Truck shuts off at idle?

Tiny
DFTBA.16
  • MEMBER
  • 2001 DODGE DAKOTA
  • 4.6L
  • 2WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 212,000 MILES
So, my truck runs fine when I’m driving but when I’m coming to a stop or already stopped it will just shut off. The dash lights will stay on the radio stays on, but the ignition just shuts off as if I turned it off myself. I have to let it sit for 10ish minutes before I'm able to start it up again. I just had the computer fixed for the truck and it has a new battery. I’m lost on whatever it could be.
Friday, June 9th, 2023 AT 6:23 AM

3 Replies

Tiny
CARADIODOC
  • MECHANIC
  • 33,916 POSTS
The clue is you did two things that can cause this, the battery was disconnected, and the Engine Computer was disconnected. Both will cause the Engine Computer to lose its memory. Once you start driving again, sensor personalities and fuel trim data will be relearned without you even noticing. The one notable exception is "minimum throttle". Until that is relearned, idle speed will be too low. The engine may not start unless you hold the accelerator pedal down 1/4". You won't get the nice "idle flare-up" o 1500 rpm at start-up, and it will tend to stall at stop signs.

To meet the conditions for the relearn to take place, drive at highway speed with the engine warmed up, then coast for at least seven seconds without touching the pedals.

Let me know when you've done that.
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Friday, June 9th, 2023 AT 7:18 AM
Tiny
DFTBA.16
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So, the truck was doing this before I got a new computer and battery. Just one day it shut off as I was backing it out and it immediately turned on when I turned the key. A couple days later I was slowing to a red light, and it shut off and took about 5 minutes before it would crank back up. The last time it happened, before I replaced the computer and battery, I was at the grocery store and went inside and came back out after about 30 minutes and the truck just would not crank up. The lights turned on radio worked just fine but it would not crank. It’s been about a week since I’ve had the new computer and battery and just today did the same thing. I stopped to turn into my job, and it shut off and would not crank back up for about 5 minutes. What else could it be? Thanks for replying!
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Friday, June 9th, 2023 AT 7:36 AM
Tiny
CARADIODOC
  • MECHANIC
  • 33,916 POSTS
First, to be sure I'm clear, you said, "The lights turned on radio worked just fine but it would not crank." That's a starter problem, not a running problem. Be sure to correct me if I have this wrong.

Everything else you described can be caused by idle speed that's too low. Rather than waiting a few minutes, just hold the accelerator pedal down 1/4" when trying to start the engine. If that works, do the drive cycle I described. If ide speed is still too low, do that procedure while holding the brake pedal up with your foot. On rare occasions, one section of the brake light switch will vibrate on and off on bumpy roads and cancel the relearn.

Another cause of stalling is a failing crankshaft position sensor or camshaft position sensor. I didn't go down that road because much of what you described doesn't fit. They often begin to fail by becoming heat-sensitive on all car brands. They'll work fine while driving due to normal air flow keeping them cool, but when you stop for a short time with a hot engine, that heat migrates up to the sensors causing one to fail, then it will work again after cooling down for about an hour. There's too much of your description that suggests this is not the cause of the stalling.

If the drive cycle doesn't solve the stalling, you'll need a scanner to view the "idle steps". That has to do with what the Engine Computer is doing to control idle speed. It can place the idle speed motor to one of 256 positions, or "steps. For a properly running engine, step 32 is typical. If you find it at step "0", minimum throttle hasn't been relearned yet. If you find it considerably higher than step 32, the computer is trying to increase idle speed, but without success. We can pursue that too if we need to.
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Friday, June 9th, 2023 AT 4:58 PM

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