Car Stalling while in Nuetral

MiltonCutie · Post by **MiltonCutie** » April 12th, 2005, 2:08 pm

Ok, sitting at a light, car is in nuetral, foot on the brake and what does my car do? Stall.. hmmm.. never happened before.. been having a problem with my clutch... clutch seems lose like when its in first gear it kinda hops..like i have to rev the car up high in order for car to go.. seems like there is no power.. original mazda battery in the car and its a 95. i dunno.. please help me! =)
I called Mazda to ask them what could possibly be wrong and they dont know.. does anyone know what is wrong here? Maybe its time to sell the car..

MOSES · Post by **MOSES** » April 12th, 2005, 7:15 pm

sell your mx3? wow, big move my friend, if love your car, it can be fixed, any car can be fixed, parts are made to be replaced or repaired, unfortunetly, mx3 parts are a little expensive, but not impossible to get, so, if you want to keep your car, simply get it checked out, i dont recomend going to mazda to get it checked. They only said they dont know was because they want to have your car at their shop, and then drain your wallet.
To me it does sound like a clutch, but could also be other transmision componets, say throw out bearing.
keep us posted

Tunes67 · Post by **Tunes67** » April 12th, 2005, 7:25 pm

Well it sounds like the cluch does need to be replaced (sounds like you have said its slipping when you let out the pedal) but.. that isnt going to cause the engine to stall out. When is the last time you did or had a tune up on the car? The wheel hop can be caused by a number of things, struts, springs, etc.. It does sound like you have more than a couple of problems coming on at the same time. Maybe take it to Canadian Tire and ask one of the guys there to check it out ( I have never been to a Canadian Tire so I dont even know if they offer such a service ).. What its going to come down to is whether or not you want the car. Selling the car and getting a different car could end up having issues as well.. unless you buy a new car.. and then that can get spendy.. Its kind of a financial juggling act really.. would it be cheaper to get the car fixed, buy a different used car (with potential probs) or do you have the cash to just trade it in on something new? First step in my opinion would be to get a complete inspection of the car and find out what is going on and then making a decision on what to do next. Take it to your local Mazda Dealer.. have them inspect it.. But DONT let them do any work to it. Drive away.. and post back with what they found wrong

Hope this helps.

Tunes67

MOSES · Post by **MOSES** » April 12th, 2005, 7:30 pm

yes, mazda would know what the problem is if they had the car, but like tunes said, dont let them work on it. Wheel hop may or not be just a bad clutch, but jsut keep posting

PATDIESEL · Post by **PATDIESEL** » April 12th, 2005, 11:22 pm

A bad or broken wire on the neutral switch will cause it to die in neutral too. The car doesn't know it is in nuetral so it doesn't catch the RPM when it falls and thus dies. It is the plug that comes from under the rear side (firewall) of the tranny. Costs about 50 bucks US for the part and is super easy to replace. Have it checked out.

andy · Post by **andy** » April 13th, 2005, 7:19 am

Another possability, she could be describing the effects of a cracked intake hose. Cheap and easy to fix. get the duct tape out.
miltoncutie, check the plastic ribbed intake hose just before the throttle body for hairline cracks. they can be hard to see. If you find any take that section off and wrap it with duct tape until you can replace it.

Andy 93 GS

MiltonCutie · Post by **MiltonCutie** » April 13th, 2005, 7:53 am

thank you for all your reply's.. i am just gonna have to take it in cause i dont know much about cars.. and me trying to fix it.. well thats a diffrerent story. =)

christexan · Post by **christexan** » April 19th, 2005, 11:56 am

As mentioned, it could be the intake hose, or even airbox, does it "stumble" before stalling (and does revving it a little keep it from stalling?) Mine was a cracked airbox, the MX-3s are very sensitive to any airflow/pressure changes. (Try loosening the oil cap (stall) or lifting the dipstick (RPM drop) while the engine is running, it's amazing how touchy they are (but good for the fact that you'll always know immediately when something is wrong).

Nd4SpdSe · Post by **Nd4SpdSe** » April 19th, 2005, 12:38 pm

Does it only stall when you put the foot on the brake in neutral?