Hi All,

I've been doing some work on my Punto MK1 1.2 SX60 and it's idling nicely but as soon as I put it into gear and start driving it doesn't want to go. It starts choking and cuts out straight away. Some times its struggles to start and it will take a lot of turning over to get it fired up into idling. It sometimes starts better with a battery charger linked up even when the battery is charged. I changed the water pump a couple of months back and did the timing. Got it running, didn't seam perfect but it was okay. I then changed the exhaust down pipe, LAMBAD sensor, Radiator, Air Filter, Oil Filter, Oil and Spark plugs and once had finished changing these parts this problem has been occurring. I have tried re timing and put a new cam belt in as well as changing the rocker cover gasket as this needed doing. I've also tried new HT leads and a new CAM pulley sensor. I've also put the old spark plugs back in to see if it was them.

I'm unsure of what to do next and want to eliminate as many possibilities as possible before spending on more parts. Could it be the ignition coils or the ECU or some kind of sensor/fuse? I know the rest of my exhaust has holes in it and has spat out some grey material, remanence of the back box or catalytic converter, could that be linked?

All help would be much appreciated, I will try and upload a video of her idling and cutting out later.

Thanks,

Joel

Yes, if the CAT internals collapse, the exhaust flow will be blocked causing the car to loose power. Idle may still be possible if there is limited exhaust flow, but when you open the throttle all the air getting in in the engine will not flow out causing the engine to stall. As you changed and re-checked other possible problems around, checking the exhaust should be your next task to try to fix your problem.