Rough Idle/Surge/Shake

[losichu]

Since I have had my ti for a weekend now I am beginning to notice a couple of things that my 95 didn't have. The first thing I noticed is that this thing takes forever to warm up, 10+ minutes and it hasn't hit the middle of the gauge yet. When it idles it is really noisy standing outside, almost as if something were leaking air, just really raspy (almost like an exhaust leak). When I'm sitting at idle and the revs drop to about 800 the car feels like its got a bad mount or misfiring, cuz the whole car has a slight shimmy to it. While driving, if I push the clutch in, depending on where my rpms were at before i did it, it will surge to about 1500 rpm, linger a little, drop to about 1200, linger a second or two, then drop to 800, where it starts to idle rough again. I know that the idle and the not warming up thing aren't related, or are they? Vacuum lines maybe?

Does anyone's ti run whisper quiet at idle?

[NismoPick]

Is the check engine light on?

[Kraln]

Sounds like could be thermostat (the not warming up), and it also sounds like you have a hole in your intake somewhere. Inspect the ribs, ruptures like to hide...

[losichu]

No check engine light. I just wish it would get warmer so I wouldn't be freezing out there when I try to check these things out. Is there a certain temperature thermostat that is more beneficial than another?

[oakley]

Personally dont think 10 mins to heat up is excessive..especially if its cold outside...it should however reach the centre point and stay there.....

[Kraln]

Try running a tank of premium (93+) through it. The idle still sounds to me like there's a leak somewhere in the intake

[cosmos schwarz]

i know exactly whats with the long warm up. your thermostat is stuck open. you require a new one, get a 92degree, i think the 88 is now obselete, well i couldnt find one. the rough idle is your idle control valve, it needs cleaning or replacing, pain in the ass, you'll need to take the inlet manifold off. just get a garage to do it, i'm doing mine soon by myself. i've been meaning to do it for years, lol, no really.

main thing, dont worry about it, my car's stat was knackered for ages it wont do any harm if you dont rev the nuts off it before its warm. the idle issue, it just sounds crap in front of your mates, no rush. just plan on doing it.

[losichu]

I failed to mention one thing.. The guy I bought the car off of just changed the rad because it began to seep a little from one of the fins. Could it be an air pocket keeping it from warming up (although I thought that would tend to warm up the car quicker). I opened the hood with the car on today and it seems that most of the noise is coming from where all the pulleys are, not quite sure what to think of that. It was a little noisy coming from the valve cover area also. Don't know whats causing the idle to stick still, but I will be pulling out the ICV this weekend and cleaning it out, I've done it once before on my old ti, hopefully it fixes the problem. Is there an advantage to having a 92 degree thermostat versus an 88? What does that mean?

[Philly]

what year is your new TI?

mine is a 98' and equipped with that god awful breather thing (second to the normal intake)...
my problem is that does not stay fully closed and causes my gross sound at idle (until it warms up)... i lost one of the connector bolt thingers. Also, don't mind me with my technical names and know-how for the parts lol

mine also has a rough idle though.. like i can feel a surge under my butt when at a stop... but i also know one of my plug chambers has become a good friend with a wee bit of oil.. im going to replace my valve cover gasket and plugs once it warms up a little and hopefully all will go away. Ill let you know if that solves my problem once i get it done.

[dave45056]

I got the impression that your ti was newer than 95... as in 96-99? and a US version, too? If so, there is not an ICV on your car. You'd be wasting your time looking for it.

I would try bleeding the air out of the system. There is a bleed screw on the radiator next to the fill. It has a big x on it for a screwdriver. the way to do thi is to wait for the car to be cold. Turn the key on (do not start) then put the heater temp on full hot. Loosen the bleed screw and fill the radiator to the line on the resevoir marked Kault. slowly add fluid until some comes out of the bleed screw. Tighten everything up and you are good to go. I find it's helpful to park your car on a slight incline when doing this.

Also, I think you should invest in a new thermostat and pay attention to the installation orientation. It may make all the difference in the world.

[losichu]

Alright, I ordered some magnecor wires (8mm) to hopefully counteract the "gallop" coming out of the exhaust. How long should a car go between changing the plugs/wires? The plugs were changed 35,000 miles ago but the plug wires I can't find a date for which they were changed, and I have the records from when the car had 47,000 miles. Now that it has 108,000, I think its time to change them

[losichu]

Strange, I thought I updated this, but it didn't take. I took the car to advance auto parts and had the cel checked, which went off earlier this week (I haven't tuned up the car yet). Here are the codes.

DTC (Codes)
p1174 manfacurer cntrol. fuel air metering

DTC Pending (codes)
p0300 random/multiple cylinder malfunction
p0302 cylinder 2 misfire
p0303 cylinder 3 misfire
p0304 cylinder 4 misfire
p0170 fuel trim malfunction (bank 1)

What does this mean? Camshaft sensor faliure? I have plugs and wires to put in tomorrow, so I will see if it fixes the misfire, although I get the feeling that this is much more involved. I hear something about replacing the intake gasket and MAF sensor. Anybody know? Where should i start?

[cooljess76]

Definately check the hoses going to the intake. It only takes a small leak to cause mifires and give bad readings. As far as the warming up thing, check to see if your heater blows hot air. If not, you'll need to burp your system. I do agree with everyone that your thermostat may be stuck open allowing coolant to flow constantly and not allowing the engine to heat up properly. Since you said you just got the car, it wouldn't hurt to check and see if the previous owner didn't just remove it completely. It's really easy to check, just keep a drain pan handy as you'll lose alot of coolant when you remove the housing from the block. Does your temperature drop at higher speeds? If so, time to change the t-stat.

[momorugger]

well, my 1999 ti has a rough idle as well. I just replaced the thermostat, i guess with the 92 degree, and it will be in the middle of the temp guage w/in 3 mins @ 15 degrees. however, at idle, it sounds and feels like I've got an old American muscle car V8. the whole thing shakes and makes everybody in the neighborhood pissed off. could an aftermarket exhaust cause this kind of rough idle? sure enough, I check my vacuum hoses, and my fuel injector is broken, so I have a bolt in the hose for now, but there is not an improvement in the idle. anybody else with a similar prob?

[oakley]

3 mins to get to mid temp from cold? surely thats too fast? Im obviously only going on my car but on average from cold im looking at 10mins i reckon...should i be looking at chjanging my thermostat too than? I know my hot air isnt particularly hot....Also the garage mentioned that where my thermostat goes into the engine it may have a small leak but nothing to worry about at the moment...Any advice!?