Technical Punto 1.2 Sporting 2002 16v - Engine Cut Out

[Tyrrell5953]

Hi,

I Have posted this on another thread but after thinking about it i think it needs its own as its not directly related (they are both different cars for a start)

I bought a 2002 Punto Sporting 16v about 3 days ago on a sold as seen basis. The owner said he has had some problems with the engine management light coming on and off but when it had its MOT last month he mentioned it and they said they couldn't find anything wrong with it. I didn't think anything of it and drove the car back 125 Miles home with no problems and no light showing.

However once i got home and started some urban driving i noticed the engine cutting out (no juddering) when slowing down and moving in traffic also approaching roundabouts etc. At first i thought it was the way i was driving however i noticed the engine light had come on. At first it was just when i was using low gears and traveling low speeds however it did it when coming off the motor way the other night at around 20 - 30 mph which is when it became dangerous.

I took it to a garage straight away where he said i need a new air intake pipe as it has a homemade one on it at the moment. I got a second opinion from another mechanic and he said that it wouldn't make a difference as it is taking in unfiltered air and their are no sensors on it which wouldn't explain the engine light.

Since taking it to the garage the problem has become intermittent and at the moment it is OK, i am scared to drive it as its both embarrassing and dangerous when it occurs for which it give no warning.

Please advise on what you think my next step should be, i have read on the internet about people with similar problems and they have thrown hundreds at it with no resolve. I have ordered this air filter with fiat and its £20, its needs one anyway but if its not going to solve my problem i could do without forking out money unnecessarily at the moment.

Also i had suspicions about the crank sensor as my brothers car had similar problems and he had his replaced with no problems anymore. However after reading a different thread it mentioned about it struggling to start when hot, i must point out that my car starts back up straight away with no problems except the CODE light (with the key next to it) comes on until i switch off and on again.

Thanks for any help in advance i am really worried about this.

P.S - When starting the engine it keeps fluctuating up and down from 500 to 1000 Rpm for about 30 seconds then it ticks over at about 900 after that. Sometime though the engine cuts out all together when doing this.

 

[Tyrrell5953]

Bump...

I have taken it to a garage today and they plugged it into the engine management computer to look at the fault codes but it didn't come up with anything out of the ordinary. He has cleared the codes and asked me to take it back when it comes on again.

Anybody have any ideas yet?

Thanks

Kyle

 

[mark16v]

i had the same problem last night rac came out and got the error code p1135 Lambda Sensor failed. it was idleing ruff and under aclaration was jumping and cuttimg out.

only think is tho i didnt get no EML light on and the fault was recorded acorind to there little computer 105km ago.

 

[Tyrrell5953]

Thanks for posting i have written that down. The guy at the garage who did the code test said that fiat are a bit sneaky and they sometimes hide error codes so only their computers can read them or something. Anybody else heard of this?

If this is the case dealerships always charge an arm and a leg for even small fixes don't they.

Kyle

 

[mark16v]

well when he read it, it came up as no text code so he got on the phone to there head office and they told him what it was!

 

[The Sultan]

Thanks for posting i have written that down. The guy at the garage who did the code test said that fiat are a bit sneaky and they sometimes hide error codes so only their computers can read them or something. Anybody else heard of this?

If this is the case dealerships always charge an arm and a leg for even small fixes don't they.

Kyle

that's rubish all manufacturers are required to disclose engine emissions related codes to any code scanner and fiat like everyone else do how ether some ecu's can diagnose for them selves things that are not required to be disclosed and there fore have a code that no one knows what it is there's nothing sneaky or illegal about it it's just the eu can't keep up with modern cars these days that's all so in other words what the mechanic was saying is he bought a cheap scanner and it don't know what it is some do some don't depends how much money you spend on them from 20quid off ebay to 6 grand off snap on for example

as your code light was on right after you restarted your car it kind of suggests a power or earth issue to one or more ecu's

the body computer will turn the light off after it receives a reply from the engine ecu that the code is correct as the engine started the ecu received the code and allowed start-up sent it's reply and the body computer never received it hence the light remains after starting also the lack of proper idle learning also suggest power problems during start-up similar to the problems the 8v suffered with hitachi starter motors so first things first check battery charging engine earth and ecu earth

ignoring the code light for a second as it may have just been the way you restarted it quickly and so on

other things that could cause this at low speeds when dipping clutch and such could be the clutch switch the engine ecu may not be getting the signal to hold the idle wile the clutch is in assuming you are still on the overrun and stalling as a result

can you think has it always stalled during a gear change or with the clutch in and virtually no throttle

 

[Tyrrell5953]

Thanks for he response pal its been helpful. My dad has checked the battery issues and cannot see anything out of the ordinary. The car hasn't done it the last 24 hours and the code light is off, however i have changed my driving so i am depressing the clutch before breaking, this seems to have stopped the problem for now.

I only ever happens when little or no throttle and when the clutch is down.

All help is greatly appreciated as even though its sorted now its bound to flare up at some point down the line.

Kyle

 

[The Sultan]

Thanks for he response pal its been helpful. My dad has checked the battery issues and cannot see anything out of the ordinary. The car hasn't done it the last 24 hours and the code light is off, however i have changed my driving so i am depressing the clutch before breaking, this seems to have stopped the problem for now.

I only ever happens when little or no throttle and when the clutch is down.

