Montero - Gen 2.5, Reduced Power & Check Engine Light

[nwoods]

Going up a long steep grade today, truck in Drive with O/D off, was about three quarters of the way up the hill, hitting about 4,000 RPM when the engine hesitated, the CEL light came on (amber not red), and I lost power. Temp gauge right in the middle, no other warning lights on.

I pulled over at top of hill and shut it all down for ten minutes, but it was idling ok before killing the engine. It started right back up fine and I drove the rest of the way to my destination (another 50 miles or so), and it ran okay, but still had CEL lit up and it didn't feel quite as peppy as normal.

I'm stumped.

Any ideas?

 

[Clem]

No solution, but I had the check engine light come on on our last road/camping trip (while I was driving). It went out by the time we got home (while my wife was driving...I guess the Monty likes her more than me:sombrero. Maybe 100 miles of driving after the light came on.

Do you have a OBDII reader? Maybe post the code?

Good luck!

Clem

 

[nwoods]

Do you have a OBDII reader? Maybe post the code?

I don't. Wish I did! My other car stopped running a few weeks ago. Who ever is running my life has been listening to too much Country Music lately I think.

 

[bikerjosh]

clogged fuel filter? total shot in the dark.

 

[nckwltn]

nwoods, you should look at ultragauge, it's 60 bucks or so... but adds a lot of ODB2 monitoring (mpg, fuel usage, horsepower, torque figures, etc) and will give you code reads, plus give you a heads up if there is some sensor that is faulting that might be about to throw a code.

http://www.ultra-gauge.com/ultragauge/

I'm wondering if the FSM has anything about a "limp" mode. I would think that the montero isn't advance enough to have a limp mode though.

 

[nwoods]

nwoods, you should look at ultragauge, it's 60 bucks or so...
http://www.ultra-gauge.com/ultragauge/

Yeah, I've been wanting to get an OBDII. I was looking at iPhone adaptors, but got confused. There are tons of plug in transponders for $10-$15, but the Apps seems like they cost $200 with the necessary options. I haven't figured out the software. I keep hearing about how great the Torque app is, but I think that's Android only.

 

[nckwltn]

Yeah, I've been wanting to get an OBDII. I was looking at iPhone adaptors, but got confused. There are tons of plug in transponders for $10-$15, but the Apps seems like they cost $200 with the necessary options. I haven't figured out the software. I keep hearing about how great the Torque app is, but I think that's Android only.

I think there is something to be said for a device that is dedicated to one purpose. I get in, the thing is automatically up and running when the car is turned on. Doesn't matter if I'm driving or my wife, it's tracking economy, miles (to let me know when I should change the oil) and a plethora of other useful items.


I don't like the idea of buying an app for your phone that may not be supported in just a few short years. Or what if you switch from Android to IOS and the apps don't cross over? my $.02, stick to a stand alone device for odb2.




**Edit**

well, stand alone or dedicated... if you've got something that lives in your rig dedicated to ODB2, and can do maps and other cool thing... I think that works too. Just be prepared to have it not all work 2-3 years down the road after an operating system update.

 

[nwoods]

Well, the CEL went away today, and it's running fine. Actually, after the initial hesitation going up that hill, it's been just fine, though the light has been on for the past 150 miles.

Had the fault code pulled out of memory this morning and it said "P0306 - misfire #6 cylinder".

A code P0306 may mean that one or more of the following has happened:
Faulty spark plug or wire
Faulty coil (pack)
Faulty oxygen sensor(s)
Faulty fuel injector
Burned exhaust valve
Faulty catalytic converter(s) Running out of fuel
Poor compression
Defective computer

Read more at: http://www.obd-codes.com/p0306

In my case, it could be spark plugs, as these are kinda old, but it could also be fuel related. I'm going to see if I can find the fuel filter today and check it out.

 

[drfreema]

I bought this:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BRNUCBG/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
And use Torque Lite to read it (free):
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.prowl.torquefree

Works like a charm. The paid version of Torque is only $5. I think it only works on Android.

 

[Clem]

Well, the CEL went away today, and it's running fine. Actually, after the initial hesitation going up that hill, it's been just fine, though the light has been on for the past 150 miles.

Had the fault code pulled out of memory this morning and it said "P0306 - misfire #6 cylinder".

A code P0306 may mean that one or more of the following has happened:
Faulty spark plug or wire
Faulty coil (pack)
Faulty oxygen sensor(s)
Faulty fuel injector
Burned exhaust valve
Faulty catalytic converter(s) Running out of fuel
Poor compression
Defective computer

Read more at: http://www.obd-codes.com/p0306

In my case, it could be spark plugs, as these are kinda old, but it could also be fuel related. I'm going to see if I can find the fuel filter today and check it out.

Glad the light went out for you...Man that code seems all over the place from defective computer all the way to bad spark, jeez.

Clem

 

[nwoods]

I am thinking it was just a matter of having bad gas

I just went up the same hill yesterday, same driving parameters, and no problems. As a precaution (and with 190k miles on it) I purchased a new fuel filter. No idea how old the previous one was

 

[SirFrancisDrake]

Don't mean to derail your thread... but does anyone with an obd2 reader have problems with it not turning off when you turn the car off? I have an ultragauge, and sometimes it will not power down when the car is turned off. Other times it powers down fine with the car.

 

[nckwltn]

Don't mean to derail your thread... but does anyone with an obd2 reader have problems with it not turning off when you turn the car off? I have an ultragauge, and sometimes it will not power down when the car is turned off. Other times it powers down fine with the car.

Sometimes the UG takes a little longer to turn on, I usually notice this when at the gas station trying to reset my fuel level... but no problems with it not turning off....

Although, if I do plug it into another car, and then back into my montero, it will sit on the discovering gauges screen until I start the car up.

 

[complex]

Where is the OBDII plug on the gen 2.5 monteros? I am considering getting an adapter to use with my phone during my hunt for my montero. Is the idea of hooking the OBDII adapter to check things out during a test drive realistic? Or is it more complicated than I am thinking?

 

[vanatee2000]

in US models its down by where your left foot would be if you are driving, if i remember correctly. all you would probably use it for would be to see if there are any stored codes. using it to live scan/record parameters like shift points, engine% usage, etc. is probably out of the realm of a regular test drive, in my opinion.