Mitsubishi Space Wagon - Garage stumped!

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Sun 23 Mar 2014 10:28
Mitsubishi Space Wagon - Garage stumped! - keith44

5 years ago I bought a Mitsubishi Spacewagon, 1999, 2.4 GDI with engine 4G64. It has been a great buy.Reliable, hardly any replacement parts and fairly cheap to purchase. I wanted a 6 seater for occasional passenger duties and a 'work horse'

The car had run great with no signs of any problems then 5 months ago in the heavy rain weather my car gave a problem when driving home. Just as though it had water in the petrol. Upon investigation my local garage said they couldn't see any problem. Then again,on driving the car from the garage, the same problem. Was towed back to the garage and they found the petrol filler pipe was rusted through and replaced it.

The car still behaved the same. Starts fine but will not run when accelerated, stalls.

The local garage then:

1. drained and cleaned the petrol tank.

2.cleaned the petrol pipe (tank to engine)

3. ultrasound cleaned the injectors (at my suggestion).

4.replaced the fuel pump- 3 times!

5.replaced sensors in the exhaust system

6.replaced the engine head, claiming the fuel pump drive from the camshaft was broken.

7. replaced the car computer.

They claim all the readings on the computer analysis testings are correct. So I collected the car

BUT, after driving less than 1 mile -

the car still has the same problem. Starts fine.Runs ok on idle. As soon as you try to drive and accelerate the engine splutters and dies, especially when the car has 'warmed up'.

Anyone any suggestions about this problem? My local garage claims to be in contact with Mitsubishi and claims to have done what they say...but the car still does not run! Next week it will be 6 months since this car went into the garage!

Edited by keith44 on 23/03/2014 at 10:31

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Sun 23 Mar 2014 16:37
Mitsubishi Space Wagon - Garage stumped! - lordwoody

Why not take it to a Mitsubishi garage?

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Sun 23 Mar 2014 17:37
Mitsubishi Space Wagon - Garage stumped! - keith44

I live quite a long way from a Mitsubishi garage - and my local garage claims to be speaking with the nearest with whom they are supposed to have a good rapport.

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Sun 23 Mar 2014 18:06
Mitsubishi Space Wagon - Garage stumped! - gordonbennet

Why not take it to a Mitsubishi garage?

Our experience has been teapot and chocolate, they hadn't a clue what was wrong with our Outlander so just parked it outaside presumably hoping it would fix itself, my LPG chap of the old school sorted it in an hour, the old school way.

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Sun 23 Mar 2014 16:38
Mitsubishi Space Wagon - Garage stumped! - injection doc

sounds very much like an ignition problem as the fuel mixture is weaker when hot so any weakness in the ignition will show itself under load when hot.

No doubt when it got wet the dampness has caused a carbon track somewhere.

The other problem with water is that ploughing through water causes the water to get forced up wiring looms and can cause corroded connections causing high restistance when hot !

If the water in the fuel tank was the original cause of the problem I wouldnt of bothered repairing as the GDI system on these isnt the best to start with !

Have the injectors acutally been leak tested and scoped ? if they have had water through them ultrasonic cleaning wont repair corrosion on the nozzels !

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Sun 23 Mar 2014 16:50
Mitsubishi Space Wagon - Garage stumped! - madf

MAF sensor?

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Sun 23 Mar 2014 17:41
Mitsubishi Space Wagon - Garage stumped! - keith44

thx.Is this the air flow sensor? What is the full name of MAF please?

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Mon 24 Mar 2014 13:46
Mitsubishi Space Wagon - Garage stumped! - dieselnut

Yes, Mass Air Flow Sensor. Try unplugging it & see if it runs better.

But also take up I J's suggestion above of the ignition system.

Also with Gdi I think a stable fuel pressure is important, but would need diagnostic kit plugged in while driving to check.

Edited by dieselnut on 24/03/2014 at 13:50

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Mon 24 Mar 2014 16:06
Mitsubishi Space Wagon - Garage stumped! - Railroad.
Are you certain you don't have a blocked exhaust system, or an EGR valve stuck open thus causing the engine to draw back its own exhaust gasses? Try disconnecting the front pipe and see if it improves. Bear in mind though the noise might annoy your neighbours. Failing that check for any air leaks on the engine side of the mass air flow sensor. Unmetered air drawn into the air intake will have a considerable effect on engine performance. Also check the valve timing in case the crankshaft woodruff key has worn. Measure inlet manifold vacuum using a vacuum gauge. Many engine problems including those I have just mentioned can be easily identified this way. At idle manifold vacuum should be perfectly steady at between 16-21 inches. A low steady reading will tell you there's a problem such as those mentioned. A fluctuating needle will be a sign of sticky valves. This will probably be the best thing for you to do.
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