2000 Vauxhall Astra Throttle response/acceleration issue

JASONR24

MEMBER
2000 VAUXHALL ASTRA
4 CYL
FWD
MANUAL
94,000 MILES

I have recently bought a 2000 X reg Vauxhall Astra Coupe Bertone 16V 1.8L, it has an Irmsher badge and wind deflector but im not sure whether it has been tuned by them or not. I bought the car knowing of only a few minor problems and have opened up a can of worms. I have had a new cambelt fitted, new disc brakes, tires and new power steering pump which are electrical on this model, when I first got the car it went very quickly, now after about a month, it is not going above 90MPH and when I put my foot down the engine does nothing and takes about 10 seconds to respond and then accelrates. The car has a fly by wire (electrical) and not a cable for the throttle, I found this out when I was trying to figure out the problem, I first thought it was the air flow regulator, which I unplugged but found this did not solve the problem and this should have turned the engine management light on, which it didnt. The air filter was very dirty but this did not solve anything either. I was told it mite have been a cat failure or a blocked exhuast but this was not the problem because it idled fine and when reved in first and neutral it was fine. Another idea was it was either the injectors or the throttle, I am not sure what to do now and it is getting dangerous not being able to pull out in fear of the engine not responding and not moving. Please can you help.

Thank you for your time and help

3 Replies

DAVE H

MECHANIC
13,384 POSTS

Hello.

Does the engine management light show at any time ?? sounds like you may have a faulty TPS (throttle position sensor) or maybe a loose/bad wire to it .. but this should be turning on the MIL on the dash display !! do you have a haynes manual for the vehicle ? .. if so check the TPS mounted on the throttle body !

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Tuesday, March 24th, 2009 AT 7:52 PM

JASONR24

MEMBER
2 POSTS

Hi thanks for taking the time to reply. No the engine management light doesnt come on at all, which is why I am suspecting an ECU problem. Im hoping this is not the case, although it would make sense because Vauxhall thought it was a good idea to mount the ECU to the engine... Something that gets very hot and vibrates alot, I dont see the logic. Im hoping its just a loose wire, but it is hard to access these parts of the car due to the hassle of getting the right tools to undo the bolts, which for some reason are unique to this car. I do not have a haynes manual for the car, I may need to do so. I will have to see if it is the TPS, are these a lot to replace? This car has already cost me alot, its frustrating that more things are going wrong!

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Wednesday, March 25th, 2009 AT 11:57 AM

DAVE H

MECHANIC
13,384 POSTS

Does the MIL show @ KOEO (key on engine off) does it show for a few (5/10) seconds when you turn ignition on ? the MAF sensor will go to it's default values when unplugged so this will not affect the fault if the MAF sensor (mass air flow) is already running at it's default value due to a fault ... but as you say this should set a fault code and bring on the MIL .. you could try a MAF cleaner from an autoparts store !!

let me know