Lack of power, brake and pwr steering stiff after tune up

[95AstroRWD]

Following a tune-up, my van is driving poorly. It's work to drive! Gas pedal is giving resistance to the point my leg is fatigued after driving! Power steering and brakes stiff. I had it back at shop for a second try. Still acting up! Looking for advice regarding next step. I had a feeling the mechanic wasn't sure if he really had it figured out because he said he hadn't had a chance to drive it. He suggested I take it and bring it back if it was still acting up. He said he replaced the idle air control or motor, not sure which right now after checking for vacuum leak.

Thanks in advance,
Julie

[astro355]

Are you saying its actually harder to push down the gas pedal after you got the van back from the garage?

And do you know why the IAC was changed? Was it throwing a code?

The lack of power brakes and steering don't surprise me with a poor running engine. They will fall into line once the engine is running right.

[95AstroRWD]

The gas pedal has a feeling of resistance rather than the easy light touch it usually requires to depress. The van was in for a starting issue: cranked a long time before engine would turn over. After checking fuel pump pressure etc, the mechanic said he replaced the fuel pressure regulator and performed a tune-up. He then mentioned that the 5th cylinder wasn't firing and the right side of the engine wasn't heating up. He called a couple of weeks later to tell me the van was ready for pick up. I picked up the van and noticed the problems right away. I think he did get a code on the IAC because he said he got a check engine light on it.

Hope this is helpful. I'm bummed about how my van is driving. I love the vehicle for its get up and go, ease of steering etc.

Thanks,
Julie

[95AstroRWD]

I should mention that the van only had the starting issue when it went to the shop. It was running fine other than that and was starting after it would crank over a number of times. I got it in the shop to prevent sitting somewhere with it having to be towed.

Julie

[Matrixx]

Hi 95AstroRWD

The throttle cable is very sensitive and prone to bending, binding and crimping. If the mechanic didn't route the cable properly, then it will bind for sure, This has happened to me a couple of times, it's important the cable sits in a nice looped fashion without any kinks in it. He would have had to remove the throttle cable in order to do the Regulator.

Either the cable needs to be replaced or re-routed to not bind, It doesn't take much to get a kink or bur in the cable, and if that has happened (which is very easy to do) then the cable will need to be replaced. Either way, the mechanic needs to fix this, it's not going to fix itself and it will not go away and that's for certain.

Take it back and tell the mechanic the cable is binding and that's why it's stiff. Have him test drive as well if you can get him to do that the next time you take the vehicle in. I would do this as soon as possible, because from my own experience, it usually gets worse. Hope this helps. Please keep us updated, Thanks.

[astro355]

I asked about the IAC because that's one of those parts that don't need to be changed as much as they are, like ECMs. The code(s) related to the IAC circuit are usually caused by a vacuum leak or the IAC being out of adjustment (usually from carbon buildup).

I find it really odd that you mention the mechanic did a tune-up and then cylinder #5 started missing. Can you go into anymore detail about how only half of the engine block was heating up? Again, another problem after he did a tune-up?

Yeah, the cable could easily be kinked, unless for some reason he replaced the return spring on the TB (or added another one).

[95AstroRWD]

Ok, after going over it again, I realized I have the order of things a bit off. I took the van in for starting issue. Suggested it might be ready for a tune-up. Mechanic called to say that after the tune-up he was finding the trouble with cylinder #5 and the right side of engine not heating up. A couple of days later he called to say the van was ready. He said he replaced the fuel pressure regulator which seemed to fix the trouble in the 5th cylinder. Also, after returning the van because of lack of power, steering, brake issue, the IAC was replaced. Mechanic said there was no charge as he found he had a used one he could put in. After this, it is still having all these issues.

Julie

[95AstroRWD]

I'm taking the van in again tomorrow morning. I will mention the throttle cable. I really appreciate the responses to my posts.
I'm feeling more confident this issue is going to have a resolution!

I belong to the Asto van Yahoo group but haven't posted in a long time. Seems like an active group here. Nice.

Julie

[Matrixx]

Everything is fixable 95AstroRWD.

Please keep us updated if you can, Thanks.

[astro355]

Yeah, definitely let us know. I find it really odd that the mechanic is claiming that a fuel pressure regulator would fix a misfire that occurred in only one cylinder.

[95AstroRWD]

Still no update on my van. Each time the mechanic has it, it's about 3 weeks..........then I call and he says he'll get back soon or he'll say it is actually ready. The last time around with the IAC, he gave the indication he wasn't sure if he had the problem solved, but said I could pick it up and try it out, then bring it back if it acted up still. That's what I had to do........take it back. I think because troubleshooting is taking more time, he is moving it in and out of the bay to work on it. My brother in law lives near the shop. He says it is in and out of the shop.

I'll be sure to update when I have info.

Julie

[Matrixx]

Thanks for the updates 95AstroSWD. I'm curious to find out what happened here. Thanks.

[95AstroRWD]

Finally I can update on my Astro. Got it back after a long stay at the repair shop. I get the feeling the problem was more time consuming than the mechanic was able to handle. It now has adequate power which is a big improvement. Still have the steering issue which didn't start till after initial work was done. May be a coincidence, I guess. The steering is stiff at times, requiring the wheel to actually be helped back back coming out of a turn. It sometimes feels normal. Steering generally feels odd. Brakes seem to be require the normal pressure to apply.

Any suggestions? I won't be taking it to the same repair shop.

Thanks,
Julie

[95AstroRWD]

Forgot to mention that I really wasn't given any detail as to what fixed the lack of power issue. The mechanic said he cleaned the fuel injectors and also had another mechanic in to look it over. Sorry I can't give more detail as to what was done. It was in and out of the garage on several occasions so I know it was tinkered with. I'm glad that issue is resolved at least. I love the light tight to th gas pedal now. It gets up and goes again.

Julie

[Matrixx]

Hi 95AstroRWD

Wow, That did take some time to get resolved. I'm glad the throttle cable is fine now. The next thing I would suggest here is when you can, take it to an alignment just to get them look over things. Just tell them what your having problems with and see what they can find for you at this point. You might want to consider another place to have the work done on your vehicle 95AstroRWD, it shouldn't have taken anywhere near that amount of time to get things sorted out. Just a suggestion, and thanks for the Updates.