More Failalier Failure?

[ASIAN JUL]

Okay, well, the other problem got resolved I guess because the check engine light eventually went away. But now it's back on. It's due for an oil change, and I'm getting the brake pads and rotors replaced tomorrow because I was lazy and stupid and they've needed a change for over a month.

BUT. New problem! When it idles, I swear to dog, it feels like there are people in my back seat fornicating. No joke. If I'm at a red light, the car rocks back and forth and the RPMs jump around a little bit below 500 and above 500 repeatedly. It's honestly the weirdest thing I've ever felt and no one I've asked so far has known what it was. It happens when I'm in drive and I put it in park when it was doing it, and it still did it.

Any idea of what this could be? It's very strange, and the brake pads/rotors are already gonna put me in the hole tomorrow because of the vacation I took from work.

Thanks guysss

[CleanNeon98]

Sounds like you may have a bad motor mount causing the engine to rock back and forth excessively and shake the car. Does it shake more when it is in drive rather than in park?

[Elliott18t]

sounds kind of like a misfire to me.

[ASIAN JUL]

Originally Posted by CleanNeon98

Sounds like you may have a bad motor mount causing the engine to rock back and forth excessively and shake the car. Does it shake more when it is in drive rather than in park?

It feels the same to me in both drive and park, sometimes it's not too bad, other times I feel like people must look at my car and think people are screwing like rabbits in the back. It depends on how long I'm sitting there, though, I think. If it's just a quick delay, it's not too bad. When I'm there for a few minutes though, it gets bad.

[Elliott18t]

how is it when driving/while you/car shifting?

[ASIAN JUL]

Originally Posted by Elliott18t

how is it when driving/while you/car shifting?

Well, sometimes starting from a stop, it seems to rock a little and then go.. higher gears I wouldn't know because I haven't been driving far with it except for the airport on Sunday.

[CleanNeon98]

Originally Posted by Elliott18t

sounds kind of like a misfire to me.

It's contageous

Julez, sounds like engine mounts to me...feels "spongy" when you press the pedal?

[ASIAN JUL]

Originally Posted by CleanNeon98

It's contageous

Julez, sounds like engine mounts to me...feels "spongy" when you press the pedal?

Explain spongey please?

[Vr-4-Life]

does it jerk when you let off the gas? x2 on mounts lol

[CleanNeon98]

Originally Posted by MyCarIsFTL

Explain spongey please?

Like you press the pedal and there is a delay until the car starts to accelerate...soft and unresponsive a.k.a. spongy

Start up the car, let it warm up. Open the hood and just let it idle, see if the engine is rocking back and forth...it shouldn't, if it is, you got old mounts.

Year and miles on car?

[Elliott18t]

Originally Posted by MyCarIsFTL

Well, sometimes starting from a stop, it seems to rock a little and then go.. higher gears I wouldn't know because I haven't been driving far with it except for the airport on Sunday.

does kinda sound like engine mounts now.

but the CEL made me

[ASIAN JUL]

Originally Posted by Vr-4-Life

does it jerk when you let off the gas? x2 on mounts lol

Yeah, that's what I was trying to describe lol

Originally Posted by CleanNeon98

Like you press the pedal and there is a delay until the car starts to accelerate...soft and unresponsive a.k.a. spongy

Kinda.

Originally Posted by Elliott18t

does kinda sound like engine mounts now.

but the CEL made me

CEL?
In need of non-car-knowledgeable-person terms

[CleanNeon98]

Originally Posted by Elliott18t

does kinda sound like engine mounts now.

but the CEL made me

I know on some standard trans cars, bad engine mounts can cause for grinds going into gear because the motor tilts too much and interrupts the gear linkages from being properly aligned. Maybe there is something that happens with automatics that happens and causes a CEL.

[Elliott18t]

Originally Posted by MyCarIsFTL

CEL?
In need of non-car-knowledgeable-person terms

Check Engine Light. you said it came back on.

[ASIAN JUL]

Oooh, I gotcha. Yeah, it's back on. But it may be unrelated to the idling issue. Could be just cause I need an oil change. Or, since the Failalier's "CEL" comes on every other week, ya know.. I'm just getting used to it.

[CleanNeon98]

Try to do what I said, go outside start up the car let it warm up etc. and look under the hood to see if the motor is moving around.

[Vr-4-Life]

beyond that.... have some one put it from park to drive to see if the motor rocks back when it shifts... it most likely will if a mount or two are bad.

[ASIAN JUL]

Will this stuff be expensive to fix? Lol

[CleanNeon98]

Originally Posted by MyCarIsFTL

Will this stuff be expensive to fix? Lol

Engine mounts usually don't all wear out at once, if they did, your car would be practically undrivable...id guess under 50 bucks per mount and I don't think you have more than 2 that would need to get replaced. Price depends on what kind of mount it is, my civic had 4 mounts. Side mounts cost under 50 each, front and rear cost ~150 per...parts for a cavalier SHOULD be cheaper than for a civic though, and I'm sure you can talk to 03showoffls to get you some cheap used from a junkyard, I'm sure he knows his way around the cars fairly well.

[teh DIRT]

i love these threads, so hysterical. I don't think it is your motor mounts, sure they might be bad and making whatever is causing your engine to shake seem more violent, but motor mounts do not CAUSE rattle or shake, they ALLOW it.

If you have an automatic, and want to test the mounts. Sit in the car with it running in park, apply your brakes and then shift it into drive....the motor will torque but shouldn't move more than an inch. Do the same test from park into reverse.