Weird EA81 problem

[jeffroid]

I have an '83 FWD five speed sedan that I picked up about 1.5 years ago. I put a clutch in it and tuned it up and have been driving it to work 40 miles each way ever since without a hitch. The car has been amazing - cruises at 70mph and gets 26 mpg.

 

Then all of a sudden Tuesday morning it died on the way to work. Just quit running at cruising speed and started making this loud hissing sound. I was able to coast to the shoulder. After cranking it, waiting a minute, cranking it, waiting a minute for about ten minutes, it started up and I made it to work no problem. The thing is, I could still hear a new hissing sound from inside the car, much more audible at high throttle.

 

At lunch time I went out and tried to trouble shoot it without success. None of the emissions stuff or anything looked blown up or anything. What was weird is that I couldn't hear the hissing sound over the engine racing to figure out where it was coming from when I raced the throttle by hand, but could still hear it noticibly inside the car - not at idle, but when goosing the gas pedal.

 

It made it home from work fine Tuesday night, so I decided to risk driving it back to work Wednesday. Made it to and from work OK, but could still hear the hissing from inside the car, most noticeably at high throttle. Again, when trying to race the throttle by hand with the hood up it is impossible to hear the hissing enough over the racing engine to figure anything out.

 

I foolishly drove it to work again today (Thursday) and it died again on the way to work. Again I was able to get it off to the shoulder and it restarted. I stayed in the right lane and nursed it into work at 45-50 without any further symptoms. Took it out for lunch today and it ran fine on the surface streets. Same story with the hissing.

 

Then on the way home from work it died again and left me stuck in a really bad spot on I-405. Man, I was pissed at myself for being so stupid. I was stuck on a little island in between the main flow and an on-ramp. It took a lot longer this time, but it eventually restarted and I took of for the next exit ramp. It started to die again, but this time restarted itself while I was coasting so that I could make it to the exit and coast down the ramp. It was still running, but died at the first light. I was still facing downhill so I was able to get it going enough with the starter to get it off the road.

 

Again, after a few minutes it started, and I was able to drive it all the way home on surface streets, taking me over an hour. It ran fine with the only symptom the same hissing that you can hear in the car, but not so much outside with the hood up.

 

Any ideas ? ? ? I am going to have a heck of time troubleshooting it now because it runs fine in the yard and around the neighborhood, but there is no way I am taking it on the highway again.

 

Thanks for taking the time to read this novel. Any help is greatly appreciated.

[GeneralDisorder]

Hhhmmm - sounds like a vacuum leak perhaps. I would spray around with carb cleaner or brake cleaner and see if the idle changes.

 

GD

[4x4_Welder]

It sounds like a plugged catalytic converter, a vacuum leak would tend to be more prevelant at idle/lower throttle settings.

[86BRATMAN]

Hissing, maybe a carb gasket?

[jeffroid]

Thanks for all the ideas. If it stops raining long enough tomorrow I'll get a chance to do some proper troubleshooting and report back if I find anything.

 

In the meantime I'm wracking my brain trying to figure out how it could be driving down the highway just fine, then die for no apparent reason, then not start back up again until it sits for several minutes.

 

That and the hissing sound that I can only really hear when I am inside the car and goosing the gas pedal or accelerating hard.

[DaveT]

r when I am inside the car and goosing the gas pedal or accelerating hard.

 

 

A few thoughts:

 

The 2 things may not be related, just coincidence.

 

Maybe a bad bearing alternator, water pump, idler?

 

A 3' long 1/2 ID tube can help localize noises around the engine.