Vauxhall Corsa B (1993 - 2000) - 99 1.2 cuts out and sudden loss of power

Honest John Back Room » Technical matters
View Threaded
Mon 27 Apr 2009 18:14
99 1.2 cuts out and sudden loss of power - Rattle
This has happened enough times to make me realise its not me. The car drives perfectly and got the pinking issue sorted by changing gear a bit later (this was down to me not used to 16vs). However a couple of times I have stalled it at junctions when the lights have changed to green, other times the car will just suddenly loose power and will have to put the throttle down heavier and its all fine again. The clutch seems fine.

There is no ECU warning light on and I have checked the clutch cable which seems to be ok. I am now thinking it might be a fault witht the throttle cable? I adjusted this when I first got it as there seemed far too much play in it but I put it back after recieiving some advice that I may make it worse.

I am guessing that the reason I have stalled is the throttle cable got stuck so there was not enough power, and the reason for the sudden loss of power is again the cable.

The only other issue is that the fuel cap is a cheap "Metro" one as I accidently lost the original, how likely is this to be the cause?

Apart from this there is anything else I can check? I want to see what I can do without spending money before messing about with MAF sensors etc. It was serviced 230 miles ago with new plugs, air filter, oil etc.

Also this does only happen occasionaly 9/10 journeys my car runs perfectly. but I am worried it is a sign that something is not right. It was also very wet and damp this morning so I wonder if this was a contributing factor? My engine sounded a bit noiser this morning.

Edited by Dynamic Dave on 27/04/2009 at 19:58

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 27 Apr 2009 18:23
99 1.2 Corsa cuts out and sudden loss of power - Number_Cruncher
Leave the throttle cable alone.

Check and clean the area around the throttle plate itself, and the EGR valve.

Off the top of my head, I don't know how the idle speed is actuated on your engine - if there's an idle air valve, clean it.

Edited by Number_Cruncher on 27/04/2009 at 18:25

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 27 Apr 2009 21:19
99 1.2 Corsa cuts out and sudden loss of power - Rattle
No idea what I am supposed to be looking at, the throttle itself touches a spring in a black thing which has a wire going into it, I am not sure if this is the TPS (seems far too crude to be that) so I am guessing its the idle control valve.

No idea what the EGR looks like either :(

Everything round the throttle looks very clean. I might take a picture tomorrow as it should help.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 28 Apr 2009 18:06
99 1.2 Corsa cuts out and sudden loss of power - zookeeper
rattle...why havnt you been trained up on driving 16 valve engines, everyone knows you have to drive these cars completely differently from 8 valve machines :)
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 28 Apr 2009 20:52
99 1.2 Corsa cuts out and sudden loss of power - Rattle
Some sort of sarcastic comment? I learnt in a mixture of 12 and 16v engines but my own cars until now have always been 8v OVC Fiestas which have the max torque at around 2500 where as my Corsa is nearer to 3500 it means changing up at higher revs, used to this now though.

Done 12 miles in it today and it ran perfectly but I now might be compensating for it by being heavier with the throttle at lights, but next time the car is in I will get the EGR cleaned out. If it does run rough again I might book it in earlier but for now the only money I want to spend is on petrol :).

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 28 Apr 2009 21:31
99 1.2 Corsa cuts out and sudden loss of power - bell boy
for the benefit of anybody else who might own one of these wonderful cars i will post my feelings on them
i was out in a 12valve today and as soon as it hit a slight incline where you had to give it more gas it hiccuped and stuttered like an old french farmer on his last Gauloises
its always the maf
however unless you give it boots of gas it wont always put on the mil and it will come up with an erroneous code when checked
therefore dont always assume nutting with a vauxhall
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 28 Apr 2009 21:47
99 1.2 Corsa cuts out and sudden loss of power - Rattle
You saying it could be the MAF? I have read a lot of people replacing the MAF to try and fix the problem I have only to found it has made it worse, do you have any experience with none Bosch ones? The original Bosch ones seem very expensive.

The only memory I have of the 1.0 I used to learn is it had no torque at all and was stupidly easy to stall.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Looking for a garage you can trust? Honest John's Good Garage Guide has thousands of reader recommended garages, plus how-to guides and tips on servicing.

The Good Garage Guide

From which small car to buy at which price point to the best UK-built cars, our Top 10s have the lot. Click now for your shortlist.

Unsure of what to buy? Our Top 10s are here to help you....