engine stalls

180

Asked by jmowrey Sep 17, 2011 at 04:34 PM about the 2001 Isuzu Trooper

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

My Trooper stalls randomly when driving at low rpm on bumpy roads

6 Answers

180

My mechanic did three things: cleaned the EGR valve, cleaned the throttle plate, and reset the electronic throttle base. So far, this seems to have solved the problem. It's been two months now without a stall. But I still am driving on eggshells over this because previously my mechanic did a carbon clean out of my intake system and that also solved the problem for about five weeks. Then it began to stall again. So I'm still open to any suggestions concerning this problem, in case it comes up again.

10 people found this helpful.
1,495

I'm guessing you have one of the "last of the Mohicans" or one of the later model Troopers which burns oil like crazy in ways that would make David Copperfield envious. I own one too and the problem stems from the over aggressive pcv system that pulls way too much oil off the top of the crankcase and straight into the throttle body and intake and egr. If you were to crack open your intake manifold you would see oil puddled up in every nook and cranny possible then when the bumps start the oil goes airborne and ooops. If your going fast enough the engine can burn all that extra crap but at low speeds it can't handle it. So you can pay your mechanic hundreds of dollars to clean all that stuff for you but it doesn't do and good since it gets all gunked up again within a very short period of time. I am currently experimenting with a way to subdue this poorly designed pcv system as suggested by someone else on another site. So far I haven't lost any oil and everything seems to be running cleaner. Unless you get your mechanic to tame the beast that is that is this crap pcv system, all the intake cleanings in the world won't solve the problem. Do yourself a favor, buy an egr gasket and a can of solvent and to clean that thing yourself, and in the meantime watch that oil level like a hawk, mine was burning up to a quart every 300-400 miles before I modified it without making any smoke.

6 people found this helpful.
180

Thanks for the feedback. I'll pass this info on to my mechanic. At this point, the fixes I mentioned seem to be holding. No more stalls. This could be because the engine in my 2001 Trooper is new. I just purchased this vehicle in July of 2011. It hasn't used a drop of oil over the 5,000 miles I've driven it since then. I've read elsewhere that part of the oil-burning issue is infrequent oil changes. Apparently these engines are sensitive to dirty oil. I'm not a mechanic though. So who knows if this is a real issue or not. But I'll be having my changed every 3,000 miles without fail. Actually, my mechanic, the one who replaced the engine and sold me this car, changed the oil for me after the first 2,000 on this new engine. I'm enjoying this vehicle very much. It's amazing in snow. I live on a three mile dirt road and have pushed six to eight inches with the Isuzu without any problem. Very nimble. I hope it lasts for a while!

2 people found this helpful.
1,495

Lucky you. Apparently Isuzu fixed the oil burning problem with the 3.5 liter engine in 2001 which is what you have. I on the other hand am stuck with a 2000 model which burns oil like crazy and the first time I checked it it was 3&1/2 qts low! How it didn't blow is a mistery to me but with the the older engines like mine there are only 4 drainback holes on each piston. On your engine there are 10 holes on each piston so that the oil is less likely to get trapped underneath the lubrication ring on each piston. I'm sure you still have the over aggressive PVC valve like mine has though. To subdue that you can try installing a small air filter inbetween the pcv valve and the throttle body with a t-connection and some hose clams. Without the intake pulling all that air off your upper cylinders you won't end up with such dirty intake components. I just finished modifying my pcv valve today after reading about someone else doing it and they reported that their engine stopped burning oil completely. My engine now has over 130,000 miles on it and other than the mysterious oil burning problem(I say mysterious because it never smokes) it runs flawlessly. Make sure you have Denso PK16PR11 spark plugs too because the ignition system has a built in spark misfire sensor that only works with those plugs.

7 people found this helpful.

I have question guys. What is the problem if my top speed is only 100 kph. What do you think is the problem? Thank you in advance!

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