Overhaulin'

please help-everything going wrong & very depressed-spending all my money but car still not running right--why?

currently dealing with several problems..sciatic nerve pain that is excruciating going to my foot half my leg is numb and bedridden 10 days living in my bedroom eating mostly salads form a cooler. (car problems described below) Meanwhile several financial problems, little insurance to see my chiropractor , no money for doctor to get better and bills, and other things but here I need help with car First harmonic balancer went out and fixed. Put several parts on car via brother but none fixed any of the problems. I had to charge and owe brother..no money left down to $20 till end of month..none next month as shut off for electric I need to pay.. Had to beg relatives for money help and barely enough to fix problem which brothers thought was fuel pump. I have $200 max but that is it. Afraid to pay for diagnostic and then not have enough to fix car. Today found out with a device that the fuel pump is fine It is a 94 Buick park ave ultra supercharged (maybe a 350 engine) here is what car is doing--3 things ONE_____________ ________________ 1 I go somewhere and come back out and sometimes (not all the time) car will not start. It had worked if I waited 5-6 minutes then it started. That then got to a few times had to wait 6 minutes then another 6 minutes and it started. Now sometimes it will not start after I go somewhere. Tried every 5-10 for an hour nothing. Call brother for help twice when he got there sometime about an hour plus then it starts so far. I am afraid when I can drive I will get stuck as I shop in middle of night as I am a nightowl. Have noone to help..have no cell phone and now cannot walk due to pain, nerve dysfunction and numbness more than a few steps but hope to be able to drive soon as no way to get to doctor or grocery if my brother has to help too long. TWO_________________ _____________________ 2 about 2 weeks ago and AFTER he worked on it (occasionally he has made car worst and once had to junk it though he knows a lot and has rebuild engines and stuff so not sure if it just coincidentally happened or he messed something up accidentally. Now it is running real choppy, loud and engine like you are reeving it and like water in gas or something (not that put additive in). Usually this is worst when first starting or idling but with a full load works pretty good although i occasionally runs choppy on freeway. Worst in the first 10 miles I'd say THREE_________________ _______________________ 3 it is stalling OR RATHER DYING OUT WHEN i AM DRIVING when I am on the freeway or like changing lanes. So far it has restarted but due to starting problems in #1 I am scared I will get stuck on freeway with no way to get help ______________________________________ tuneup, coil pack, alternator and a few other things did not help -battery pretty new. No typical starting problem parts as they check out ok. A man tonight at auto zone said it might be catalytic converter. Both brothers said hmm we never thought of that..maybe that could cause 2 or even all of problems as it could make car run hot and that is affecting #1. He said do a test by removing the filter behind ? catalytic converter. Tomorrow he is going to try that guy said if it runs better it is the catalytic converter if it runs the same it is ok. Are these expensive to fix..guy said 80-200. Does that sound right (live in eastern time zone us state) Can it only be done at a shop. Brother in law has a mechanic friend and he and this guy agreed to try to help me but they are on a retreat for a week. Does he need a welder or specialized tools..would most mechanics know how to fix this (he was mechanic but now works at car sales place so he might be able to get some tools) What else might these be??? (please specify what you think is worng and which problem it may be causing--1,2 or 3 or all etc. I feel the last two may be linked as both started within days of each other. Guys tired to check engine light code but car too old tried paper clip but said the thing is hanging or something and he could not get it to work. I had an electrical problem before where the car would be ok and then 5 seconds later not start both doing it when engine hot or cold..finally a shop did 75% checking of the wiring and found antenaee was kind of stuck and draining the car. This is different I think as then one had to jump the car and now jumping does not help but it id start with starting fluid once..I guess that is why they thought it was the fuel pump but it is showing fine I would so appreciate any help. A lot is going on, I am feeling suicidal, overwhelmed and worried very bad year all round..I would so appreciate any help as to what might be going on..if you think you know can you say if part can be bought at junkyard and is it hard to do or not. thank you both so much..and for the kindness very appreciated, A Nail-Gun Is Not A Pillow you are so nice, brother said gauge reading 190 degrees and he did do that fuel cleaner thing to no avail already. if you think of anything else let me know as out of leads.

Public Comments

1. sounds to me like you have a faulty temp sensor/sender. If this is the case, and was reading low all the time, it could cause overfueling thinking that the engine was cold all the time, thus clogging your catalytic converter and making the engine run choppy and when you hit the accelerator it will cause flooding and kill the engine because there is not as much air as the computer thinks there is. This is just a guess based of the info you have given and I could be wrong, but your temp sensors is where I would check first (there can be more than 1).
2. Hi Janie... I like the first answer a lot, and not too expensive to fix (to my knowledge)...If you could somehow get the code reader to work, that should answer your questions, if you want to mess with that. I would also get some good fuel system cleaner (like "Sea Foam") and if one of your mechanic friends (or brother) knows how to run it directly through the fuel intake, that may be worth a try. You can also put it in the gas tank for a less intensive cleaning...I hope this helps, you don't need this extra burden right now! Remember, cars are merely a hole into which you throw your money. They're all a big problem at some point, and it's not personal, or some kind of karma (Carma??) for past transgressions...I wish you the best, and please believe that if I could make all your troubles go away, I would....Take care... EDIT: I'll leave a link to the "Car-Talk" website to see if you can maybe find an answer there, or maybe even try to get on their radio show.. There are automotive forums on the net too, and probably one dedicated to Buicks. If I find one I'll post the link...UPDATE: Added link to search page for your car. If Tiny url doesn't work, just "google" 1994 Buick Park Avenue problems...RE-UPDATE!...Check 3rd link and insert your email address. The question text should already be there, if not you can fill it in....I really hope this is of some help...