experiance a engine shutdown or stall after a medium size road bump? Thanks!
Last edited by BigEz on Tue Sep 23, 2014 3:26 pm, edited 1 time in total.


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eieio
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Postby eieio » Tue Sep 23, 2014 11:56 am

I have no experience with your symptoms, but I'd start with the basics.....
check battery cable & clamp condition, in addition to the tightness of the clamps on the battery posts (even with a tight pinch bolt, the clamp may pivot on the posts, esp. the negative cable clamp)

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BigEz
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Postby BigEz » Tue Sep 23, 2014 4:13 pm

Yes, I did that and.. Good battery, good connections. I also checked that all the fuses were in tight. Tomorrow I will check all connections I can find.

When it first happened I was surprised. But when it happened today I realized what had happened and immediately took stock of the situation. As I say, no loss of electic, not even momentary. Just an engine shutoff with all dash lights coming on.

In the old days I would say a loose coil wire, but with each cylinder having its own coil/injector, it must be happening before that. and the fact that it starts rough then returns to idle after a few hard revs, acts like a fuel issue??, (maybe electrically induced, like a fuel pump shut-offs that engages during an accident). I know the Fords had an issue with that some years back.

The fact that it is not throwing a code makes me think it's power related.. As the system should go into granny mode and NOT shutdown motor, if it was sensor or component related... and it should give a code, I would think? I had a cam sensor do the same on an Excursion, but it always threw a code.

Since it has only happened at medium to high speed, its pretty unnerving to loose power steering and power/abs brakes .

*more research ... I have read here that the IPDM relay can cause sudden engine shutdown as well, and is a common issue. But I think most produce codes? I went ahead and ordered one for a few bucks from http://www.courtesyparts.com. Worth the effort.

I see a few people have the entire IPDM available for $150.. Not sure I'm ready to do that yet. Damn I wish I had a code...

azaizai
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Postby azaizai » Wed Sep 24, 2014 5:23 am

Can always try the Ford trick and shake every harness you can get a hand on easily. Just start the car and give everything a healthy, but no destructive shake.

Its amazing what pops up. Hopefully its nothing to do with fuel pump wiring.

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BigEz
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Postby BigEz » Thu Sep 25, 2014 3:32 am

Time will tell, I guess. Spent the day checking, tightening, and cleaning every connection I could find. Hoping "eieio" is correct and it was something basic. The aftermarket battery that it came with is at least 2 years old, and a brand I have not seen, so I went ahead and replaced it with a Diehard gold.

The other thing I realized was it only happens (has occurred 3 times in 18months) when in 4x4 Auto, on dry pavement, when I hit a hefty bumb after prolonged period of driving at interstate speed. But it has never happened when driving aggressively with much larger bumps off-road. Tomorrow I'm going to replace the transfer case fluid and I'm going to use 2 wheel drive, not Auto, for a while to see if that helps. I normally drive in auto most of the time. I did notice that when it starts after the engine stall that the front wheels felt fully engaged, almost as if it was in 4x4 low. After a few cycles of the gears & transfer it then seems fine.

I'll update if it happens again. Fingers crossed...

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blink32
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Postby blink32 » Sat Oct 04, 2014 11:09 pm

A bit late but vehicles being produced since whenever have included a fuel cut off switch activated by inertia, IE: the big bumps. Had a friend who was able to set his off in an '01 Focus by going over certain train tracks a certain way. Exact same symptoms but this one was a manual reset IIRC. Designed so that engines don't stay running. /fuel pumps pumping when in accidents. If I were you I'd look into that and try bypassing it then repeat your test to see if it's faulty or going out.

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smj999smj
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Postby smj999smj » Sun Oct 05, 2014 9:42 am

Fords have inertia switches, but not Nissans.

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blink32
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Postby blink32 » Mon Oct 06, 2014 8:20 am

Dammit! Here I thought I had a good idea.

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BigEz
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Postby BigEz » Mon Oct 06, 2014 9:17 am

blink32 wrote:Dammit! Here I thought I had a good idea.
That was my first thought, as I had a similar issue with a ford years back. So far it hasn't returned since tightening everything and replacing Batt., but it's been infrequent in the past, so only time will tell.


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