Hi everyone,

New user here. I have an 03 Montero Limited with 160k miles on it. Yesterday my car suddenly starting feeling like it was hiccuping/coughing while idling (I want to say it sounds like a misfire but I honestly don't know, I really don't know much about cars) and both of the traction control lights have come on on the dash board. It also felt like the car was much noticeably weaker accelerating than normal.

I started it up again to see what would happen, and now the traction lights have gone off but the whole car is shaking when idling (not violently but noticeably).

I thought I read something that said the computer might be throttling down the engine because it thinks the car is slipping or something, but again, I have no clue. I need this fixed fast because I'm on my Thanksgiving break and I need it fixed before I have to leave. I really appreciate the help!

 

I also realize there are a lot of threads about this kind of thing, but I couldn't find any conclusive answer.

 

Could be many things.
1. At what RPM does your engine idle?
2. Check Engine Light On?
3. Any recent work on under the hood by anyone?

 

It idles somewhere around 700-800rpms, if I remember correctly. I brought it to a shop because I needed it fixed urgently and didn't really have a choice, so I can't look. The service engine soon light has actually been on for years.. I think there's a small issue with an an air filter that keeps it on that they've tried to fix for years with no success. Hasn't been any service recently. It really just came out of the blue.

 

Unfortunately if you have CEL on all the time due to one issue, you have no way of knowing if something else is compounding the situation. You may have a bunch or codes (some related and some not related) there without any way of knowing it. If CEL is still on, do the scan and post the codes. Then there is some hope of figuring it out. Otherwise, its like looking for a black cat in a dark room...

 

I actually got it repaired correctly in just a few days (although for a lot of money.. but I didn't have much of a choice) but they repaired a bunch of wiring that had apparently gone bad, the spark plugs, which were very old, and some gaskets. Whatever else they did definitely fixed the issue; the check engine light is actually staying off now, so that might have been the real issue. I can post whole list of repairs if you're curious

 

Hi Harry 777,
If you will, please post the list of repairs if you don't mind. My '03 LTD with 177K miles has the CEL on, which they said was that the catalytic converter wasn't getting up to temperature, (I did replace all of the the sensors), but my traction control lights come on sporadically as well.
Thanks, Pat

 

Absolutely! I'll make sure to upload a picture of it in the next few days.