Please help!!! And sorry it's a long message.
I Bought 3rd hand 2002 5 door 1.6 Stilo in May 2008.
Drove OK to start with, then started to feel:
a. pulling to left
b. a diesel - type chugging when in neutral waiting at traffic lights
c. stalling at round-a-bouts, and lights (no comments about my driving please)
d. lack of power accelerating, but surging when changed into third gear upwards
e. 1st gear feeling like it's going to stall (and then somtimes stalling)
f. 2nd gear running way/pulling forward
All this culminated in my car cutting out twice when driving off from parked (I only got 50 yards down the road) - this was during the last week of June 2008 - and the orange engine light came on, display flashed "engine failure" message, and a very scary ping, ping, ping.
RAC man plugged his computer in and said it was MAP sensor fault & cleared the error message.
Took Stilo to garage (not main dealer) for service - as 'Service Due' message had also flashed up. Told garage about MAP sensor fault. When I collected car they said they checked the Map Sensor and found arm, wiring & plug connector OK, though the pin that clips the plug in place had come off and they'd secured it with cable ties because otherwise it was OK. They claimed they had also done the service (i.e. change oil, blah blah). They also noted: Steering Rack Leaking & Gear box Leaking from near side drive shaft. I drove the car home that same day. All seemed OK, though was still unsure about acceleration (the drive home from the garage is 22 miles).
The next morning I set off for work in the car (to go back the 22 miles) and got 1/2 mile before I lost acceleration, the car started pulling and slowing, I stalled at the traffic lights and when I restarted the engine the engine fault light came on again. Took car back home and called the garage. Returned car to garage one week later and their diagnosis (and I quote): "Code read ECU, Misfire no. 2 detected. Check coils and plugs, no faults found. Reassembled, misfire no longer there, suspect vehicle may have an injector fault, refer to main dealer for diagnostics".
Took car to main dealer. Firstly they said I did not need a new steering rack as it is electric not hydraulic and there are no fluids involved; therefore it can't be leaking (so naturally I now wonder just how reliable the first garage actually is!). The dealer also said the Gearbox would need full clean and good run of 200 miles to then see where the leak is originating (I obviously cannot do this at the moment!). Anyhow, they carried out diagnostics, changed the spark plugs and cleaned the throttle body. I collected the car and drove home (only 2 miles this time) and all seemed well. I had my baby back!!!! After 1 day of the car being parked outside the house, I drove the car 2 miles to the exhaust centre (yes, I also needed a new exhaust) and the car stalled at the lights 1.75 miles into the journey. The car had no power pulling away, and that horrible deisel chugg had come back. I pulled into the exhaust centre, booked the car in and was told 5 mins later by the engineer that as he'd pulled it into the inspection bay the engine fault light had come on. (I have not called myself "depressed" on this forum for nothing).
So far I have spent 500 quid on this 'diganostic' and 'repair' fiasco and am no further forward. I seems that all the things mentioned as soluotions on this forum have all been tried between the two garages I've been to.
Please please are there any ideas forthcoming? The car is back with the main dealer and I'm waiting to hear their verdict this time round.
Thanks......