having problems with 94 Geo Tracker.....

[94twacker]

Oh, heres the story, my girlfriend has had this 94 tracker since probably march and it has been a very good vehicle, basically trouble free. Well the service engine light has been on since she bought it, and finally I figured out how to check the codes. I had to use the "california" port and according to everything Ive read hers must be a california one because she has the mfi 1.6 liter, not the throttle body injected one, and I read that was only available in a California tracker in 94, and not in federal ones until 95. Anyways the codes that I got were code 13, oxygen sensor no signal change, and a code 51, egr valve. So first thing I did was disconnect the battery, took out what I thought was the EGR valve, its down at the bottom of the motor in the back, actually in the block held in by two bolts, I took that off, cleaned the valve itself the best I could, and the ports in the motor with a q-tip, replace the gasket and put it back together. Well the light is now back on with the same codes again. Also she has started having troubles with it. While driving, especially when accelerating up a hill and such it will be just fine then all of the sudden shake and shutter really bad, then go back to normal. I mean its pretty violent like someone trying to start out in a standard vehicle for the first time, it really shakes and hesitates. It seems like it is either A) losing fuel or B) losing spark. It doesnt really seem to be rpm related, nor gear related or anything. It happens in the city sometimes as well, but worse when like going up a hill and giving it more gas to accelerate, it just jolts and shakes for like 2 seconds then goes back to normal. I dont really know for sure if this is related to the two codes that I got from it, I dont think the egr would have anything to do with it, but I suppose its possible the oxygen sensor would. I just dont understand why the light has been on this entire time, and it just NOW starts to have driveability issues. I think Im going to change the fuel filter and see if that helps at all, and I may also put a timing light on it and check that, but I really dont think that is what it is. It idles smooth as can be, and otherwise runs great. It is a 4 wheel drive 5 speed just to let you guys know. I really appreciate any advice I can get, I am more of a gm man myself and dont know too much about these cars. Oh by the way, I tried running some seafoam through it but it didnt seem to make a difference. Thanks again guys and I look forward to reading your responses!

[94twacker]

ttt

[coopdavillage]

i dont know if would have the same problem that mine does but i would say check the spark plugs as another measure mine is 95 lsi 1.6 4x4 and it goes through wires and plugs about every 20k miles just because of the way the engine was made other than that its a great car well that and rust. another thing might be the mass air flow sensor. hope this helps

[94twacker]

well I changed the fuel filter and oxygen sensor and it still does it. It is so violent the tires will chirp at like 30mph. We seem to have it narrowed down to between 2000-2500 rpm's. If you keep on it it will clear up around 3k. Im thinking ignition now...

[coopdavillage]

try you timing and also check you throttle cable it might be stuck or sticking

[dgee]

Originally Posted by 94twacker

well I changed the fuel filter and oxygen sensor and it still does it. It is so violent the tires will chirp at like 30mph. We seem to have it narrowed down to between 2000-2500 rpm's. If you keep on it it will clear up around 3k. Im thinking ignition now...

does the car stall when you come to a stop sign.that would indicate bad egr valve. or ports.to the egr. does it have a miss in the engine.
i had a problem with the wires going to thefuel pump that caused a miss in the engine
or maybe bad wires or coil. or plugs
also does the check engine light stay on all the time. if it does there is a switch by the left front speaker (behind dash on my 95) i think you turn it on then turn on ignition then turn off switch this should reset the ecm. if that is not the right sequence go to library get chilton manual for tracker they give you the right sequence. my light was on when i bought my tracker
i went to library and got sequence and turn off the light. it come on automatically at 30,000 60,000 90,000.

[alritzer]

Originally Posted by coopdavillage

i dont know if would have the same problem that mine does but i would say check the spark plugs as another measure mine is 95 lsi 1.6 4x4 and it goes through wires and plugs about every 20k miles just because of the way the engine was made other than that its a great car well that and rust. another thing might be the mass air flow sensor. hope this helps

Does it run better once it warms all the way up? My 95 was doing sort of the same as yours and mine was caused by a burnt valve. Once mine warmed up it ran a lot better, but not quite right.

ashley

[94twacker]

actually it seems to do it a little worse when it warms up. Since the last post I have done plugs, wires, cap and rotor. So total I have done, plugs, wires , cap, rotor, oxygen sensor, fuel filter and it still does it awful bad. It is to the point where it is getting unsafe to drive, at 2k it just shakes violently and it either losing fuel or spark, but it only does it under load, while driving. You can sit there and rev it all day and it wont do it, unless you are driving. It is getting worse, and I am absolutely stumped. What do these things have for timing control, do they have like a cam position sensor, crank position sensor, things like that? How about ecm, could that cause a problem like this? PLEASE help me guys, I dont know what to do. She is still paying off the car and can barely even drive it, and she doesnt have tons of money to pay someone to fix it. Thanks!

[daveygunn]

Hi, I am new here and also am experiencing the same problem in my 1996 Tracker. Here is a bump to the top so hopefully someone out there knows a solution.

Thanks,
DG

[94twacker]

is yours that violent though? Auto or manual? We've gotta figure this out..

[coopdavillage]

i agree mine stalls sometimes and im not sure why but lately i have been having my check engine light come on for a little while and then it just goes off.
has your check engine light come on?? if so you can take it to some auto parts stores and they will check it for free and give you the code which you can look up in a repair manual. a question i have is does anyone know why they have the tendency to not engage the gear (manual tranny) mine just seems to rev sometimes and wont engage.

[94twacker]

the revving part seems like clutch slipping possibly, hard to tell. You the code its giving is egr valve, but I have bypassed that and it still does it just as bad. It isnt stalling, it idles wondering, its when you are acceleration it is very violent, not good at all.

[toivo]

check your motor and transmission mounts to make sure they are sound. also see if your valve cover is leaking on the back of the motor or underneath where the tranny and motor meet. maybe your leaking oil onto your clutch plate. toivo

[coopdavillage]

might it be your mass airflow sensor?

[94twacker]

I unplugged the mass air flow sensor and it didnt seem to make a difference...