help with vauxhall vectra....

wannabemillionaire

hi guys hope iv posted this in the right place!

i could really do with a bit of advice. i have a 2001 vauxhall vectra and 3 weeks ago the engine management light came on and the car started to become very bumpy and lose power. we got a mobile mechanic to come out who did a diognostic test that said there was a problem with 'injector 3' he replaced that and we thought all would be fine. the next day we went to use it , aftr driving for 10 mins it began to do it again. he came back out at the end of the week and said he just needed to reset the 'brain' of the car, the went to use it 30 mins after hed gone and it did it again! wev since took it to another mechanic (because the other one switched his phone off and wouldnt respond to ne of our voicmails :eek: )who said it could possibibly need new spark plugs or a new coil, wev replaced both and it is STILL doing it!!!
im really at the end of my tether! any help would be greatly appreciated!!!

Rachael

Enfieldian

I was going to say the coil pack but I see that you have already had this changed.

Was it new or from a scrappy?

The same thing happened with mine, 2002 2.2 SRi, and a replacement coil pack and new spark plugs fixed it.

wannabemillionaire

thank you so much for the reply!
the coil pack and injector were from a scrappy, the spark plugs were new tho. i suggested that either the coil pack or the injector had been replaced with another broken one to my partner so will have to get that looked in to. thanks again!

Hammyman

Why not just take it to a main dealer and get a proper diagnosis done? It would have worked out far cheaper to pay £80 for a diagnostic than what you've paid for bits so far based on half baked diagnosis from a mobile mechanic whose training probably consisted of once fixing his moped..

And as you've got the parts from scrap yard, you have absolutely no idea if they were any better than what you took out. Also as brand new coil packs are less than £50 and new injectors not much more then why fanny around getting used ones where you have absolutely no idea how much mileage they've done?

wannabemillionaire

we got the second hand parts as we were told that a single injector would cost £120 brand new and a coil would be about £100. and we just cant afford that, though your probably right, they may not cost that much but i don't know much about cars, hence why i have come here for some advice. we've had a diagnostic done at 2 separate places and both came up the same so i don't think that the diagnostics what is at fault. have had the parts checked now and they are all working fine, so still in search of an answer....?

Hammyman

So obviously the diagnostics weren't right were they? As I said, take it to a dealer and get a proper diagnosis done with the proper computer and test gear that comes from the manufacturer and done by mechanics who have had specific manufacturer based training and lots of experience with that specific model instead of just randomly throwing money at what MIGHT be the problem.

colino

Poor interpretation of the diagnostics. Is the car well serviced? (a coil pack from a scrappy doesn't count), if so I'd get a decent coil pack in it and if it still isn't up to par, disconnect the MAF and see what difference that'll make. If it then runs poorly, you really need a proper diagnostic and even then, a good techy who will know about unusual faults on the Vectra, such as the potential duff ecu earth, to get it right.
All in all, the Vectra is one of the most common cars on the road and every, decent, methodical tech would have sorted it first time.

laurence_p

what engine is it. camshaft or crankshaft sensor possible fault. you need to look on vauxhall owners network {google it}.i think there is a way of reading the codes without going to vauxhall.

Hammyman

laurence_p wrote: »

.i think there is a way of reading the codes without going to vauxhall.

Oh. Dear. This is everything that is wrong with modern vehicle mechanics. Fault codes don't tell you everything. They merely tell you what the engine management THINKS is wrong. They should be used only as a start point for diagnosis. An experienced mechanic would know that certain fault codes can point to one thing but actually be a completely different issue and what that issue is.

illgetthere

have you considered the ever reliable egr valve?

mikey72

Injector number three is often a fault with the connector plug on some models.
Pull it off and have a look, if it's burnt or dirty, get a new plug fitted.