hello all, im having a problem and i know nothing of what it could be. first of all the first problem im having started after i hit a really large puddle going about 45 mph, the car started putting and it did that for about 3 days. i thought it was probably because things got wet and needed time to dry. well that problem went away but when i start my car now it idles at 1500rpms or a little above. it does this untill the car is all warmed up then its back between 500 to 800 rpms. my car also has a bad vibration to it now and it seems like it is losing alot of power. on the highway today i was looking at my rpms and they hit about 3000rpms at about 65mph then they sit between 2000 and 2500 while im giving it gas and the car wont go above 75mph. i was hoping someone could maybe give me an idea on what could cause this as i bought the car for 500 dollars and really dont wont to take it to a shop and put more money then the car is worth. well thank you for the help in advance and sorry its so long.

 

What is overall condition of your car? I am sure you will get many replies telling you to do general maintenance items, like plugs, wires, cap and rotor, filters, maf, 02/knock/coolant temp sensor checks, read the codes and run water remover/injector cleaner thru the fuel system. You'd have to diagnose your car better.
Your RPMs are Okay for the speed if it's VG automatic. You are not even telling us what kind of car you have...

 

sorry its a 91 gxe automatic and the car ran great before i hit the huge lake

 

run some fuel line deicer/demoisturizer through. do as tarzan says. wait for wiking to tell you what the good possibility of it being is, check that, and find out hes right!

 

the condition you are describing to me sounds like one of your fuel injector are gone or almost about to go,

so check those fuel injectors and see if they are working okay,

 

clean your grounds and make sure your dist. cap thingy is not wet and make sure the car is in D and not 1

 

try some wire drier, you may have old wires that are crossfiring at higher RPM

 

I think the idle at 1500 until car is slightly warm is normal, then again, I could be wrong.

but for the later described symptoms, maybe it may be caused by a failing of the MAF, maybe some water got inside the intake, condensated on the MAF element and caused a short out, which will cause the MAF to work intermittenly. So, try looking at your air filter, see if it's wet, then figure your way out from there. I wouldn't rule out the injectors, but from what you describe, it sounded like all your problems started right after driving through a puddle, so I think the problem is more of an electrical short. Check all your electrical connectors in the engine compartment.

 

My VG Maxima had a bad shake like that and it turned out to be a valve. I'd do a compression test on each cylinder and make sure they are all within spec.

 

I am assuming the 91 does not have a coil on plug ignition. Water getting on the plugs and plug wires may have caused arcing of the ignition spark. This can lead to carbon tracking - a short circuit of the high voltage spark. This usually occurs on the spark plug boots or on the plug ceramic insulator.

 

I'd check for a bad fuel injector myself.

 

Careful now. Be always suspicious.

"large puddle going about 45 mph"
- this indicates flood in the ark - biblical proportions... Even Noah didnt experience this, his stables went dry.

Again, Do the Tarzans muscle exercises, and off u swing... My guess is that you got water inside cap, needs to be dried, it wont go away by pushing pedal. Any other sensor harness further away from heat (engine) may keep wet conditions for long periods, shorting.

Check Charge voltage.

 

wow u had to do sumthin really bad to deserve a punishment that bad. havin no choice but to drive under 75 has to suck really bad. hope you can get it fixed man