2001 Holden Barina Misfiring

Tiny
KACIELEE
  • MEMBER
  • 2001 HOLDEN BARINA
  • 4 CYL
  • 2WD
  • MANUAL
  • 216,000 MILES
I purchased this car as a cheap runabout 2 weeks ago. The engine light came on as I was driving home and I contact the seller who was a young girl who said the car had been regularly serviced by her uncle and he thinks there might have been a problem with the spark plugs. After a few days I noticed it was getting very difficult to start and to take off in first and second gear. I put my foot on the accelerating and it is lagging and takes a long time to react and build up speed. A few more days I was driving in fourth gear and it started slowing down but maintaining revs, I moved it back to third and then second and the engine light started flashing and it slowed to a stop. After about 10 minutes I started it again and it made it home but definitely not driving right. We changed the spark plugs which seemed to make it a little better but still trouble starting and lagging but this was drive able. A mechanic advised it may have been the coil pack but when he took it for a drive it was not showing any symptoms. It comes and goes. We were advised getting the coil pack changed costs the best part of $600 which we cannot afford. After a bit of research we bought the coil pack online and changed it ourselves for $100. My partner is a tradie and fairly competent. Straight away engine light flashing, lagging, jolting in 2nd gear, barely taking off, getting revs but not speeding up.

I really want to know what to do. I bought the car for $2000 and if it's something minor and not too expensive I will get it fixed but I can't afford much and the mechanics charge $100 an hour to diagnose it, then they would trial and area charge me for new parts and labour which I can't afford and wouldn't be worth it considering how much the car is worth!

Please help!

Thankyou!
Saturday, May 30th, 2015 AT 9:09 PM

1 Reply

Tiny
CJ MEDEVAC
  • MECHANIC
  • 11,004 POSTS
OVER HERE WE SORTA DON'T HAVE ANY INFORMATION AVAILABLE ABOUT YOUR VEHICLE.

AFTER READING YOUR PLIGHT, YOU NEVER MENTIONED THE CODE THAT WAS ASSOCIATED WITH THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT. (ONLY THAT THE MECHANIC DROVE IT AND MADE AN "ASSUMPTION"?)

OVER HERE ON THIS SIDE OF THE POND, IN MIGHT NEAR ANY TOWN, WITH AN AUTO PARTS STORE, YOU CAN DROP ON IN AND WITHIN A FEW MINUTES THEY CAN PLUG A SCANNER INTO YOUR SYSTEM AND EXTRACT THE CODE NUMBERS THAT ARE BEING IDENTIFIED BY THE "CHECK ENGINE LIGHT" HAVING COME ON

YOUR CAR DOES NOT TURN ON THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT FOR "ALL" PROBLEMS THE VEHICLE HAS (STUPID EXAMPLES-BENT RIM, OUT OF ALIGNMENT, BAD MUFFLER, BAD THERMOSTAT, AND SO ON!)

THE CHECK ENGINE IS TURNED ON WHEN THE ON BOARD COMPUTER DETECTS A FAULT OR ABNORMALITY USING SENSORS (WHICH FEED DATA ALL OF THE TIME BACK TO IT). THE CODES OR MULTIPLE CODES THAT MIGHT BE ISSUED FROM A PROBLEM MIGHT BE REAL EZ IDENTIFY AND TO FIX OR MIGHT REQUIRE SOME "THINKING" AS TO HOW MULTIPLE CODES AND THE VEHICLES SYMPTOMS ARE RELATED.

'NUTHER WORDS, THE COMPUTER CODES DON'T COME RIGHT OUT AND SAY, "CHANGE #3 SPARK PLUG AND # 5s COIL PACK"

EXAMPLE: THE CODE MIGHT BE "P0300", WHICH MEANS "MULTIPLE MISFIRE" (THERE ARE MANY OTHER CODES THAT MIGHT BE ASSOCIATED WITH YOUR PROBLEM)

THERE ARE MANY POSSIBILITIES FOR A MISFIRE, A FEW MIGHT BE: THE NEED FOR TUNE-UP, A PLUG WIRE IS NOT ATTACHED, YOU DROVE THRU FLOOD WATERS!

WHAT I'M GETTING AT, THESE MODERN MACHINES (FROM LIKE 1986 ON UP) DON'T EXHIBIT SYMPTOMS LIKE THE "REAL VEHICLES" OF YESTERYEAR, WHERE AS YOU COULD DIAGNOSE ONE AS IT PASSED DOWN THE ROAD, WHILE YOU SAT IN THE PORCH SWING DRINKING SWEET TEA (THAT IS, "REAL SOUTHERN SWEET TEA", NOT THE KIND LIKE Y'ALL PUT MILK IN!)

MANY FOLKS WANNA START BUYING PARTS SO THAT MAYBE THEY "LUCK" INTO FIXING IT! PARTS GET EXPENSIVE! DIAGNOSING, GETTING THE RIGHT PARTS BY USING THE CODES, IS "USUALLY" THE BEST WAY TO FIX THE PROBLEM

HECK, IT MIGHT COULD BE A SIMPLE AS A VACUUM LEAK (A POSSIBLE VACUUM HOSE LOOSE)('NUTHER EXAMPLE)

THIS MIGHT BE "POINTED TO" IF A CODE THAT COMES UP MEANS "LEAN CONDITION" (TOO MUCH AIR, FOR FUEL MIX)

I TRY TO HANG ON TO MESSING WITH THE OLDER VEHICLES, SOMETIMES I HAVE TO DO A REPAIR ON THE NEWER STUFF (I HATE 'EM!)

SO NOW DAYS, YOU NEED TO LOOK IN THE INDEX TO FIND THE PART OF THE BOOK YOU NEED TO BE IN, "FLIPPING THROUGH IT" DON'T WORK ANYMORE!

POST YOUR CODES, I'LL TRY TO ATTEMPT TO AT LEAST TELL YOU SOMETHING!

MY TWO "REAL VEHICLES" ('77 AND '46) ARE BELOW

GOOD LUCK, SEE YA SOON!

THE MEDIC
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Sunday, May 31st, 2015 AT 12:23 PM

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