All help is greatly appreciated as even though its sorted now its bound to flare up at some point down the line.

Kyle

yea that sounds very much like clutch switch

 

[Tyrrell5953]

Just got back form the garage where they narrowed it down to an MAP sensor it was the only code that has come on since clearing them all off and the problem happening. Does this sound like a possible solution to the problem?

Please excuse my ignorance i am new to the technical side of cars...

Thanks

Kyle

 

[The Sultan]

Just got back form the garage where they narrowed it down to an MAP sensor it was the only code that has come on since clearing them all off and the problem happening. Does this sound like a possible solution to the problem?

Please excuse my ignorance i am new to the technical side of cars...

Thanks

Kyle

yes loss of map sensing will stop the engine the ecu cant run without the manifold air pressure so it could be but you must have the wiring checked before you go and fit the sensor or swap the sensor with a known good one if anyone will let you borrow one

or you could let the garage fit it and then aslong as they didn't tell you that it might not fix it it's then up to them to fix it at there cost as it's there bad diagnosis aslong as it's not you requesting the map sensor fitting just simply say give me a quote to fix it lol might get yourself a cheap repair at that

 

[Tyrrell5953]

Car came back from the garage last night, Had a new MAP sensor fitted. Worked brilliantly all night, no problems at all drove it around for about half an hour.


First thing this morning it happened again. Took it straight back to the garage where the engine management said it was the MAP sensor again. t due to go back to the garage on tuesday so they can check the wiring again etc.

Is there anything else i should be looking into or at this stage would it be better to take it to the dealers and ask them to sort it?

Thanks,

Kyle

 

[T14086]

Car came back from the garage last night, Had a new MAP sensor fitted. Worked brilliantly all night, no problems at all drove it around for about half an hour.


First thing this morning it happened again. Took it straight back to the garage where the engine management said it was the MAP sensor again. t due to go back to the garage on tuesday so they can check the wiring again etc.

Is there anything else i should be looking into or at this stage would it be better to take it to the dealers and ask them to sort it?

Thanks,

Kyle

I had similar problem with same engine as you have & MAP sensor errors but cant remember how I cured it Think I stuck on a new lambda sensor which fixed it....or should I say the guy never returned! Git owes me a lambda sensor serves my right for being so trusting

 

[Tyrrell5953]

I had similar problem with same engine as you have & MAP sensor errors but cant remember how I cured it Think I stuck on a new lambda sensor which fixed it....or should I say the guy never returned! Git owes me a lambda sensor serves my right for being so trusting

Confused??? what do you think i should do? change the lambda sensor? would this not have shown up on the engine computer fault finder?

Thankyou,

Kyle

 

[T14086]

You go to see it as each case is different, what might work for one car dont mean it will help another. A quick check of the lambda sensor operation will confirm/disregard this possibility.

(have you check for broken/spilt pipes/hoses?)

 

[Tyrrell5953]

OK Thanks,

It is going to the garage on tuesday so i will see what they say and then let you guys know.

There was a air filter pipe that has been hacked to bits by the previous owner but i replaced this with a factory standard on the other day. everything else from what i can see is in tact.

Something i should mention also is that the previous owner has added some neons and things and so modified the wiring looms from the battery. Could this be a cause of it. The remaining neon is under the bonnet and doesn't work anymore i am going to remove it. When it cuts out there doesn't seem to be a loss of power from the battery as the radio still plays and all the lights remain on. Just thought i should mention it.

Thanks

Kyle

 

[Tyrrell5953]

Please could someone tell me where i would find the breather pipe?

this thread is similar to my problem and says this was the cause of it. My lack of knowledge as always has interveened and i am stuck.

https://www.fiatforum.com/punto-technical/135060-punto-error-codes-help-2.html

If anyone has a picture of where it would be that would be great.

Thanks,

Kyle

 

[Harj]

Dude, it seems like a breather pipe mate. Had exactly the same issues as you are having.

Check out the doc I sent you and let me know how you get on.

 

[sid23456]

Please could someone tell me where i would find the breather pipe?

this thread is similar to my problem and says this was the cause of it. My lack of knowledge as always has interveened and i am stuck.

https://www.fiatforum.com/punto-technical/135060-punto-error-codes-help-2.html

If anyone has a picture of where it would be that would be great.

Thanks,

Kyle

That is the breather pipe:

You can take it off and check for any holes or cuts. If its damaged, it's around £8 from fiat to replace for the 16v

 

[Harj]

Please could someone tell me where i would find the breather pipe?

this thread is similar to my problem and says this was the cause of it. My lack of knowledge as always has interveened and i am stuck.

https://www.fiatforum.com/punto-technical/135060-punto-error-codes-help-2.html

If anyone has a picture of where it would be that would be great.

Thanks,

Kyle

Hey Kyle,

How did you get on with this? I know its been p**sing down for the last few days!!.........

Let us know if you fixed the problem.

 

[Tyrrell5953]

Hey Harj,

I am picking up the part tonight from fiat. I can't get into my bonnet at the moment though because the release cable has snapped at the bonnet end. Fiat quoted me 200 Notes to fix it but i have a friend in the trade says he will fit the sable if i buy it for £30.

Hopefully will be able to fit the new breather pipe in the next day or so and will be able to report back before the weekend.

Kyle