Big problem with my Vectra, one for the Vauxhall experts here

[Rave]

Glad you got a decent diagnosis Behemoth- sounds like dry joints to me, and if it was me I'd have the ECU apart and run a soldering iron over all the connections just to see if I could fix it myself. As a man who's had a Peugeot 106 sat outside his house with a minor misfire for about a year and a half, my advice is not to trust my advice. My next project will be my in-laws dishwasher, which as far as I can see just needs the power switch replaced. I'll probably electrocute myself....

...

Yeah, might have been that. Sorry I got it wrong!

(I'll bow out of this thread now)

Hey don't worry about it, if you don't know how a car works and a mechanic tells you it's you "crankshaft sensor" then you're going to remember the "crank" bit, which is a guttural, memorable, mechanical sounding word-. The "...shaft sensor" part, not so much.

FYI, the crankshaft lives at the bottom of your engine and is basically the largest moving part- it gets spun by the pistons and hence turns the energy of the fuel burning into rotational movement which in turn powers the gearbox, and hence the wheels. The crankshaft sensor looks at the crankshaft as it spins and tells the ECU 1) how fast it's going and 2) where it is to an accuracy of (typically) a couple of degrees so that the ECU knows when, and how much, to trigger the fuel injectors and when (in a petrol engine) to trigger the spark plugs.

[Russ]

Good luck in getting it sorted mate. Dont scrap it! X18xe conversions are becoming popular with corsa b owners, probably a fair bit more to be made stripping it. Girlfriend had two vectras, the 140 Sri which was great and the v6 cdx with was awesome

[Behemoth]

I don't want to scrap it, but I also can't afford to have a garage have it for how ever long it is to sort the thing out. I'm hoping they find something wrong with the ECU, I'm pretty confident they will but if not I may have to sell the car on ebay as a project for someone, and then buy something else.

But I keep telling myself its not going to get that far.

[Behemoth]

ECU comes back to me tomorrow repaired, it was over heating and causing the engine to cut out. Much happier now I know it is that, wasn't looking forward to buying a new car for 50p !

[malfunction]

My next project will be my in-laws dishwasher, which as far as I can see just needs the power switch replaced. I'll probably electrocute myself....

I did exactly this (electrocuted myself) with my last dishwasher when it packed up... In the end I replaced it with one that had a 5 year warranty which was less painful for me and the moths in my wallet than being electrocuted. Also electrocuted myself with the last shower I had, it kept blowing its 'pressure limiting device' thing (a plastic ball and 'O' ring in a plastic tube) even though the water pressure was fine, one day on fixing it I forgot to turn the power off. Stung 'a bit' but very glad I don't have a metal bath / the bath was dry at the time!

My advice is not to trust my advice

Best advice I've heard in ages In fact I should probably have a disclaimer that says something along the lines of "I like to sound like I know what I'm talking about but most of the time I'm making it up as I go along"

[Behemoth]

ECU returned to me today, fitted it as soon as I got home from work, after a scary few minutes when the only light I got on the dash board was that of a flashing ECU light the engine fired into life. I've been out in it pretty much all evening, well most of it.

It has to be said, as much as I insult the car at times, I really did miss it.

[PaintermanVic]

Sometimes, with the technology involved with cars, it's very easy to overlook making one or two basic checks before assuming that the problem is a complex one.

In your case, the first symptom that manifests itself is that you've run out of fuel. Obviously, you would have realised that this is not the case by glancing at your fuel gauge.

After scratching your head and wondering what the hell is going on, after the passage of some time, you turn the key, and the car starts! You drive a little way, then the same thing happens, the engine stops again. This scenario repeats itself with you finding that you keep making these little journeys!

I suspect that you could be experiencing a problem that has existed for as long as cars have!

This is that your fuel-tank isn't venting properly. As fuel leaves your tank en route to the engine, the exiting fuel has to be replaced - by air being allowed into the tank.

If for whatever reason the air cannot get into the fuel-tank, a partial vacuum will begin to occur in it, which will reach a point when it will overcome the efforts of the fuel pump to draw any more fuel from the tank.

After a while, this partial vacuum will SLOWLY cause air to be dragged into the tank, until the vacuum no longer exists. This is why, if this IS the problem, restarting the car is as normal - but only after the "waiting around" period.

A quick check to find out whether this IS the likely problem would be as soon as possible after the engine stops, undo your fuel filler-cap, and if you hear an in-rush of air, this will be a strong indication that (until you slackened the cap) there was a partial vacuum in your fuel tank.

In all probability, attempting to restart the car will now be successful. (In effect, you HAD run out of fuel!).

If the car DOES now start, simply leave the fuel cap slightly loose so that air can continue getting into the tank. This will at least allow you to continue your journey, but you will need to investigate why the venting system isn't working normally, as just continuing to leave the cap loose is NOT a permanent "fix", and could become a fire hazard.

Hope this helps.

[Zak33]

Painterman you're very kind to have signed up and replied so well

Sadly... the thread is 6 years old.. but hey... the thought counts

[PaintermanVic]

Painterman you're very kind to have signed up and replied so well

Sadly... the thread is 6 years old.. but hey... the thought counts

Hi,

Yes, I was aware that it was an "old" thread, but the problem described is even older. My "old school" suggestion could still be relevant today in some cases, perhaps many, as the problem is not limited to one make of car.

As I'm sure you'll agree, the very fact that you leave old threads on your forum to be read (as I did), they can continue to be helpful, hence, I thought I'd add my two-pennorth.

(I'm just glad that you didn't assume that I'd been "thinking about it" for the 6 years that have elapsed before I made my response!)

Keep up the good work.

[KAYPIT]

hi i have vectra 2.6 v6 its been off the road for awhile as my mate decied to jack up from my sump so had to get a new one. i have put my new sump on and put oil in and when you leave it running its wants to cut out. when its running its making alot of noise from the engine when you rev. i have checked the oil and the oil level is fine. does anyone know the problem as i want it back on the road again.